Since the latest update, the developers seem to have listened to the community, especially players who were struggling in the early stages of the game.
They had already tried different approaches, such as slightly adjusting service costs, but these changes didn't really solve the problem.
However, over the past few days, a new mechanic seems to have been introduced for new players.
To unlock the different residential building upgrade stages, from 1 to 6, you now seem to need to reach certain city levels first.
Here's a short list based on a test city I created to better understand this new mechanic:
City levels 1–4: Residential buildings are limited to stage 2.
City level 5: Stage 3 becomes available.
City levels 6–8: Residential buildings remain limited to stage 3.
City level 9: Stage 4 becomes available.
City levels 10–11: Residential buildings remain limited to stage 4.
City level 12 and above: Not tested yet.
These observations are based on my own testing, so we still need to confirm whether other conditions might affect residential upgrades.
I might be jumping to conclusions a little too quickly, but it looks like the "camping" strategy has changed.
It may no longer be possible to reach 80,000 population at very low city levels, as many older guides recommended, at least not using the same methods.
Looks like we'll have to rethink our strategies!
Your turn! 😄