Prison Architect

Amazing game although I do prefer the way escape mode is on the Nintendo Switch.

its rly fun and entertaining would defientely recommend to people looking for a game to play

This game is amazing for lots of reasons. This game lets you run a prison with fun and action, the one bad thing that i struggle with the most is the riots. The prison officers dont even try so i just delete a wall and let the rioters escape which leads to other problems like others escaping but overall a great game

It's a great Prison Simulator with a great Story, tho it's some time confusing with the task given to you being vague or have little to no detail.

This game is very fun for designers and builders overall but the game is ruined with its horrible build mechanics. To make an indoors room you must use foundations which automatically creates walls and flooring BUT this does not work in small or overlapping rooms. this makes a two wall thick effect in these very common situations which ruins the builds because you cannot make the room indoors. This could all be fixed if the developers added a foundations floor button and a foundations wall button that allow you to create rooms without any of this game ruining effects. I really do love the game but again, I had to rage quit because of this stupidly made build system. The foundations build system specifically.

How could you mess up GUI scaling this bad? Your shit game is unplayable no matter if I use safe mode or not.

Reform your prisoners, exploit them for profit, it's up to you!

Good game.

Not sure which update they decided to completely screw this game up on but I can no longer run it on my pc. It opens on my 4th monitor, smallest possible resolution in a window. When you attempt to change any settings it crashes.

Go buy something else.

Prarchitect is a game about my sick fantasies in which I can put all of you in a filthy little box and listen to you scream. I don't know if you can comprehend the darkness that lives in my soul but let's just say I listen to Evanescence while I play this game. In this prison, I am the architect, and I am not just drawing the walls; I am drawing a fantastical treasure map where the X marks agony. Oh, you don't know if I'm gonna bait ya into acting up in front of armed guards on free fire or just lock ya in a 1x1 solitary and give ya the Cask of Amontillado special, but one thing's for sure: you're gonna regret the day you got accused of criming.

Very good game, would recommend. The architecture is very good and detailed but could get some improvement with more in-depth building and settings. The deployment tab requires a lot of improvement. The game is overall fun but i recommend buying DLC's such as Gangs, Psych ward or Second Chances...

So bad that it's good. You will be confused for so much of your average session of playing this game to the point where it's genuinely hilarious. Cells with canteens right next to them will be dysfunctional because "there's no canteen available". The number of prisoners will fluctuate by 50 to 100 every day either because of deaths or new entries. By about five days you'll have infinitely more prisoners than cells to hold them in. You'll prioritize building a room but your 87 workers will just run around with garbage bags and boxes by some trucks for weeks. Random red squares will appear around prisoners and you'll have no idea why. Clothes will pile up in the laundry room and no matter how many prisoners you hire to do the laundry they won't even enter the room. There will constantly be dead prisoners laying throughout the prison with blood (and sometimes pee) stains on the ground. Doesn't matter if they were beaten to death or if they simply died of starvation, every single corpse ends up in a dramatically big pool of blood. Workers get locked out of the break room during lockdowns. You'll change the settings for a cell so that it's only for maximum security prisoners but all of the medium and low security prisoners will stay for some reason. You'll be forced to watch riots and deaths as the riot police don't move even after you make them. And after all of this 11 out of your 672 prisoners will somehow still be content and say that they are being treated fairly. The whole thing is a complete mess which makes it a really entertaining game.

I play this game like an evil capitalist who enjoys the suffering of the downtrodden, and that makes me very happy.

loved this game, building my own prison is super fun, but playing as a prisoner is also incredible!

multiple bugs and lies from the devs two years ago they released an update that claimed to essentially allow saved blueprints to transfer between save files and it would've been amazing but they lied.
this game is not worth full price, i regret not getting it on sale.
oh and the the devs abandoned this game which isn’t finished yet to go make a second game.
i really like this type of game but for the bugs and no future updates from the devs its not worth the money

Hungry for DLC sales while never fixing any core features, maybe see if the sequel (always works for this type of game) is better.

I really tried to love this game, but everything seems so unexplained, specific and takes a great amount of time to do anything.
The building process, should be more like Rimworld, this foundation bs is really bad.
Prisoners misbehave and are surpressed, this decreases safety. What? Why? Should I let them do everything?
Prisoners complain about everything at the start, it is just annoying.
First female prison and there it goes the babies, annoying to get specific cells and nursery. Also annoying to get the female prisoners with babies to always have weapons/drugs/luxury items and not automatically punished.
The UI for this game is bad a lot of times and does not explain a lot. I saw a visitor with sign (-). Search online. Even people at forums could not answer what was this.
Anyway, I tried to have fun because I really like these kinds of simulators, however it is better to take another game.

PRISON ARCHITECT.
I really love designing and building my prison. It is very trial and error, but it is fun for hours. However other than expanding your prison there is very little you can do but watch your prisoners go about their day disrupting the peace or straight up escape attempts.
If you can put aside how it feels like you are the warden of what is essentially a concentration camp for prisoners, and yes you can even send prisoners to be executed. Besides the building aspect of the game, once you complete building your prison the game become more about budget management, limiting violence and making as much money as possible without allowing prison conditions to slip down to the point that your prisoners riot and make your job hell trying to quell a prisoner rebellion with riot troop storm troopers.

It is a decent design and build game with a bit of managerial simulation later in game. If I remember correctly I believe I got this game while on sale for about half the £24.99 it is going for now. My advice is wait until it goes on sale again as in my honest opinion the game feels limited in scale, with each time you start a new game it feels like you are just replaying the same game you played last time.
In other words I don't think I would pay the full price for this architect simulator as it is very limited and once you have played one game, you essentially are left to restart what feels like the same game over again.

---{ Graphics }---
☐ You forget what reality is
☐ Beautiful
☐ Good
☑ Decent
☐ Bad
☐ Don‘t look too long at it
☐ MS-DOS

---{ Gameplay }---
☐ Very good
☑ Good
☐ It's just gameplay
☐ Mehh
☐ Watch paint dry instead
☐ Just don't

---{ Audio }---
☐ Eargasm
☐ Very good
☑ Good
☐ Not too bad
☐ Bad
☐ I'm now deaf

---{ Audience }---
☑ Kids
☑ Teens
☑ Adults
☐ Grandma

---{ PC Requirements }---
☐ Check if you can run paint
☑ Potato
☐ Decent
☐ Fast
☐ Rich boi
☐ Ask NASA if they have a spare computer

---{ Game Size }---
☐ Floppy Disk
☐ Old Fashioned
☑ Workable
☐ Big
☐ Will eat 15% of your 1TB hard drive
☐ You will want an entire hard drive to hold it
☐ You will need to invest in a black hole to hold all the data

---{ Difficulty }---
☐ Just press 'W'
☐ Easy
☑ Easy to learn / Hard to master
☐ Significant brain usage
☐ Difficult
☐ Dark Souls

---{ Grind }---
☐ Nothing to grind
☐ Only if u care about leaderboards/ranks
☑ Isn't necessary to progress
☐ Average grind level
☐ Too much grind
☐ You'll need a second life for grinding

---{ Story }---
☐ No Story
☑ Some lore
☐ Average
☐ Good
☐ Lovely
☐ It'll replace your life

---{ Game Time }---
☐ Long enough for a cup of coffee
☐ Short
☐ Average
☑ Long
☐ To infinity and beyond

---{ Price }---
☐ It's free!
☐ Worth the price
☑ If it's on sale
☐ If u have some spare money left
☐ Not recommended
☐ You could also just burn your money

---{ Bugs }---
☐ Never heard of
☑ Minor bugs
☐ Can get annoying
☐ ARK: Survival Evolved
☐ The game itself is a big terrarium for bugs

---{ ? / 10 }---
☐ 1
☐ 2
☐ 3
☐ 4
☐ 5
☐ 6
☐ 7
☑ 8
☐ 9
☐ 10

This game has fed my hyper fixation for building and management games! Have I finished no, my fixation is slowly ending but it was so worth the buy as now I can always come back to this game to get lost into.

Has good amount of options and systems to make alot of different prison styles and systems, with a good sandbox mode. The legendary prisoners are pretty over tuned for some reason which is annoying.

Prison Architect is a game that, unfortunately, didn’t captivate me as much as I had hoped. The concept of designing and managing a prison is intriguing, and there’s a lot of depth in the gameplay, but I found it hard to stay engaged for long periods of time. The complexity of balancing construction, inmate needs, and prison security is interesting at first, but the pacing can feel slow, and it sometimes becomes repetitive.

The game has great potential with its strategic elements, but it didn't hook me like I expected it to. Maybe it’s just not my style of game—while some players may enjoy the micromanagement and building aspects, I didn’t feel a strong connection to the gameplay. It’s a good game for those who love simulation and strategy, but it wasn’t the right fit for me.

Very buggy, with bugs that have been noted as aware from the dev team going unresolved. They will never be resolved as the game has sunsetted patch support.

games been out forever as one of the first "colony sim" esque experiences, but still lacks any need tab that makes any sense. you could spend 6 hours playing with double the food supply than it states you need for a prison, but still somehow have prisoners going starving. Same with freedom, you could schedule them to spend their entire 16 hour waking day out in the yard or with freetime adn they will still be pissy about not having enough freetime. just not a good colony management game

If you have never played, it's hard. There are a lot of complex ways that things work and it will take time to figure them out by watching YouTube instructions. Very fun and engaging. Time passes quick when playing.

🚔 Prison Architect – Build, Manage, and Try to Avoid Chaos 🚔

Prison Architect is a deep, engaging simulation game that puts you in charge of designing and running a high-security prison. Whether you aim for efficiency, rehabilitation, or a total dystopian nightmare, the game gives you complete control—along with all the consequences that come with it.

🏗️ Gameplay: Design, Expand, and Maintain Order

Your job is to build a fully functioning prison, managing everything from cell layouts and staff hiring to meal schedules and security measures. At first, it’s simple—construct some basic cells, hire guards, and keep things running. But as you expand, you’ll face riots, escape attempts, and budget constraints that turn prison management into a constant balancing act.

🔥 Challenge: Micromanagement at Its Finest

It’s not just about building walls—you have to handle power grids, plumbing, staff morale, prisoner needs, and even legal trouble. Each decision affects the prison’s efficiency, and ignoring small problems can lead to full-blown chaos. Do you focus on rehabilitation, or do you run a brutal, profit-driven institution? The choice is yours.

🎨 Graphics & Sound: Simple but Effective

The top-down, cartoonish art style keeps things clear and easy to manage. Despite its simple look, the animations and details—like prisoners working out in the yard or guards patrolling hallways—add plenty of life to your facility. The ambient sounds of prison life, from distant shouting to alarm sirens, make the experience feel immersive.

⚖️ Final Verdict: 9/10 – A Must-Play for Sim Fans

Prison Architect is one of the best management sims out there, offering deep mechanics, endless customization, and unpredictable challenges. Whether you want to build a humane rehabilitation center or a terrifying maximum-security prison, the game lets you experiment, fail, and try again. If you love simulation and strategy games, this one’s a must-play.

This is one of my favorite games, I have nearly 800 hours in at the time of writing this. The DLCs are amazing and if theres something you want thats not in a DLC, there is likely a mod for it! This game is super awesome. I love how there are also modes to play as the warden or as a prisoner.

I never thought running my own prison could be this fun!! I've discovered a newfound love for corporal punishment. Hoping the next game doesn't ruin a good thing.

Absolute masterpeice.

Got on sale but honestly worth the full price, even after buying xbox version and playing that, incredibly addictive.

Really good i got in on sale 90% off ,so had to get.I recomend getting the SCP mod its great

its very engaging and relaxing but also challengingTT

---{ Graphics }---
☐ You forget what reality is
☐ Beautiful
☐ Good
☐ Decent
☑ Bad
☐ Don‘t look too long at it
☐ MS-DOS

---{ Gameplay }---
☑ Very good
☐ Good
☐ It's just gameplay
☐ Mehh
☐ Watch paint dry instead
☐ Just don't

---{ Audio }---
☐ Eargasm
☐ Very good
☑ Good
☐ Not too bad
☐ Bad
☐ I'm now deaf

---{ Audience }---
☐ Kids
☑ Teens
☑ Adults
☐ Grandma

---{ PC Requirements }---
☑ Check if you can run paint
☐ Potato
☐ Decent
☐ Fast
☐ Rich boi
☐ Ask NASA if they have a spare computer

---{ Game Size }---
☑ Floppy Disk
☐ Old Fashioned
☐ Workable
☐ Big
☐ Will eat 15% of your 1TB hard drive
☐ You will want an entire hard drive to hold it
☐ You will need to invest in a black hole to hold all the data

---{ Difficulty }---
☐ Just press 'W'
☐ Easy
☐ Easy to learn / Hard to master
☑ Significant brain usage
☐ Difficult
☐ Dark Souls

---{ Grind }---
☐ Nothing to grind
☐ Only if u care about leaderboards/ranks
☐ Isn't necessary to progress
☑ Average grind level
☐ Too much grind
☐ You'll need a second life for grinding

---{ Story }---
☑ No Story
☑ Some lore
☐ Average
☐ Good
☐ Lovely
☐ It'll replace your life

---{ Game Time }---
☐ Long enough for a cup of coffee
☐ Short
☐ Average
☐ Long
☑ To infinity and beyond

---{ Price }---
☐ It's free!
☑ Worth the price
☐ If it's on sale
☐ If u have some spare money left
☐ Not recommended
☐ You could also just burn your money

---{ Bugs }---
☑ Never heard of
☐ Minor bugs
☐ Can get annoying
☐ ARK: Survival Evolved
☐ The game itself is a big terrarium for bugs

---{ ? / 10 }---
☐ 1
☐ 2
☐ 3
☐ 4
☐ 5
☐ 6
☐ 7
☐ 8
☐ 9
☑ 10

It is still amazing game.

I've played this game from a console since it came out, and I love this game.
I was a city builder gamer, and this game got me into like base building type of game, and it was an awesome introduction to that world with this one.

but there are some catches though.

1. not intuitive or detail explanation on how things work.

you definitely needs some help from Reddit, wiki to figure out (mostly why canteen, kitchen, in my case) why some things are not working. because the game is not really good at explaining how things should be connected, scheduled and stuff.
when I first started this game I had to figure out why my prisoners are not getting fed when I have so many cook, why they do not attend classes that needs, or parole and stuff.
it gets frustrating at first, but once you go thru some problems, you will get the hang of it pretty quick.

[h3]2. Once you complete the successful prototype, there is nothing to do except watching. [/h3]
this depends on the players. I like to watch them for a while, and I would start over and try another layout or stuff.
however, some may just lose interest real quick because it may feel like you have completed the game, but there's no satisfying ending to it. you may even feel burnt out from it lol

3. I would not bother to get DLC?

only DLC I've tried is Psych Ward. It is the first DLC ever if I'm correct. So I would say it was one of the quality DLC, and that was mid. Most of the DLC seems to be lack of volume, and honestly it does not add enough new aspect or dynamic to the game.

But overall it's still a great game. I would recommend it to play at least once.
Buy it when it's on sale since this is an old game.

A great time sink fun time. first you dont know how to get enough showers, then in no time you're trying to find more criminals!

The game was good until they sold the game to a different studio, now its just riddled with micro-transactions and never gets updated

I received a key as part of the Yogscast Jingle Jam 2020 Games Collection. Firstly, thank you for working with such a great group and supporting some very deserving charities! Secondly, I've had so much fun building and escaping prisons.

The original game as Introversion has made, is quite amazingly good, however over the years paradox has had its way with it, making slop DLC after slop DLC, only a couple of them are remotely good. The erosion of the games stability by lack of bug fixes, with the multiplayer still active, despite the number of bugs that go unfixed. As a bonus, you can't add mods to multiplayer due to how multiplayer works, so the bug fix mod which could fix these issues can't be used.

Paradox please stop ruining games.

Too many bugs!! I don't want to play this game anymore if you don't fix this

I started off making prisons on my Playstation 4 and now I make them on a computer. I personally love being able to not only design the prison but I love being able to control the different aspects of the functioning of the prison. You can direct emergency people, you can set routes for your guards, you can set specific rooms for different needs and you can make restricted rooms for specific types of prisoners or staff. You can even edit how much time prisoners spend doing any activity from working to relaxing in the common room. If you are more of a person who would like to run the prison you can play the various warden prison levels to not only run the prison but also learn how to build and run one. Then if you like playing prisoner there is also an online multiplayer version for you. You attempt to escape various prisons with the tools you are able to obtain and your wits.

After 180+ hours played I think it's finally time I review this game.

As someone who feels like they've lost control of their life I often play games that let me have control of other's lives, and oh boy does this deliver! My prisons are either very nice or complete hell holes but the government keeps giving me money no matter what I do. I will never be able to have any sense of power in the real world so this is a great outlet for my evil capitalist desires (that I would never do for real but boy is it fun).

I do wish the game had more campaign though.....

good game. satisfying to control all of the different acpects of the prison: utilitys, blueprint, schedule, etc.

Great game! I wish there was more to the campaign, though the grants does provide some of what I'd want from more of a campaign. Get the various DLC, for sure. Most of them provide stuff you'll want even if you're not interested in the main focus of the DLC. Unless you're chomping at the bit for a DLC though you can probably wait for the next sale. All that said, lots of fun to play!

super fun game but there's definitely a learning curve at the start of it that some people won't like
I don't think I could've learnt the game as fast as I did without looking up tutorials and watching external videos about certain items and mechanics. There's a lot of things in the game that it explains greatly and then there's some tasks that fills forums with questions like "am i doing this right, is my game bugged?". If you can get past that, It's really rewarding to put all of that knowledge you gain into a highly optimised prison and then try and escape it yourself in the aptly named 'Escape Mode'.

Let me start off by saying this is my first EVER Steam review. So please trust me when I say i LOVED this game. It was fun and addicting, much like the drugs i kept busting my prisoners with.

However, as of late there are too many game breaking bugs. My prisoners wont eat so they die, my doctors wont bring them to the morgue, so they wont get picked up by the hearse, so they wont leave, so i cant get new prisoners, so i lose all my money, so the game ends.

Please please patch these issues! I love this game so much but i have uninstalled it as it is unplayable.

This game is really good, I have played it everyday this week and once there is a sale I will buy a lot of the games DLCs. You must get this game if you like management games and the campaign is pretty good I just wish it was longer. This game is a great idea to get but only if it's on sale, This is not a game that is worth 30 dollars.

This game is super fun, especially with premade prisons and mods, they just make the game so much better, but try to buy it while it is on sale, since the 30 dollars probably could be a little too much.

⭐ Rating: 6.5/10

Prison Architect is a fun and challenging prison management simulator where you design, build, and run your own correctional facility. The game offers deep mechanics, from constructing cells and utilities to handling inmates' needs and dealing with riots. There’s a solid mix of strategy and creativity, allowing for both efficiency-focused prisons and chaotic disaster zones.

Pros:
✔️ Addictive and rewarding management gameplay
✔️ Plenty of freedom in designing your prison layout
✔️ Satisfying challenge with inmate AI and behavior
✔️ Mod support extends replayability

Cons:
❌ Can feel overwhelming for new players
❌ AI sometimes acts strangely
❌ Some mechanics (like guards and pathfinding) can be frustrating

Overall, Prison Architect is a great game for fans of simulation and management titles. If you enjoy games like SimCity or RimWorld, you’ll probably have a blast running your own prison—just be ready for some unexpected chaos along the way! 🚔🔨

I bought this game to reform people
I left this game with multiple Geneva Convention violations to my name.
10/10 game.

I love it, I bought it thinking I should try it before they come out with the PA2, but 4 years later we're still waiting. Still I recommend Prison Architect, it is easy to learn and very fun for people who like management mixed with a bit of letting your pain out.

The story line actually does it's job and teaches you the game, while still being a good story. Just has some bugs like guards letting Criminally Insane prisoners outside and letting them escape. 9/10

I love my police brutality simulator, MP is pretty fun too.