Critique this Picture....

[tcx]

Hi, I want your thoughts about this city, should I leave the normal highway or use RHW and get rid of those buildings at the edge of the city tile? That will be a downtown área.

[Swordmaster]

should I leave the normal highway or use RHW

On this question you'll hear many people around these boards prefer RHW. However, RHW is not that easy to handle as a sunken network. If you're gonna leave the MHW you may want to try Project Symphony, too.


Cheers
Willy

[threestooges]

In a dense downtown core, the tighter packed MHW (and Project Symphony version of it) seem to work best for visually approximating the premium that space carries with it. RHW is nice, but I'd keep the MHW if you're happy with it. I know for downtown Los Angeles it gets very tightly packed in terms of lane width, etc. The sunken setup you have here looks quite like that.
-Matt

[tcx]

Thanks Willy and Matt for your advices, I'll look for Project Symphony and keep MHW. 

[Groninger]

looks awesome!

Keep up the good work! 

[cikofte1]

my city Downtown LA







Resized your pictures. Please keep in mind the limit on this website is 1024pixels wide, thank you. - Arthur/moderator

[packersfan]

Nice downtown.  It could use some more parking.  My big criticism is the highway.  I won't tell you to use MHW or RHW, that is your choice (I use both in my city), but the bridges going over the highway should really be leveled and not have such outrageous slopes.  Sink you highway and then your roads can cross over more gradually.

Again, the rest of the downtown looks really good!

[belfastsocrates]

Thanks Willy and Matt for your advices, I'll look for Project Symphony and keep MHW. 

Yeah I'd recommend that as well MHW is much better suited for denser cities. I find RHW requires a large amount of space which isn't realistic in a city setting.

[fantozzi]

Ludwigshafen, Rhine port.

[PaPa-J]

Nice port area and right next to downtown, very clean.  Looks great!

[siemanthepieman]

Well there's not much to criticise really, but you asked us to, so ...

In terms of the city itself, I always like to see some heavy rail coming into the port area (but these could be nearby anyway) and I think runway could have a bit more open space between it and the nearby roads and buildings.

In terms of the picture I spy a tiny little bit of the menu bar down in the bottom corner and if you are able too (not that I could do it myself!), adding some weather effects (clouds, sun, rain, waves/whitecaps on the water) in Photoshop or similar would a nice extra bit of atmosphere.

But it is a great picture 'as is' - as are all your MD pics too. Always a pleasure to see your cities.

[PaPa-J]

Here is one of my growing downtown. Population 67,000.

[fantozzi]

Hm, even if I try to be a good critic (a tough bastard, sharpened, impartial but merciless?) I feel a bit helpless on this job.

This would be a city - but there are so many in RL too - where I would get lost. A nice grown town but where are the landmarks, the points of reference to help me for orientation? If I was a tourist in the north and I would ask for the way to the city center, how to describe in an easy way? Where is the city center? Is it the roundabout on the left? My verdict probably would be: nice but anonymous. But, well, compared to so many cities one could say: that's realistic.

In Heidelberg for many years there was an adults shop quite in front of a church. And the adults shop wasn't allowed to have a sign towards the church or to advertise in front, so the sign was only readable when approaching the church but was blacked out for those leaving the church  - I think for not distracting the worshipers?

Funny thing is - all tourist guides would point out this feature, so at the end - restricted advertisment gave even more advertisement. The discretion in public caused even more attention.

On the other hand - when you are asked about the 'Jesuitenkirche' in Heidelberg and all you know to say: once there was an adult shop in front of it, this isn't really flattering. A church being a landmark because of the adult shop in front of it, it's a little absurd.

Why am I telling this?

Maybe to explain - it is something quite complex what makes up those points of reference in a city. As for many tourists visiting Heidelberg it was 'that church with the adult shop in front' - which strangely they could easily remember, much easier than the name of the church.

Strange thing.

I guess - most sc4 player make structure with the network layout, making parts, districts etc. by using main streets like dividers/separators of different parts. But one of the philosophical more interesting discoveries is: structure is made by meaning.

In the city where you live you may have completely different 'landmarks' than a tourist. Because there are certain buildings or structures or parks they have a meaning to you. The hospital where my daughter was born ... it became a more important point in the city than that church every tourist knows about.

It would be an interesting challenge to make up a city in sc4 with meanings. A city where certain buildings have a story - a city telling something.

The best lotters, the best batters - if you have a close look on what they do, imho, they do exactly this. They do things with a story, with a meaning. Structure isn't only geometry, only numerical proportions. They express something with their work.

Well and that - with many words - is my ungiving critics: that's what I miss on your city - like some people, very beautiful to watch, to look at, but boring to have dinner with them. Only talking about work and money, nothing funny, nothing interersting. A little bit, I guess, your city reminds me of those people. A lack of personality perhaps?

[CasperVg]

Click for bigger picture

[feyss]

The only thing I would have to say is that I don't find retaining walls necessary when the slope is that slight. You could either cover it with MMPs, or flatten it a bit and use small 1x1 parks (those from FrankU for instance: https://community.simtropolis.com/files/file/30548-franku-dutch-parks/).

The rest is great though 

[Themistokles]

A very good picture, but since you've posted it here, I would like some more detailing on the shores, maybe some stones and driftwood?

[CasperVg]

Couldn't really think of a suitable Show us your.. thread to post this in, so figured I would put it here instead

[Terring7]

This picture has to be the most Simcity picture I've seen recently. It's like a mayor was thinking about that to build at this area and decided to build everything! Let's some nice residential zones. Small homes? Apartment buildings? Let's build both of them. Let's have a nice avenue, some roads with smooth curves... oh, let's build an elevated railroad as well. Parks? Farms? Lakes? Malls? Bring them on! Let's build some industries as well, for variety and because why not. What do you mean "no room for skyscrapers"? I want some skyscrapers! We're not building just an ordinary city, gentlemen. We're going to celebrate variety, celebrate creativity, celebrate fun and puzzle solving. We're going to celebrate Simcity and it's community!

In other words, 10/10 for the concept


A detail of a city I'm playing with. Tell me what you think

[fantozzi]

A detail of a city I'm playing with. Tell me what you think

There's something fresh and unique about this picture - there are some structures I haven't seen before and don't know from where they come from. An old sc4 player like me is always attracted by those things not seen a hundred times before but surprising, catching eyes.

Yes that's it - your city has something surprising. A little bit futuristc, modern. It's inspiring for story telling - I imagine a special agent working undercover in this city hunting for illegal drugs selling androids. Or something like this.

PLEASE MORE PICS, Terring7!!!"

[bradbitzhd]

there is a lot of variation of props trucks and warehouses which makes it look very interesting to me
the lots are also very good arranged with that transition of the road and the coastline( i hope that was understandably described)
in my eyes, the scene looks so lively that I don't really notice the missing traffic on the road.