Hello from Tantalus Media!
We’ve been making the console ports of Cities: Skylines that were first released on Xbox One and PlayStation 4 back in 2017. Since then, we made the Remastered Editions for Xbox Series and PlayStation 5 in 2023, and have been the main developers on the PC version since 2024. And we’re now proud to bring you an entire new DLC worth of content!
Race Day centers around creating routes for different events to be held through your city. Motor Races can be held on permanent dedicated Race Roads, excluded from the traffic of your existing cities, or hosted in part on an Event Road, temporarily closing sections of roads and ignoring the speed limit.
To host Motor Races within your city, first, we will need to establish where the route will start from and then where it will go. To begin, a Race HQ building can be built from the Parks and Plazas menu - once the Grand City milestone has been reached.
The Race HQ can be found in a new tab in the Parks menu.
The Race HQ is the central control and coordination facility for a motor racing circuit. It contains a starting grid section of racetrack and pit lane with 3 pit garage buildings available.
Make sure there is plenty of space for the Race HQ, as it is quite large and comes with two road segments, one for the race track and one for the pit lane.
Place the Race HQ to unlock Pit Garages and Stands.
Once the Race HQ is built, it will remain “under construction” in the building info as seen below. Now that there is a start and finish to your race track, we can build the track itself!
The newly unlocked road types will be available under the Roads menu. Motor Race Roads come in three visual styles: Motor Racetrack, Motor Racetrack with Single Curb, and Motor Racetrack with Double Curb. Two-way Event Roads and One-way Event Roads can also be used to build the route. You can also build bridges and tunnels with your new roads, so you can get really creative with the layout.
There’s only two things to remember when planning your track, the route must be a loop that connects back to the Race HQ, so that they can start driving multiple laps. The second is that you should keep in mind where the track is placed, as races can be noisy for its neighbors!
Using the Pit Lane and Pit Lane Entry/Exit roads, connect the pit lane to the Race Road. The Pit lane can also be extended in length using the Pit Lane road type - this will be useful for make space for more Pit Buildings, so that more race teams can compete in each race.
Create any shape of track that your heart desires!
Pit Buildings will increase race team capacity of the track, meaning more drivers can compete, up to 32 drivers per race.
As you are building your racetracks, your future spectators may want viewpoints along the track. Stands can be built attached to the sides of the tracks, and they will in turn attract more spectators. We have included three sizes, each with different capacities.
The Small Stand on the left, the Main Stand in the middle, and the Grand Stand on the right.
We have added a new Info View so that you can easily see your completed Event Routes and their direction. The new Info View for Races and Parades can be selected to view valid Event Routes. This view will display valid Event Routes and also displays the direction arrows for race tracks.
Speaking of directions, if you want to change the race direction, you can always use the Change Direction button from the Race HQ if you feel like a change!
The Races and Parades Info View also features a tab to display attractiveness. This is useful for planning and improving the attractiveness of Event Routes. The stands included in the Race Day DLC content can increase attractiveness, but don’t forget about other buildings and services that could be used to increase the attractiveness and draw in spectators!
With a Race HQ, track and stands all completed, we are ready to Schedule an Event!
Select the Race HQ building to open the Event Route Info. This panel displays info about the Race HQ’s route Layout, Expenses, Spectators and Attractiveness. From this panel, events can also be scheduled, viewed and edited. Select Schedule Event or the Schedule tab to get started.
The Race HQ Info tab displays an overview of the building, its scheduled events, and its track details.
From the Schedule tab, add a new event to set the details. The type of race will determine which class of race cars is competing: Hyper Car, Formula, or Circuit Cruisers. Different Tiers will affect the cost, but add more competitors to the event. Laps will affect how long the event will last, and the ticket price can also be set. Set a date and schedule the event to add it to the event queue!
Information on results, progress, and future events can all be viewed at a glance from the Info tab of the Race HQ world info panel.
The space inside a motor racetrack can also be utilised for shopping malls, parking, parks, or anything else that you can come up with. Building public transport routes or extending existing routes to service the Race HQ will make it easier for your citizens to attend racing events!
Be careful if using Event Roads to route the motor race through your city. Depending on the number of laps, the event could affect traffic or other services. Build alternate routes, overpasses, or tunnels so that normal traffic can keep flowing!
There are two new props that can be used to light your city. The aim was to provide something that could suit race tracks as well as other city areas that need some extra light at night. You can find these in the Props tab of the Races and Parades Menu.
Thanks for reading! In the next update, we will cover the other types of events that can be hosted using the Race Day DLC content. We will explain Start and Finish-line parks, the events that can be hosted, and how to ensure your city’s traffic can keep flowing while events are in progress.
Tantalus