Paradox Interactive and Tantalus Media this morning announced Cities: Skylines – Expanded Edition, a Switch 2 version of Colossal Order’s city builder that launches on October 28 at a suggested price of $49 (£41.49 or €49). The biggest change is room to build, since Paradox says the new edition raises the buildable area to 25 tiles from “the original 9-tile limit,” and it also bundles ten expansions and content packs. Players who already own the 2018 Cities: Skylines – Nintendo Switch Edition get 70 percent off from launch day until April 28, 2027.
Gematsu reported the same terms shortly after the announcement and noted that Paradox is releasing new paid content for the PlayStation, Xbox and PC versions on the same day. To put the Switch 2 offer in context, we checked Paradox’s release against the Nintendo eShop listing for the existing Switch Edition and Paradox’s own 2018 launch announcement for that version.
What changes from the 2018 Switch Edition
| Nintendo Switch Edition (2018) | Expanded Edition (2026) | |
|---|---|---|
| Platform | Switch; Nintendo lists it as playable on Switch 2, with behavior “consistent with Nintendo Switch” | Switch 2 |
| U.S. price | $39.99 on the eShop today | $49 suggested |
| Buildable area | 9 tiles, per Paradox’s comparison | 25 tiles |
| Expansions and packs included | After Dark and Snowfall | Ten: After Dark, Snowfall, Green Cities, Sunset Harbor, Map Pack 3, Country Road, Pearls from the East, Deep Focus Radio, Carols, Candles & Candy, and Match Day |
| Graphics options | Not part of the 2018 feature list | Performance mode targeting 60 fps with upscaling, or Quality mode targeting 30 fps |
| Controls | Controller with HD Rumble, Pro Controller support | Controller, plus keyboard and mouse |
| New building tools | None listed | Map editor, environmental controls (time of day, rain, fog, color), precision placement with distance indicator and new snapping, quick selection tool |
The tile count is the change that should matter most to anyone who has played the Switch version for long, because 25 tiles works out to nearly three times the land a city can spread across. The bundled content is the other big difference. Only two of the ten packs, After Dark and Snowfall, came with the Switch Edition, so the new version adds the Green Cities and Sunset Harbor expansions along with smaller map, music and themed packs. The frame-rate figures are Paradox’s targets rather than measured results, and since the game has not been released or reviewed yet, how well the Performance mode holds up in a large city is still an open question.
The loyalty price math
Paradox describes the offer as a 70 percent loyalty discount, so we worked out what that means in money for each kind of buyer, using the suggested prices from the announcement. Final eShop prices can round differently, so a listing at $49.99 rather than $49 would put the upgrade at about $15.
| Buyer | What they pay | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Switch Edition owner upgrading in the window | $14.70 | 70% off $49, from Oct. 28, 2026 to Apr. 28, 2027 (182 days) |
| Same owner, total spent counting a full-price Switch Edition | $54.69 | $39.99 plus $14.70, or $5.69 more than a newcomer pays for the Expanded Edition alone |
| New Switch 2 player | $49.00 | All ten packs and 25 tiles included |
| New player buying the older Switch Edition instead | $39.99 | Plays on Switch 2 per Nintendo, but with 9 tiles and two expansions |
| Switch Edition owner in the UK or eurozone | About £12.45 or €14.70 | 70% off £41.49 or €49 |
For anyone who bought the Switch Edition, that is a fair deal, since their total outlay ends up only a few dollars above what a newcomer pays and they keep the original game. There are two details the announcement does not cover. Paradox has not said how eligibility is checked or whether owners of a physical copy qualify, so physical owners in particular should wait for the eShop listing before assuming the discount applies to them. The release also says nothing about carrying saves over from the Switch Edition, which is worth confirming before planning to continue an existing city.
The approach sits between the two models we have seen on Switch 2 this fall. Some publishers have handed out free upgrade patches, such as THQ Nordic with Disney Epic Mickey: Rebrushed, which we compared with collector-driven releases in our piece on Switch 2’s two continuity economies, while others sell a new Switch 2 version with a limited launch price, as Capcom is doing with Monster Hunter Wilds’ $29.99 window. Paradox’s version is a separate product, but its six-month discount window means owners do not have to decide on launch day.
New paid content for PlayStation, Xbox and PC on the same day
The announcement also covers players on other platforms. Two Content Creator Packs, Holiday Getaways by Tomas13TO and Mansions & Manors by Feindbold, arrive on PC, PlayStation and Xbox on October 28 at $5.99 each, alongside a 16-track Blueprint Beats Radio station at $3.99. The Estates & Escapes Bundle combines all three for $12.99, which saves $2.98 compared with the $15.97 they cost separately. Gematsu reports that the content covers both Cities: Skylines and Cities: Skylines – Remastered, and neither outlet’s report mentions it coming to the Switch versions.
How we got here
| Date | What happened |
|---|---|
| Sept. 13, 2018 | Cities: Skylines – Nintendo Switch Edition launches at $39.99 with the After Dark and Snowfall expansions, announced during a Nintendo Direct |
| June 5, 2025 | Nintendo Switch 2 launches; Nintendo later lists the Switch Edition as playable on it |
| Oct. 7, 2026 | Paradox and Tantalus announce the Expanded Edition for Switch 2 |
| Oct. 28, 2026 | Expanded Edition launches at $49; loyalty discount opens; new packs and radio station release on PC, PlayStation and Xbox |
| Apr. 28, 2027 | Loyalty discount for Switch Edition owners ends |
Who should do what
Switch Edition owners who have moved to Switch 2 and still play are the clear winners, and the sensible move is to check the eShop on October 28 while signed in to the account that owns the game. There is no rush, since the discount runs until the end of April. Players still on an original Switch are not affected, because the Expanded Edition is Switch 2 software and their existing copy stays as it is.
New players on Switch 2 should choose the Expanded Edition over the older version, since the extra $9.01 buys 25 tiles instead of 9, eight more content packs and mouse support. Paradox has not published an install size yet, so anyone tight on space may want to check our guide to fall install sizes on Switch 2 before launch day. PlayStation, Xbox and PC players, meanwhile, only need to decide whether the $12.99 bundle is worth it when it lands the same day.
Sources: Paradox Interactive press release (Oct. 7, 2026); Gematsu; Nintendo eShop listing for Cities: Skylines – Nintendo Switch Edition; Paradox Interactive Switch Edition launch release (Sept. 2018).