Key Highlights:
- Paradox Interactive and Colossal Order are officially ending their 15-year partnership, with both parties calling the decision mutual.
- Cities: Skylines 2 development will be handed over to Iceflake Studios starting in 2026.
- Colossal Order will complete a final set of updates, including the Bike Patch, Old Town buildings and several technical improvements.
Paradox Interactive has confirmed that it is parting ways with Cities: Skylines developer Colossal Order after more than a decade of collaboration. The move has been described as mutual and planned, with both sides stating that the decision was made carefully to protect the long-term future of the Cities franchise. Colossal Order will now explore new projects, while Cities: Skylines 2 development shifts to Finnish studio Iceflake, one of Paradox’s internal teams specialising in management and building games.
The partnership between Paradox and Colossal Order began with Cities in Motion and eventually led to four Cities titles and dozens of expansions, growing into one of the most recognisable city-building franchises in modern gaming. Cities: Skylines 2, released in 2023, faced criticism over performance at launch and is still awaiting a console release.
Development continues, but the transition is planned to take place at the start of 2026.
In the official statement shared with the community, Colossal Order thanked both Paradox and the player base for supporting the franchise over the last 15 years and expressed confidence in Paradox’s ability to lead Cities: Skylines forward. Paradox echoed similar sentiments, acknowledging the scale of what the two companies achieved together and emphasising that support for the Cities community will continue without interruption.
Iceflake Studios, known for Surviving the Aftermath, will take over existing and future development for Cities: Skylines 2. That includes free updates, console work, Editor improvements, expansions and future content. Iceflake has already stated that it understands the responsibility of taking on an established city-builder and has promised transparent communication as it settles into development.
From what I gathered in the full announcement, both companies appear keen to avoid panic within the community. The official messaging focused on respect, continuity and long-term vision rather than friction or fallout. Colossal Order will still deliver the Bike Patch, Old Town building sets, bug fixes, and an Editor asset support beta before stepping away. For players who have criticised the slow pace of fixes, this handover could mark the start of a more focused development phase.
We’ve only just received the incredible Bridges & Ports expansion, that adds ferries, drawbridges, over 100 new assets and much more. Players were waiting months for the DLC, so the community is content for now.
Cities: Skylines remains one of the most successful modern PC strategy franchises, and this move suggests Paradox wants to secure its long-term future under an internal team.
If Iceflake can restore player confidence and stabilise performance while delivering content at a faster cadence, Cities: Skylines 2 could still reach the potential many expected at launch.
