The developer of PC metropolis builder Cities Skylines 2 has provided refunds for the sport’s newest DLC amid a backlash from gamers over the state of the sport.
Mariina Hallikainen, CEO of developer Colossal Order, and Mattias Lilja, deputy CEO of writer Paradox, issued a joint statement that included a frank admission: that the closely criticized Seaside Properties DLC was rushed out in a bid to enhance sentiment across the disastrous launch of Cities Skylines 2.
Colossal Order’s troubled city-builder sequel launched in October 2023 on PC by way of Steam and instantly bumped into quite a few points. Participant sentiment turned a ‘blended’ Steam person evaluation score into ‘largely damaging’ for current evaluations, with the primary Cities Skylines sport at the moment having fun with extra gamers than its sequel. Colossal Order CEO Mariina Hallikainen later admitted the dearth of modding help was the developer’s “largest remorse.”
However the current launch of the Seaside Properties DLC for $9.99 or as a part of the Cities: Skylines 2 Waterfronts Enlargement Go or Final Version sparked an excellent larger backlash, with gamers criticizing the asset pack for not even together with seashores. As you’d anticipate, the DLC has an awesome damaging person evaluation score on Steam.
Now, Hallikainen and Lilja have addressed the neighborhood in a press release that admits quite a few failings on the developer. It is revealed in its entirety beneath:
Expensive Cities followers,
We see and perceive the frustration lots of you could have expressed after the discharge of Cities: Skylines 2 and the current launch of Seaside Properties. We requested to your endurance and help, and you’ve proven these. In return, we allow you to down. We thought we might make up for the shortcomings of the sport in a timeframe that was unrealistic, and rushed out a DLC that ought to not have been revealed in its present type. For all this, we’re actually sorry. After we’ve made statements like this one earlier than, it’s included a pledge to hold making enhancements, and whereas we’re engaged on these updates, they haven’t occurred at a pace or magnitude that’s acceptable, and it pains us that we have now misplaced the belief of lots of you. We would like to do higher.
The very very first thing we’re doing is to compensate those that bought Seaside Properties. We are going to change the pack to be a free addition to the sport, refund it to the extent attainable, and present extra content material inside the Final Version. Sadly, it is not going to be attainable to provide refunds for Final Version patrons. That is due to the distribution of the Final Version throughout digital and bodily storefronts, which create important complexities for executing a partial refund. We notice that that is removed from supreme, particularly given the dedication those that have stayed with us since launch have proven. We’re dedicated to repaying that loyalty, and due to this fact, we are going to compensate Final Version holders by including 3 Creator Packs and 3 Radio Stations which, collectively, sum up to a worth of USD 39.99. This answer hopefully ensures that you just, no matter buy technique, really feel you obtain honest compensation.
Trying forward, we additionally need to make quick and significant adjustments in the best way we method the sport’s growth and our communication with you. Firstly, this implies a whole give attention to bettering the bottom sport and modding instruments, and secondly, we wish to higher contain you, the neighborhood, as we select our priorities going ahead. We are going to give attention to extra free patches and sport updates within the coming months earlier than Colossal Order spends time on new paid content material, leading to a transfer of the Bridges and Ports Enlargement to 2025. As well as, the aforementioned Creator Packs are being produced independently, and is not going to take any focus away from the work on bettering the sport. To ensure we give attention to the precise issues, we’re placing collectively an advisory assembly, the place a small group of participant representatives, along with Colossal Order and Paradox Interactive, will focus on the event plan for this yr. The individuals on this group are chosen for the dimensions of their following inside the neighborhood to characterize as many individuals as attainable. The groups from Colossal Order and Paradox Interactive will present them with full transparency and reply any questions and critiques voiced. Our hope is that along with you, our neighborhood, we are able to be sure that we don’t repeat the identical errors now we have made prior to now and deliver this sport right into a shiny future.
We additionally need to tackle the pending console launch. As you recognize, our plan was to launch in spring of this yr. We’ve been hesitant to talk an precise launch window due to the uncertainty we face, and to not make additional guarantees we’d not have the option to hold. We’ve been struggling to get Cities: Skylines 2 to the mandatory degree of optimization for a console launch, however are actually hopeful that an upcoming construct supply in April will display enough progress for us to progress with a launch candidate, and then a launch construct focused for October. Earlier than now we have seen and evaluated the progress made in these builds nonetheless, we won’t be able to affirm the discharge date, and even then, some uncertainty at all times stays. Our ambition is to ship the expertise that you just all deserved at launch, however it should take time. It’s essential to word that the workforce engaged on the console launch operates individually from our PC growth workforce, so it will likely be progressing with out splitting our focus or time.
In closing, we wish to reaffirm our dedication to making Cities: Skylines 2 the perfect metropolis builder it may be. We recognize your help and suggestions, and hope we are able to regain your belief going ahead. It’s our accountability to earn it, and we hope these actions are a primary step in the precise route.
We’re deeply grateful to your continued ardour for our sport. Please keep tuned for additional updates on the sport and the refund course of, and thanks for being part of our neighborhood.
Sincerely,
Mariina Hallikainen
CEO, Colossal Order
Mattias Lilja
Deputy CEO, Paradox Interactive
In abstract, those that purchased the Seaside Properties DLC will get a refund, however those that personal the Final Version is not going to. As a substitute, Final Version homeowners get three Creator Packs and three Radio Stations which, Paradox believes, quantity to the worth of $39.99. No timeline for his or her launch was provided. The Seaside Properties DLC might be made free, though on the time of this text’s publication it stays $9.99. The Bridges and Ports DLC is delayed to 2025. Elsewhere, the console model of Cities Skylines 2 is delayed as soon as once more, now to October.
Cities: Skylines 2’s issues started earlier than its launch even arrived. Colossal Order warned gamers the sport would launch with efficiency points per week earlier than it got here out. Since then, gamers have been met with decrease framerates and attention-grabbing dental glitches because the developer labored to create a greater expertise. In IGN’s Cities: Skylines 2 evaluation, which returned a 6/10, we mentioned: “Cities: Skylines 2 is an formidable sequel that may have bitten off greater than it might chew – be ready to do a whole lot of terraforming if you do not need your metropolis to seem like a nightmare.”
Wesley is the UK Information Editor for IGN. Discover him on Twitter at @wyp100. You’ll be able to attain Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.