Hi City Builders, 

After more than a decade of successful collaboration across numerous titles that we’re both immensely proud of, Paradox Interactive and Colossal Order have mutually decided to pursue independent paths. The decision was made thoughtfully and in the interest of both teams – ensuring the strongest possible future for the Cities: Skylines franchise.   

Development of the Cities: Skylines franchise will move to a different studio under Paradox Interactive’s leadership and Colossal Order looks forward to building on its experience across new projects and exploring new creative opportunities. Both companies are excited for what the future holds while remaining deeply appreciative of our shared history and grateful to the Cities’ community

“For over fifteen years, the Cities Series and our partnership with Paradox have been a defining part of our journey at Colossal Order. When we set out to create Cities in Motion, we never imagined it would grow to become a cherished franchise with a passionate, loyal community of millions of players around the world. We want to thank everyone at Paradox for their trust and collaboration, and of course the community for the incredible support that has made Cities what it is today. 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.” Mariina Hallikainen, CEO of Colossal Order  

“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. On our end, we’re eager to continue working for the passionate Cities: Skylines community and make sure to provide them with more content and new experiences.” Mattias Lilja, Deputy CEO of Paradox Interactive

This means the Cities: Skylines franchise will move to a new developer, and we’re pleased to announce that Iceflake Studios will be taking the lead. Based in Tampere, Finland, Iceflake Studios is one of Paradox Interactive’s internal management game studios and is hard at work getting into the nuts and bolts of Cities: Skylines II. Specifically, Iceflake will take over all existing and future development for Cities: Skylines II, including free updates for the current version, continuous work on the Editor and console editions, as well as future expansions and content packs. This means that Cities players will be able to look forward to new updates and content drops for many years.

Colossal Order will implement a few additional updates before leaving, including the Bike Patch, which includes the long-awaited addition of bikes, Old Town buildings, bug fixes, and general improvements to the game. A Beta implementation of the asset support for the Editor, meaning access to Asset Mods, will also be available before year-end. Iceflake Studios will take the helm for all development from the start of 2026.

“Taking the reins on a genre-leading franchise like Cities is an immense honor and a great responsibility. There’s a huge, loyal community out there and I want to say to every member of that community that we will humbly carry this legacy with respect, together with all of you. Iceflake has the capacity and capability to get started. We have a decade worth of experience from making city building and management games. We see a strong foundation and so much potential waiting to be unleashed and I can’t wait to show you what we have planned for the next chapter of this incredible game.” Lasse Liljedahl, Studio Manager of Iceflake Studios

Both teams are working together to ensure that players will experience a smooth transition. Iceflake will introduce themselves in the coming weeks and share their plans in the near future, so you know what to expect next!