Popular city-builder Cities Skylines is getting a new developer as original creators Colossal Order are parting ways with their publisher Paradox Interactive.
The departure was announced via forum post on Paradox’s official website, with the company explaining that Colossal Order, one of their oldest partnerships, will move forward to something new. Iceflake Studios, an internal studio at Paradox will take over development of Cities Skylines II going forward.
Paradox and Colossal Order worked together on four games over 15 years, primarily the city-building and transportation sims Cities in Motion and Cities Skylines. Cities Skylines in particular became the new standard for city-builders, dethroning Sim City and becoming one of the most-played games in the genre.
It’s sequel, Cities Skylines II, released in 2023, although was criticized for feeling barebones following the huge number of expansions for the previous title. Paradox, on occasion, has been criticized for its DLC-centric business model, where in their games only feel playable with large quantities of additional content.
Cities Skylines II. Image Credit: Paradox Interactive
In the forum post, Mariina Hallikainen, CEO of Colossal Order, thanked Paradox for their partnership over the past 15 years.
“We’re confident that the franchise will continue to thrive under Paradox’s leadership. As we move forward, we’re excited to channel our experience, creativity, and passion into new projects that align with our long-term vision.”
Mattias Lilja, Deputy CEO of Paradox Interactive also shared his appreciation:
“Our partnership with Colossal Order is one of the longest-running relationships we’ve enjoyed here at Paradox. Four games, dozens of expansions, and a community of millions of Cities players; it’s remarkable how much we’ve achieved together. We have deep respect for the Colossal Order team and we look forward to seeing where they go from here.”
Colossal Order will reportedly work on one final update for Cities Skylines II, the addition of bikes, ‘Old Town’ buildings, bug fixes, and general improvements to the game, and with them, presumably a whole new dimension of traffic to manage.
Iceflake Studios will take the helm of Cities Skylines from 2026.
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Featured Image Credit: Paradox Interactive
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