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Prison Architect 2 gets March 2024 release date – and a new artstyle

Those guys are chonk

Marco Wutz

Prison Architect 2 gets March 2024 release date – and a new artstyle
Prison Architect 2 gets March 2024 release date – and a new artstyle /

Prison Architect 2 has a release date: Double Eleven and Paradox Interactive’s management game is coming to PC on March 26, 2024.

Though nothing much about the core formula of the game seems to have changed in the sequel – you’re still going to build and administer your own personalized penitentiary – fans will have to get used to one huge change compared to the original: 3D visuals.

That’s right, Prison Architect’s 2D graphics, which are reminiscent of titles like RimWorld, won’t make it over to the sequel, which is going to feature an all-new 3D visual style with some rather chonky characters.

Prison Architect 2 screenshot showing a prison courtyard.
Prison Architect 2 in all its new glory :: Double Eleven / Paradox Interactive

Of course, this change has some gameplay implications as well, such as the ability to build up your prisons over multiple floors now, giving you tons of fresh options to design a penitentiary of truly nightmarish proportions. Or you can focus on being nice and helping the prisoners get their lives back on track, whatever floats your boat.

Inmates will form individual relationships with other prisoners in Prison Architect 2 and make decisions based on their own wants and needs, according to the publisher. That should create plenty of drama for you to deal with.

It seems like the title also hasn’t lost any of its biting satire: It will come with a career mode that sees you take command over several unique prisons on a new world map, challenging you to make them profitable. The skill tree system for management styles contains a “Big Business” tree as well, which should help greedy wardens line their pockets. Other branches are focused on “Infrastructure” and “Well-Being” to improve the lives of inmates as well as “Security” to give you more control over your facility.

Prison Architect 2 will be available for $39.99 USD on Steam, where it can be pre-ordered now. Players who pre-order the game will receive an exclusive skin for their security dogs, while the Warden’s Edition comes with seven additional cosmetic items at a price point of $49.99 USD.

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Marco Wutz
MARCO WUTZ

Marco Wutz is a writer from Parkstetten, Germany. He has a degree in Ancient History and a particular love for real-time and turn-based strategy games like StarCraft, Age of Empires, Total War, Age of Wonders, Crusader Kings, and Civilization as well as a soft spot for Genshin Impact and Honkai: Star Rail. He began covering StarCraft 2 as a writer in 2011 for the largest German community around the game and hosted a live tournament on a stage at gamescom 2014 before he went on to work for Bonjwa, one of the country's biggest Twitch channels. He branched out to write in English in 2015 by joining tl.net, the global center of the StarCraft scene run by Team Liquid, which was nominated as the Best Coverage Website of the Year at the Esports Industry Awards in 2017. He worked as a translator on The Crusader Stands Watch, a biography in memory of Dennis "INTERNETHULK" Hawelka, and provided live coverage of many StarCraft 2 events on the social channels of tl.net as well as DreamHack, the world's largest gaming festival. From there, he transitioned into writing about the games industry in general after his graduation, joining GLHF, a content agency specializing in video games coverage for media partners across the globe, in 2021. He has also written for NGL.ONE, kicker, ComputerBild, USA Today's ForTheWin, The Sun, Men's Journal, and Parade. Email: marco.wutz@glhf.gg

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