Console Development Status

[Cities: Skylines Official]

Dear Console Players,
We wanted to update you on the console release schedule. Unfortunately, we have not yet met the stability and performance targets we set for the console release. Without a Release Candidate (RC), we are now unable to meet an October release window.

While we are making slow but steady progress, there are still unresolved issues impacting the game in ways that harm the player experience we want to deliver. We expect to receive a new RC, which will undergo a thorough review in August. This evaluation will determine whether we can begin the submission process and provide a solid release date, or if further issues need to be addressed.

We understand this is disappointing, and it’s not what we had hoped for either. However, we are committed to keeping you informed throughout this development process, even if the updates aren’t always what we’d like.

Thank you for your understanding and support.

 

[SimNationJan]

Thanks for the update! I have a few questions about modding on the console. You stated earlier that we will probably be able to access maps via Paradox Mods, but what about custom assets and code modding? I think both are impossible on console and if that's the case will you be doing updates to implement some assets or mods. I think especially here at the detailers patches that implemented some mechanism inspired by mods (surfaces, tree growth, ...) and could be extremely useful if you continue on this note for the future especially for QoL tools

Both custom maps, as well as custom assets, are planned to be available on console via Paradox Mods, sadly due to limitations code mods will not be available.

 

[SimNationJan]

I’ve seen someone state about the mods. As a console player (PS5) myself, will we be able to create our own assets also not to just only be used in our own game but to showcase on PDX mods or will asset creations to upload to PDX mods be limited to only PC players????

Asset creation requires external 3D creation software, and as cool as it would be to have that as part of the game it's simply not feasible.

Although disappointing completely understandable.
I have just one question.
Will the console version of the game when it does come out be coming to xbox game pass?
I'm assuming yes considering the pc version is on game pass.

That is the plan!

 

[SimNationJan]

But what about prefab duplication and modification via the Editor as is currently available for the PC version? Will such "kit bashing" be available to console users and will such prefabs ultimately be uploadable to Pdx Mods for both platforms? At the moment PC users generally use the Asset Pack Manager mod to handle such prefabs created in their StreamingData~ folder from the Editor. Given that there is already a direct pipeline for uploading from the Editor to Pdx Mods (Maps at present), will this be looked into as being added as an integrated component/pipeline for custom prefabs? I am not referring to meshes of course.

I don't have an answer for this at the moment, but once they are able to I'm sure someone from Colossal Order will be able to clarify.

 

[co_avanya]

Thanks for the update! I have a few questions about modding on the console. You stated earlier that we will probably be able to access maps via Paradox Mods, but what about custom assets and code modding? I think both are impossible on console and if that's the case will you be doing updates to implement some assets or mods. I think especially here at the detailers patches that implemented some mechanism inspired by mods (surfaces, tree growth, ...) and could be extremely useful if you continue on this note for the future especially for QoL tools

I can elaborate a bit on this answer. While there's never a guarantee that a mod's features will eventually be implemented into the game, we keep an eye on what mods are popular and what they offer. For the original Cities: Skylines mods inspired us to add certain features or quality-of-life improvements, however, we always do our own implementation, which may not work the same way a mod did. We have a bunch of items on our internal wishlist and I'm sure that some of those will show up as mods before we get a chance to implement them, and I wouldn't be surprised if mods come up with features we haven't even considered.

So while I can't make any promises, it's definitely possible that some mod functionalities will show up in the game as official features down the line. We'll just have to see what makes sense to add and when.

I'm told the Windows version runs almost perfectly using CrossOver.

A native Mac version will be a few years. And although I don't know the exact reason and how it all works, they let it slip one time that it has to do with the contracts they have made with Steam, Microsoft, Sony, and others which is not yet allowing them to release linux and mac versions for some time. Again, not sure how all of that works.... but if you want to play on your Mac, you can do so today.

CrossOver also works for many other Windows games.

Are you referring to our comment that we need to fulfill our current obligations and release on the already announced console platforms before we can investigate whether Mac and Linux versions are feasible? That's at least the only thing that I remember that has been shared on this topic. While the console release is our top priority right now, we haven't forgotten about our players on Mac and Linux, and we'll let you know when we have any news.

But what about prefab duplication and modification via the Editor as is currently available for the PC version? Will such "kit bashing" be available to console users and will such prefabs ultimately be uploadable to Pdx Mods for both platforms? At the moment PC users generally use the Asset Pack Manager mod to handle such prefabs created in their StreamingData~ folder from the Editor. Given that there is already a direct pipeline for uploading from the Editor to Pdx Mods (Maps at present), will this be looked into as being added as an integrated component/pipeline for custom prefabs? I am not referring to meshes of course.

We aim for console to have as much access to modding as possible, including access to the Editor. While we expect there to be some limits, like not being able to import custom 3D models and textures, you'll have access to asset mods on Paradox Mods (once they're available and of course assuming they don't require code mods to function) and the Editor itself. We'll have more details on this in the future as both the asset editing and console version are ready for you.