Cities: Skylines served as the remedy for the troubled always-online SimCity reboot of 2013, offering an offline, singleplayer experience with mod support – a much-welcomed change. Cities: Skylines 2 seems to uphold the tradition of mod-friendliness, although there's a noteworthy alteration: Cities: Skylines 2 mods will not be available through Steam Workshop.

Paradox announced on its forums that the official distribution channel for Cities: Skylines mods will be Paradox Mods, their own cross-platform mod library, and Steam Workshop support will be absent. While this may be somewhat disappointing, Paradox's platform brings the advantage of making asset mods accessible to console players and PC gamers alike. Additionally, the publisher promises an 'integrated in-game experience' around mods, which could potentially offer the same convenience as Steam Workshop.

Currently, over a hundred mods for the original Cities: Skylines are available on Paradox Mods, though Steam Workshop hosts tens of thousands. It remains to be seen how the platform will manage a comprehensive library of mods for the city builder, which, on PC, includes more than just additional assets. In contrast, other Paradox games boast larger Paradox Mods libraries, such as over 30,000 Hearts of Iron 4 mods.

In a follow-up FAQ, Paradox shared, 'The version [of Paradox Mods] made for Cities: Skylines 1 was made so that a few hand-selected assets could be used on Xbox, and the idea for Cities: Skylines 2 is much grander.' The company's aim is to streamline the modding experience for a community that values it.

Mod updates will be downloaded and installed upon game launch, and the system will support mod grouping by dependencies and include a rating system. Paradox also affirms that they have no intentions for 'paid mods.'

The mod tools for Cities: Skylines 2, along with its integration with Paradox Mods, won't be ready in time for the October 24 release date, as the 'in-game editor' is still in beta and will be launched shortly after the game's release.

Paradox acknowledges that players may encounter performance issues upon the game's launch, offering a rare and candid heads-up to the community about potential launch-day difficulties. While it's not the most positive news, this transparency is appreciated in a gaming industry where developers often wait for 'mostly negative' Steam reviews before addressing such issues.