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Strategic prison simulation video game involving the planning and execution of an escape

Strategic prison simulation video game involving the planning and execution of an escape

Vote: (2,650 votes)

Program license: Paid

Developer: Mouldy Toof Studios

Works under: Windows

Vote:

Program license

(2,650 votes)

Paid

Developer

Mouldy Toof Studios

Works under:

Windows

Pros

  • More than 185 items
  • 10 separate prisons to choose from
  • More than one way to escape from prison
  • Prison Editor is a fun feature

Cons

  • A lot of patience required to succeed

The Escapists games draw many similarities to Prison Architect, which is another jails' game. This game, however, has more action, because you're a prisoner of a jail from which you want to escape. To escape, you must perform daily tasks and use your free time to prepare a getaway. The game did not "dumb it down" for everyone, so if you enjoy a game with a good challenge, the Escapists will be a great game to check out. You do not get goals or hints, and you will have to negotiate with prison bands to plot your disappearance. You might also have to steal a prison guard's uniform, build an underground tunnel or hide your breakout tools in the bathroom.

Freedom of Choice

Where the Escapists stands out as a unique game is in freedom of action. You have numerous jails to choose from, and each will have differing levels of difficulty. While prisons limit your space, the rich and detailed environment with variables to plot your next escape amplifies the gaming entertainment. The beauty of the Escapists is how you have a wide variety of ways to escape from prison, so you can attempt to escape through different means. It gives you a huge opportunity to play again and again.

Patience: The Key

While the Escapists is a phenomenal game with lovely retro aesthetics, the biggest problem with this game is how you have to wait to have free time for planning your escape. At times, the excess boils over to mean a need for monk-like patience. Outside the harsh demand for patience, the controls surprise you with the sheer level of simplicity. You have only a few keys to watch over, but the simplicity does not have a negative impact on the creativity. With other games in the genre, the level of complication can feel discouraging because of how much time investment you need to learn the controls.

The Graphics

Looking at the appearance of the game, you have an aerial view with 8-bit graphics. The music also has a retro style with numerous "beeps," so it can sometimes feel like an older game. It actually adds to the beauty of the game because it feels more like a classic game like, "La Abadia del Crimen."

Unlock the Possibilities

The Escapists takes on an original premise with multiple possibilities, and it leaves you wanting to battle with the challenges found in the game. The design takes a somewhat lighthearted approach, and you develop insights about life in everyday prison. Like the objective of many inmates, the goal is to escape, but the careful eyes of the guards make this more challenging, and you have to go about your shadier business in a more clandestine fashion to avoid getting caught. You will learn how to transform innocuous items into useful tools and weapons, and you can also use them for diversionary tactics.

Find the Weakness

Your goal as the prisoner will be to identify the weaknesses of the pattern. You will develop personal plans of escape and spot an opportunity to escape a life behind bars. Every prison will have a daily routine, and your goal will be to escape it. Understanding the potential routes and how to misdirect a guard's attention soon becomes secondhand nature. You have to remember to attend roll-call and hold down your prison job at the factory without tipping the suspicion of the guards or the inmate snitches. You can also boost your individual characteristics to aid a breakout. For example, you can exercise regularly or boost your stamina.

More than 185 Items to Choose From

As you progress through the game, you will find more than 185 items to craft with to make shivs, maces or nunchucks. You can obtain these through various favors or trade with other inmates. The game also has many opinionated and hilarious guards and inmates who entertain you the whole time. The Escapist gets played in a less linear fashion, which means you have multiple escape routes to achieve your goal of a getaway. In addition, the multiple save slots mean you can attempt more than a single escape.

Prison Editor

One of the more cool features of the game is how you can create your own prison from scratch. You can create prisoner stashes, warden notes with names and a multitude of doors, including the master door that has the white key. The Escapists lets you add searchlights, contraband detectors, ladders, snipers, electric fences and land mines. You can have a maximum of 15 guards and 20 inmates. In Prison Editor mode, the game takes it a step further where you can also set the background music and the prison style.

Over 10 Different Fully Operational Prisons

The Escapists does a great job of opening your perspective with 10 various prisons, and each has its own flavor of life on the inside. For example, perhaps the guards at one prison are grumpier than in others. You also have 10 different job opportunities to choose from, which can give you access to items and possible escape routes. Although first, you have to have knowledge of how to win employment.

Skills Required

If you plan to escape, bring your cunning, your strategy, and your proper equipment. It can also help to stay five steps ahead of the guards at all times. The amount of strategy and freedom in the game is what makes it so beautiful. To take the job of a tailor, perhaps you disrupt him while he's trying to get to work, which results in him being fired. You can now take the job and bust down a wall while replacing it with a poster. The advantage in that is how you will now have a secret hiding place to stash your getaway contraband. The game lets you live out your fantasy of becoming a mastermind escapist.

Pros

  • More than 185 items
  • 10 separate prisons to choose from
  • More than one way to escape from prison
  • Prison Editor is a fun feature

Cons

  • A lot of patience required to succeed