Paradox Interactive has announced Cities: Skylines II, which will allow fans to create cities in an even more realistic simulation. This sequel has been a long time coming, as the original Cities: Skylines launched in 2015. Since then, the developers have provided players with mountains of DLC, but fans have been waiting to move on to something bigger rather than just forever paying to pump more content into the first game.
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Cities: Skylines II was revealed during the Paradox Announcement Show 2023, with a CG trailer that shows a city being built from the ground up. The game is coming to PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S, with a 2023 release window and a day-one launch on Game Pass.
Details about the gameplay in Cities: Skylines II are scarce, especially as the trailer didn’t show the game in action. According to the official Cities: Skylines II website, players need to “Get ready for a new epic scale in the most realistic city builder – ever,” but how that works, in reality, is still unclear. It’s also an enormous promise to make, even from Paradox Interactive, the company known for its massive grand strategy games, some of which involve interstellar politics and warfare. Fortunately, if Cities: Skylines II hits that planned release date, it won’t be long until footage of the game is released, and this promise of hyper-realism can be tested.
The Paradox Announcement Show 2023 might have lacked any updates about the delayed Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines II, but the Cities: Skylines II reveal is enormous, especially with it launching on current-gen systems and Game Pass. The original game wowed fans with its ability to let them plan and create modern cities from scratch, and the next entry in the series is set to let people build the metropolis of their dreams.
