Paradox Interactive Acquires Prison Architect

Paradox Interactive, a publisher and developer of games for the general population, today announced the purchase of all rights and assets for the Prison Architect IP, a BAFTA award-winning management simulation game developed by Introversion Software. Paradox will take ownership of Prison Architect on all current and any future platforms, including Windows, MacOS, and Linux PCs, and Switch, Xbox and PlayStation consoles, in addition to their ongoing publishing of Prison Architect: Mobile on iOS and Android tablets. This acquisition also allows Paradox to continue development of Prison Architect going forward, and to explore opportunities with the wider “Architect” IP in the future.

In Prison Architect, players are tasked with the construction and maintenance of a maximum security prison, from laying out cell blocks and inmate facilities to managing staff pay and prisoner morale. Prison designs will include basic necessities like cells, canteens, guard rooms, and infrastructure, but players can also include features like solitary confinement, workout areas, and even an execution chamber. Inspired by management simulators like Theme Hospital, Dwarf Fortress, and Dungeon Keeper, the game has won a BAFTA award for the “Persistent Game” category and has sold over two million copies across PC and console platforms. “Ever since our partnership with Introversion in 2017, the Paradox team has felt that Prison Architect is a natural fit for our catalog,” said Ebba Ljungerud, CEO of Paradox Interactive. “Just as we’ve done for other management-strategy games like Cities: Skylines and Surviving Mars, I believe the considerable player base of Prison Architect will be excited to see where we can take the game next, and we’re eager to explore development of potential new games based off of the ‘Architect’ IP. We promise to exercise good behavior with this cherished title going forward.”

“Prison Architect has been an intensely rewarding project for us,” said Mark Morris, co-founder of Introversion Software. “Every developer loves seeing their creations come to life, but through Early Access, launch on multiple platforms and over a dozen post-launch content updates, we’ve been building and managing this building-and-management game for nearly a decade. I think we’ve taken Prison Architect just about as far as we can, and we’re all eager to see where a team like Paradox can take it next! This also gives Introversion the chance to work on what we’ve got coming up next—more on that soon.”