Five prisons, more than 120 new weapons and up to four-player online co-op, coming to PC, PS5, Xbox Series X|S and Nintendo Switch 2.

Team17 has announced The Escapists 3, the next entry in its prison escape sandbox series, during the Triple-I Initiative Showcase on October 8. The sequel arrives in 2027 on PC (Steam), Nintendo Switch 2, Xbox Series X|S and PS5, roughly a decade after The Escapists 2. The biggest change is the visual style: the series leaves its 2D pixel art behind for fully 3D prisons, though reports indicate the camera stays top-down, so the classic perspective is still there.

Five Prisons, No Single Way Out

The core idea hasn’t changed: you craft, sneak, fight and improvise your way out of prison, then watch a carefully made plan fall apart in much less carefully made ways. This time, you’ll face five distinct prisons, each with its own routines, characters and secrets. Team17 says every prison is a system waiting to be understood and exploited, so there’s no single solution to any escape.

• Learn the routine: Observe guard rotations, search cells and figure out when to move.
• Trade and work: Swap items with other inmates and complete jobs to get supplies.
• Craft and steal: More than 120 new weapons and items are available, and the announcement teases some ridiculous methods, including a pogo stick and a plan involving molten chocolate.

🎮 Need a refresher on the series? The Escapists + Escapists 2 bundle for Xbox One puts both earlier games in one pack while you wait for the sequel, and it also plays on Xbox Series X|S.

Escape With Friends

The Escapists 3 adds more ways to break out together:

• Local split-screen for two players
• Online co-op for up to four players

Team17 pitches co-op as a chance to use each other’s strengths and weaknesses to pull off the perfect escape, or a perfectly hilarious failure. There’s also a new progression system: inmates earn XP as they play, unlocking skills and gameplay options that let you specialize in particular styles of escape, and that progress carries over from prison to prison.

🕹️ Planning a split-screen breakout? A second wireless controller makes local co-op much easier to set up.

What We Still Don’t Know

Team17 hasn’t announced a release date or price yet. Harley Homewood, General Manager at Team17, called the move to 3D “a fresh perspective on a fan favourite,” and said this announcement is only a sneak peek of what’s to come, so more details should follow before launch. For now, The Escapists 3 is available to wishlist on Steam.

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