Prison Architect 2 preview: Fresh ideas, a new look, and some issues

The prison management sequel takes some time getting used to

Paradox Interactive

Rated 9/10 by Steam users with over 55,000 reviews contributing this this positive score, it’s fair to say that Prison Architect did a lot of things right: From mundane management to combatting a series of thrilling jailbreaks or finding ways to squeeze even the last bit of profit out of inmates, it provides a unique spin on the colony sim genre.

That’s making it kind of difficult to envision a sequel living up to expectations – and after playing a preview build of Prison Architect 2 for a while, I’m honestly none the wiser.

Naturally, the most noticeable change between original and sequel is the visual style: Gone is the 2D look with stylized characters that is so reminiscent of genre greats like RimWorld, which still provides so much personality and flair to the title along with allowing for a clear view of things. In its stead we have 3D visuals, which are undoubtedly pretty and have their own charm, giving the world and its characters a new feeling, but one that’s more like a sidegrade than an upgrade overall.

This doesn't feel as clean as the view in the original. / Paradox Interactive

Building is a lot smoother in 2D and it’s easier to get a quick and clear view of your prison, so a bit of gameplay comfort is sacrificed to the gods of eye candy. Maps are cluttered with so much stuff on the ground – pebbles, plants, trees, and so on – that building over them can completely ruin the visual clarity in building mode: You have your planned structures and objects in blue and the things that are in the way in red with all the red stuff blocking your view, which isn’t great.

Of course, Prison Architect 2 didn’t just add a third dimension visually – you can build up towards the sky, creating towering prison complexes that allow you to make the most of your real estate. This is undoubtedly a good addition and can be used to enhance the security of your prison: Your inmates will have a longer escape route if all of them live upstairs, for example. Combined with the graphics change, you can certainly construct some impressive complexes now. As games like Dwarf Fortress show, though, it’s not strictly necessary to have 3D graphics to use more than a single floor. Sure, characters have cool animations for interactions now, but it’s not like the original game lacked flair despite its simpler visuals. It’ll also make it more difficult for modders to add content compared to a 2D environment, which I feel is detrimental to games like this one in the long term.

Building still feels natural and there are a lot of customization options. / Paradox Interactive

It’s a decision that was probably made to appeal to a broader audience, but as always with niche titles like this I’m not sure if sacrificing one of the well-regarded original’s great appeals to strive towards that goal is worth it in the end.

Controversial visual choices aside, I think the way Prison Architect 2 handles your inmates is a good step forward. There is a whole The Sims-like relationship system between them now with all of them having distinct personalities based on random traits. Naturally, some of these mesh better with each other and some simply can’t stand to be in the same room with certain types, leading to rival groups forming in a somewhat organic way, which in turn acts as a catalyst for what we’re mainly here for – the emergent storytelling. 

Kirk here is a dangerous fellow: A genius with a silver tongue who's willing to start a riot to protect his many friends. / Paradox Interactive

Prisoners’ traits not only influence their personal interactions with other inmates, but are an important aspect to keep an eye on for you as the manager, too. Traits inform how well-behaved prisoners are and how clever they may go about planning an escape attempt. It may be tempting to choose only prisoners that are meek, making things a lot easier for your wardens, but if all of them are diabolic masterminds under that guise you’ll have trouble on your hands regardless.

In the early phase of the game, it’s naturally much easier to keep an eye on everybody and get a good look at all your prisoners. I imagine things will get more difficult and complex as you start to deal with a higher number of inmates and have to balance a more diverse cast of personalities – time will tell if the system keeps enriching the experience at that point or if it swings towards becoming a source of frustration and micro management.

Aside from balancing the books and keeping your prisoners in line, Prison Architect 2 has you gain Administrative XP to unlock various advanced policies and objects, which will help you out as your prison expands and essentially allows you to tailor your complex to a certain playstyle, going all in on areas like economic exploitation, rehabilitation, or security.

You can choose your campaign missions or custom plots on the world map, which provides a bit of meta progression as well. / Paradox Interactive

In terms of content and features there is some of the same whiplash here that you often get from strategy game sequels, be it Crusader Kings or Civilization: The older game simply has more to offer compared to where the next title starts. That can be remedied with time (and money spent on the unavoidable DLC). What’s most important is that Prison Architect 2 seems to be capable of generating the same breadth of stories and events that are the original’s lifeblood, at least as far as I was able to get in this preview build.

There’s still a lot to do on the technical side for new main developer Kokku ahead of launch – I crashed out of the game several times during loading screens and even when exiting the title. Performance is also a little rough even early on, despite me having a system that vastly outstrips the minimum requirements. Delaying the release was a very wise decision in this regard, otherwise the publisher would have another Cities: Skylines 2 situation on its hands.

At the moment the original’s magic is still out of reach for Prison Architect 2.