The Escapists 3 Breaks Out in 3D on PC and Consoles in 2027

The Escapists 3 has been announced for PC and consoles, with the next entry in the prison-break sandbox series planned for 2027. Revealed during the Triple-I Initiative Showcase, the sequel represents a substantial shift for the franchise: its correctional facilities will be presented as fully 3D spaces for the first time.

The series has long been built around a deceptively simple objective. Players arrive as inmates, learn the rhythms and rules of a prison, collect whatever useful materials they can find, and turn an apparently routine day behind bars into an elaborate escape plan. That core remains intact in The Escapists 3, but the new game is promising larger spaces to study, more systems to exploit, a wide selection of items to steal or construct, and considerably more room for improvised plans to go wrong.

Players will need to craft, sneak, fight, trade, take on jobs and generally make the most of prison life as they work through five distinct facilities. The announcement emphasizes that escapes will not have one prescribed answer. Instead, each prison is intended to function as a systemic environment where routines, resources and vulnerabilities can be observed, understood and used to an inmate's advantage.

A familiar prison-break formula enters a new dimension

The move from the series' established viewpoint into 3D is the headline change, but it matters because the games have always depended on spatial awareness. An escape can hinge on knowing when a guard leaves a hallway unobserved, where contraband can be hidden, which rooms provide access to important tools, and how long the player can be absent from a mandatory roll call before suspicion starts to build.

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In The Escapists 3, those decisions will take place inside fully realised correctional facilities rather than the more stylised layouts of earlier games. Team17 has not yet detailed every prison or explained exactly how camera control and movement will work, but the stated goal is clear: players will be able to explore more of these spaces, identify opportunities in their routines, and exploit a broader range of systems during a breakout attempt.

That could make the familiar tension of daily prison life even more immediate. A successful escape in this kind of sandbox is rarely just about obtaining one key item. Players may need to maintain appearances by attending meals, exercise periods and work assignments, while quietly gathering materials and testing the limits of the institution around them. A vent, a maintenance area, a poorly timed patrol or a useful distraction can all become part of a larger plan.

Crucially, the game is being positioned around player choice rather than a single intended solution. One inmate might construct tools and tunnel toward freedom. Another may rely on stealth, stolen supplies and knowledge of guard movements. A more confrontational approach could involve fighting through a problem, while a co-operative group may split responsibilities between collecting parts, creating diversions and scouting a route.

Five prisons, guard routines and more than 120 weapons

The Escapists 3 will include five prisons, each designed with its own routines, characters and secrets. Different facilities should naturally demand different approaches, since an escape strategy that works in one institution may not fit another prison's layout, staff patterns or available resources.

Guard rotations will be among the key details players are expected to observe. Learning when a particular area is watched, when a patrol changes direction, or when staff may be distracted is central to the series' identity. The new game will also give inmates systems to manipulate for an advantage, although the announcement has not yet specified all of the mechanisms players will be able to interfere with.

There will be more than 120 new weapons to steal and craft. In a series where seemingly ordinary items can become essential components of an escape, that number suggests plenty of experimentation. Supplies can be acquired by searching, trading and completing jobs, then converted into something more useful. The focus is not solely on combat; a weapon, tool or improvised object may be valuable because it creates an opening, removes an obstacle or helps a carefully timed plan stay on track.

This "turn rubbish into freedom" philosophy is a natural fit for The Escapists. The most satisfying plans often begin with a pile of items that appear insignificant in isolation. The challenge is deciding what to keep, what to risk carrying, what to trade away and when to make a move. Hoarding materials might make a future attempt easier, but being caught with contraband can derail an escape before it begins.

With no single route out of a prison, players should have reason to revisit facilities and try different methods. An initial breakout could be a scrappy operation based on whatever items happen to be available, while a later attempt might be a more carefully choreographed run built around the player's deeper knowledge of the location.

Skills and XP will carry between facilities

For the first time in the announced feature set, The Escapists 3 will also introduce an XP and skill progression system. Inmates will earn experience, unlock skills and specialise in areas that suit a preferred escape style. Those progression gains will carry over from one prison to another.

That carry-over could give the sequel a stronger sense of continuity than a collection of isolated prison scenarios. Rather than starting from exactly the same baseline in every facility, players will be able to build an inmate around the methods they enjoy most. Someone who prefers quiet infiltration may focus on skills that support a stealth-oriented approach, while another player could invest in a different specialty better suited to crafting, fighting or another aspect of prison life.

The announcement does not yet outline the specific skill trees, the speed of progression or whether every specialty will be equally useful in each prison. Still, persistent development has the potential to make experimentation more meaningful. It could also encourage players to take on different roles when they enter a prison with friends, especially if complementary specialisations make a larger co-operative escape more manageable.

Customisation will extend to the inmate itself as well. Players will be able to make their prisoner their own while shaping a playstyle through unlocked abilities. In a game about escaping institutions built to control every part of the day, the ability to define how an inmate operates should reinforce the sandbox approach.

Local split-screen and four-player online co-op

The Escapists 3 will support co-operative play in two forms. Two people will be able to play together through local split-screen, while online co-op will support up to four players. Both options fit especially well with a game where planning, timing and shared chaos are central to the experience.

Co-op can transform an escape from a personal puzzle into a coordinated operation. One player might watch guard movements while another searches for components. A teammate could take a job to secure a needed item, create a distraction in a busy area, or hold onto contraband while someone else prepares the final route. Of course, co-operation can also create opportunities for accidental exposure when one inmate acts too early or draws attention at the worst possible moment.

Local split-screen is notable for players who want to share a prison break from the same room, while four-player online support opens the door to more elaborate plans. The announcement has not provided details on matchmaking, cross-platform play or whether the campaign can be completed entirely in co-op, so those questions remain open.

A new chapter for a breakout success

Harley Homewood, General Manager at Team17, described The Escapists as a major success for the company and said the sequel will give players a chance to return to incarceration in fully realised 3D correctional facilities. Homewood characterised the announcement as an early look at what is still to come for the project.

That wording is appropriate, as many important specifics have yet to be revealed. The confirmed information establishes the game's direction--five prisons, systemic escape options, crafting and looting, more than 120 new weapons, XP-based specialisation, persistent progression, two-player local split-screen and four-player online co-op--but there is still no detailed breakdown of the individual prisons or console platforms.

For now, The Escapists 3 looks set to preserve the playful problem-solving that defines the franchise while giving its prison sandboxes a more ambitious 3D framework. Whether players are quietly studying a guard's rotation, assembling a strange tool from scavenged junk, or attempting a wildly overconfident four-person breakout, the sequel's promise is that freedom will be approached from more than one direction.

The Escapists 3 is scheduled to launch on PC and consoles in 2027.