I feel like it couldn’t have been more clear that the publisher caused this. CO has been very communicative in saying that the game wasn’t hitting their performance target, even doing what they could to delay the console release.
I’m not trying to make excuses, but CO seems like a bunch of devs that really love what they create. Paradox is a bunch of money hungry leeches that couldn’t imagine waiting another day for their dollar.
So they didn’t get sued / punished by Paradox, their publisher.
There was probably a contact that said “CS2 will release by XX.” If they didn’t hit that target date, there could have been financial penalties.
Obviously it sucks for the consumer, but hitting that target of release and then working to improve the game was probably Colossal Order’s only option.
I enjoyed adding the new areas / zones to my cities, but the mechanics were dry as fuck and required “cheesing” to unlock all buildings.
I think there was a disconnect between what CO intended CS to be, and what it became. The people playing 8+ years after release want a sandbox where they can create their dream cities, not minuscule goals that made that dream harder.
I’m excited for CS2 because it seems more catered to the sandbox but with better city simulation mechanics, but let’s hope they do something interesting with the DLCs (and fix performance, obviously).
Yep, Rover is like the Uber of pet sitting / walking.