Prison Architect is an interesting game. On the surface, it is a sim management game reminiscent of the Tycoon and Sims series of games. Though, instead of a theme park or city, you are tasked with running a prison as efficiently as possible. As you’ll come to notice, there is (lurking below) also some interesting commentary on the current state of the prison system in the United States.

As a management sim, Prison Architect is a great addition to the genre. The building features have depth and there are unique disasters you will need to deal with. Each building you want to erect – from solitary confinement cells to laundry rooms – have their own set of requirements. You can’t just build four walls and a door, put a stove in, and call it a kitchen. Instead, you have to designate what each space will be used for from a menu, and then make sure it meets all the requirements of that type of room. Furthermore, you will need to make sure the appliances have the correct hook-ups. Want your room to have light? Make sure to lay the electrical lines and connect it to the main grid.

Making sure we have the electrical cables in all the right places.

There will be disasters to deal with as well, which pertain directly to the prison system. Shutting down riots and putting out fires causes real disruptions to the flow of the game. They are not merely inconveniences when ignored, either. A riot will shut down your whole operation until you are able to restore order. Fires will result in significant destruction, causing time and resources to be lost on rebuilding. They need to be dealt with immediately and cause a true feeling of urgency, much like an actual disaster. There are real consequences to these events, and it does a great job of ensuring you never truly become comfortable in your role.

Oh really, CEO? I couldn’t tell . . .

As with other simulation games, there is a lot to manage in Prison Architect. It’s not just having the proper buildings and staff. You also need to manage your prisoners’ health and contentment. This includes their food intake, ability to contact and interact with family, rehabilitation possibilities, and religious fulfillment, just to name a few. All of this is on top of making sure your prison remains profitable. Understanding the different variables and being able to successfully balance them is key. At any given time there will be multiple events you need to react to and multiple challenges you could be proactive about. The key to success is deciding what to focus on at a specific moment.

Prison Architect gets complicated quickly since there are so many systems in place. There are tutorial missions in place that help with this, which are found in the Prison Stories mode. It is not readily apparent that these are meant to be played first. However, they definitely do help, and I highly recommend playing through them before starting a new game.

You can split up this larger structure into multiple rooms by building more walls and doors.

These tutorial missions guide the player through the different mechanics, introducing one at a time. They even go so far as to turn off the features that are not essential to the current goal, so there’s little confusion as to what is needed. However, even with the hand holding, there are nuances and intricacies that are difficult to figure out. I’ll admit, throughout my time with Prison Architect, I had to check the wiki a few times to fully understand how to do what I needed to accomplish.

Since there are so many different mechanics in-game, it’s inevitable that a player will find issues. Nothing ever broke to the point where I needed to re-start or scrap an entire build, but I did run into some snags. At one point, my workers just ran around in circles within my delivery space. I finally figured out that, due to their work priority, they were unable to reach the supplies they needed. After changing priorities and canceling some builds, they were able to proceed. I encountered some other small bugs, like a door just appearing in the middle of the yard. However, these were infrequent and easy to rectify.

These missions also have a story to follow. The game does not just throw you into a prison with a riot to teach you how to handle this type of situation. Instead, there is a backstory as to why the prisoners are rioting. All of the missions intersect as well, creating one large overarching story for this entire mode. I found the story to be engaging and a fitting indictment on the prison system today. The developers use this story mode to fully drive their points home, but it bleeds over into the sandbox mode since the prisons you build are all for-profit.

Prison Architect can get pretty dark at times.

You will be forced to cut corners at times since you have to worry about the bottom line. This makes you justify some of your decisions and may make you feel conflicted and uneasy. If my prison has a drug problem, do I hire more drug-sniffing dogs or set up a rehabilitation program? I’d have to weigh which option would be more cost effective and produce better results, rather than which option would be best for my prisoners.

The art style ties into this as well. All of the characters are small, toy-like models. They are simply an amorphous shape with a head; they have no limbs or truly defining features. Each prisoner does have a background, a mugshot, and reason for being there. However, you don’t see any of this unless you choose to take the time to click on the individual person and read it. I can’t help but think this was intentional. You view the prison from above, making changes based off of budgets and reports. You don’t even see the prisoners and workers as people; they’re just blobs moving around this space you’re in charge of.

Thanks for the validation, Mayor!

Beyond the tutorial story-based missions, there are two main modes. In the Prison Architect mode, you can start from scratch and build an entire prison system from the ground up. This is the completely open sandbox mode. There will be some notes and objectives given to you at the beginning, which gives you a jumping off point and some direction. Thankfully, the game doesn’t just assume you know everything about building a prison even if you’ve played through the tutorial missions. The other main mode, Prison Warden, has existing prisons which you can take over and run. The game has lots of varied prisons, all of which you are able to control and change as you see fit.

Along with the base prisons, you can share and download prisons from the World of Wardens options. Here, you will be able to see other prisons that the community has made and have the option to download and play them yourself. However, at the time of this writing, there is a dismal amount of content being shared on the Switch. Escape mode has also been announced for the Switch as upcoming DLC, but there is no word yet on timing or price.

Setting guard patrols can help make sure every space is being watched.

The Prison Stories mode is great, but the sandbox modes are where the game really opens up. When starting a new game in Prison Architect or Prison Warden modes, there are lots of options which allow for many unique playthroughs. These include difficulty, size, starting funds, which Warden to start with, and many other options. The Wardens have different attributes which will help guide your playstyle for that prison.

There have always been issues when porting a sim game to a console due to the complicated controls. It is obvious that this would be easier played with a keyboard and mouse. However, the controls on the Switch are not bad. There might be a bit of getting used to the navigating the multiple menus, but I was able to catch on quickly. The controls actually work well and I had no issue with them.

Prison Architect is an addicting and fun simulation and management game. I found myself caught in the hook of just-one-more-problem-to-solve many times, which caused me to wonder where the time went. Having some more polish and explanation could make the game better, but as it stands now, it is a great addition to the genre.

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