“Remastered”
Paradox Interactive has announced that Colossal Entertainment’s city-builder Cities: Skylines is coming to PS5 and Xbox Series X|S by way of Cities: Skylines – Remastered.
The basic idea of this version is to take advantage of the extra horsepower provided by current-generation consoles. Most notably, the buildable tiles have been bumped up from 9 to 25, which puts it on par with the PC version. In addition to this, you’ll be able to tweak the weather in the environment control panel, there are additions to the UX, and perhaps most importantly: a map editor. You’ll also get all the expected performance enhancements that come with a generation jump.
I think we’re stretching the term “Remastered” a little far in this case, but I guess they had to call it something distinguishing. Really, this mostly nudges the console version closer to what PC players have been enjoying all this time. The one advantage that the PC version still holds over the console port is mod support.
One major advantage here is that the remastered version will be provided for free to anyone who owns the PS4 or Xbox One version of Cities: Skylines, so long as the upgrade is on its respective platform. It’s hard to argue with free.
As a longtime fan of city builders, Cities: Skylines is a wonderfully expansive entry in the genre. After EA dropped the ball with the 2013 version of Simcity, Cities: Skylines picked that ball up and ran with it. While it was initially released back in 2015, it has been receiving a steady flow of expansions and updates that have kept it relevant. Personally, I still fire it up somewhat frequently. Some are calling for a true sequel to finally come along, but I have no idea where they’d go from here. It’s pretty all-encompassing.
Cities: Skylines is currently available on consoles and PC. Cities: Skylines – Remastered will drop on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S on February 15, 2023. It’s a free upgrade for owners of the PS4 or Xbox One versions, respectively. If you’re new to the title, it will run you $39.99
