Out Today: Prison Architect V1

Geoffrey Wright | October 6, 2015 | News | No Comments

After three years of hard work, Prison Architect is finally leaving early access and launching V1!

Build and manage a Maximum Security Prison. As the sun casts it’s early morning rays on a beautiful patch of countryside the clock starts ticking. You’ve got to crack on and build a holding cell to detain the job-lot of maximum security prisoners that are trundling to your future prison on their yellow bus. As your workmen lay the last brick you don’t have a moment to let them rest as they need to get started on the first proper cell block so you can make room for the next prisoner intake. Once they’ve all got a place to lay their weary heads the fun can really start. You’ll need a canteen, infirmary and a guard room, oh, and don’t forget to plumb in a toilet, or things will get messy, but what about a workout area? Or solitary confinement cells? Or an execution chamber?

Version One will be launched along side a couple of new features; story and escape mode.

Story Mode

Prison Architect opens with the story of Edward, a man facing the electric chair for committing a crime of passion. Introversion have extended this with 4 additional chapters focusing on different characters and aspects of prison life. From Mafia Dons to power-crazed senators, Introversion teamed up with professional writer Chris Hastings to produce an epic tale of corruption and human misery set against the background of the modern prison industrial complex.

Escape Mode

Escape mode sees the traditional Prison Architect gameplay turned on its head. Take control of an individual prisoner, load any of the tens of thousands of prisons uploaded to the steam workshop and get on with the important business of escaping. Earn experience points by shanking a guard, form up a posse of rough-necks and head to the armoury to shoot your way out or nick some tools from the workshop and start digging a tunnel hidden behind a picture of Raquel Welch.

These modes were added with two types of player in mind. The Story Mode has been added for new players (like myself) and introduces you to all the aspects of the game where as Escape Mode is players who have been playing since day one and fancy something a little different. The best part about the Escape Mode is that ANY prison can be used including all the ones on the Steam Workshop.

I am currently working my way through the story mode of Prison Architect so expect a review within the week but my issue is that I keep getting distracted by the sandbox mode! I am thinking about creating an Otaku State Prison and running a weekly diary but that is something that is still in the planning stage.

Anyway, congratulations to the team Introversion and it was great to meet you at EGX this year – I learnt a lot about the Indie Development scene from the talk I had with Mark & Chris