Danish studio Trophy Games has acquired Airport Simulator: First Class developer Playrion from Paradox Interactive.
The acquisition consists of a €2.25 million upfront payment and a three-year earn-out based on net revenue performance.
Through this acquisition, 30 employees from Playrion will join Trophy Games.
“This is a milestone for Trophy Games. We have had Playrion on our radar for four years,” said Trophy Games founder and CEO Søren Gleie. “They have been one of our biggest competitors, and we know the company, the games, and the market really well. Therefore, we see a very strong strategic match.”
Paradox Interactive CEO Fredrik Wester added: “This transaction is a step in aligning our operations around developing and publishing strategy and management games primarily for PC and console. Playrion is a highly skilled mobile game developer with a strong track record, and we’re happy to have found a committed owner who can support the studio’s growth.”
Trophy Games intends to use Airport Simulator as the basis for a new series of simulation games. The company previously used this approach in 2021 with the acquisition of Airline Manager 4, which marked the beginning of the company’s growth.
“By now, we have a recipe for how we can take a game that has already proven there is a market and build an entire series around it,” added Gleie. “We did that with Airline Manager, and that is the opportunity we now see in Airport Simulator. If we succeed in repeating the model, Playrion can become an entirely new growth pillar for Trophy Games.”
Gleie stated that Trophy Games is in “a very good position for further growth,” with six games currently in development.
“We have more than quadrupled our revenue in five years and now have the capital to also make larger acquisitions. Playrion is our largest acquisition so far and another step in the growth strategy we have laid out.”
Following the acquisition, Trophy Games has updated its 2026 financial outlook. Projected revenue is now between €22.8 million and €24.1 million, up from the previous estimate of €20.1 million to €22.4 million.
Paradox Interactive acquired Plarion in 2020. The Paris-based studio was founded in 2010.