Trophy Games Buys Airlines Manager Studio Playrion From Paradox

Paradox Interactive has agreed to sell Playrion, the Paris-based mobile studio behind Airlines Manager, to Trophy Games Development, a developer and publisher of mobile management and simulation games. Paradox announced the transaction on September 25, 2026, with closing expected to take place on September 30, 2026.

Under the agreement, Trophy Games will acquire 100% of the shares in Playrion SASU, and the games Airlines Manager and Airport Simulator: First Class will be added to Trophy Games’ portfolio. In a company announcement also dated September 25, 2026, Trophy Games described the deal as the largest acquisition in its history and said it strengthens the group’s position within mobile strategy and simulation games.

Transaction Terms

Trophy Games will pay Paradox an upfront cash consideration of EUR 2.25 million, approximately DKK 16.8 million, payable in cash at closing on a cash- and debt-free basis and subject to net cash adjustments. Paradox will also be entitled to deferred consideration corresponding to 9% of the net revenue generated by Playrion’s games during the three years following closing.

Trophy Games said the acquisition will be funded entirely from its existing cash reserves, maintaining a capital position with no financial debt, and that it expects Playrion to operate on a cash flow-neutral basis in the short term.

“This transaction is a step in aligning our operations around developing and publishing strategy and management games primarily for PC and console,” said Fredrik Wester, CEO of Paradox. Wester described Playrion as a highly skilled mobile game developer with a strong track record and said the publisher was happy to have found a committed owner who can support the studio’s growth. Paradox said the excess value related to its 2020 acquisition of Playrion has previously been fully amortised at group level.

According to Trophy Games, Playrion has approximately 30 employees and generates annual revenue of around EUR 4.0 million, approximately DKK 30 million. The studio specialises in simulation and management games within aviation and is best known for Airlines Manager and Airport Simulator: First Class.

Playrion was founded in 2010 to support the development of Airlines Manager, which began as a student project and a browser-based management game. Paradox acquired the studio on July 2, 2020, when Playrion joined the publisher as its eighth internal studio. In its announcement at the time, Paradox said Airlines Manager had attracted more than 10 million players since its release on mobile platforms in 2014.

Trophy Games’ Plans for Playrion

Trophy Games said Playrion will continue to operate independently from its studio in Paris with its existing team, while gaining access to the buyer’s expertise, technology and capital. In the shorter term, the company sees opportunities to improve the performance of Playrion’s existing games through its capabilities within marketing, data, technology and game development.

Beyond the existing business, Trophy Games said it sees longer-term potential in using Airport Simulator and its underlying technology as the foundation for a new series of simulation games. The company said it has applied that model before: following its acquisition of Airline Manager 4 in 2021, the game became the foundation for a series that today consists of six management games within transportation.

Trophy Games founder and CEO Søren Gleie said the company has followed Playrion for four years and knows both the games and the market well. “Our ambition is to build a new series of simulation games and establish a new growth platform for Trophy Games,” he said.

Gleie said the company has grown revenue more than fourfold over the past five years and has six new games coming to market over the next year, giving it the financial capacity to make larger acquisitions. He called the Playrion deal an important step in the company’s strategy to continue growing both organically and through acquisitions.

Revised 2026 Guidance

Based on the acquisition and what the company described as continued strong performance across its existing game portfolio, Trophy Games’ Board of Directors raised its full-year 2026 revenue guidance to DKK 170 million–180 million, from DKK 150 million–167 million previously. EBITDA guidance was adjusted to DKK 29 million–35 million, from DKK 28 million–36 million, while EBIT guidance remains unchanged at DKK 18 million–24 million. The company said the guidance now includes The Ranchers but not Space Manager, which is set for release on October 12, 2026.

Following the expected closing, Playrion is set to contribute a full quarter to Trophy Games’ consolidated financial results for 2026.