Cities Skylines 2 apology department has been called into action again as the floundering city sim, the sequel to one of the best city sims of all time, continues to disappoint at every turn. Fans of the game are getting resigned to the fact that developer Colossal Order is really struggling with this one and that after problem after problem, the ill-advised and over-priced DLC Beach Properties has now been transformed into a free add-on with refunds available for those who purchased it originally.
Roundly panned as “a disgrace” when it was first released the Beach Properties DLC included a new Waterfront zone, and some other unremarkable assets like, er trees. However, there was no beach. Go figure.
Part of the problem lies in that players want Colossal Order to fix the game they bought, not release pointless asset packs. Obviously, shareholders and profit margins might not agree but to their credit, refunds have been introduced and all work on future paid DLC postponed indefinitely according to a report in Eurogamer.
“We let you down”
A joint statement from Paradox and Colossal Order reads: “We see and understand the disappointment. We asked for your patience and support, and you’ve shown those,” the statement reads. “In return, we let you down. We thought we could make up for the shortcomings of the game in a timeframe that was unrealistic, and rushed out a DLC that should not have been published in its current form. For all this, we are truly sorry.”
On the Forum a post explaining the refund reads: “We see and understand the disappointment many have expressed after the release of Beach Properties and agree that this DLC felt rushed and should not have been published in the state that it was.
We have therefore decided to make the asset pack a free addition to the game, compensate those who bought it to the extent possible, and provide additional content within the Ultimate Edition in an effort to repay the loyalty we’ve seen in the community since the release of Cities: Skylines II.
Cities Skylines 2 needs a breakthrough quickly and with the pedigree behind it, hopes are still high.