The Cities: Skylines series turned 11 years old on March 2nd, and Paradox marked the occasion by announcing a full expansion for the 2015 original. Not for the sequel. For the game that came out when Obama was still president.
Race Day is the expansion in question, developed by Tantalus Media, the studio behind ports and remasters like Luigi's Mansion 2 HD and Stellaris: Console Edition. It lets you close off city streets for motor races, cycling events, marathons, and parades, complete with pit garages, spectator stands, and start/finish infrastructure. You can set ticket prices, choose event tiers, and manage a full calendar of races. It launches March 10th on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S. Watch the trailer here.
Rounding out the anniversary content for the original game are two paid content creator packs, Iconic Brutalism and Renewed History, plus a free base game update adding roadside fences and an Employment Info View. All four paid items drop together on March 10th and can be bundled for $23.99. The full breakdown is in this Steam post.
What Cities: Skylines 2 Actually Gets
Cities: Skylines 2, which launched in late 2023 to widespread criticism over performance and missing features, is getting two creator packs of its own: Office Evolution and City Stations, plus two new radio stations. Those drop March 18th, bundled at $21.99. A free patch is also coming that adds the Iceflake Arena signature building and improved toggle zoning. Iceflake Studios, which took over development from Colossal Order, did earn some goodwill with its first patch in February, but the sequel still has no console release after its PS5 and Xbox Series X/S launch was delayed from the original 2023 window.
So to recap: the eleven-year-old game gets a full expansion with a trailer, a new developer partner, and a proper feature set. The two-year-old sequel gets asset packs and radio stations. Paradox hasn't explicitly said Cities: Skylines 1 is being revived as a long-term priority, but this is the second wave of new content for the original after its roadmap was supposed to have concluded 18 months ago. At some point, actions stop needing a press release to explain them.
The console version of Cities: Skylines 2 is supposedly still coming. Paradox says so. They've been saying so since 2023.
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