Score: 7.5 out of 10

The Escapists, the a nutshell, is a game where you escape prison. The Escapists was developed by Mouldy Toof Studios and Published by Team17 Ltd a.k.a the Worms developers. The game was released on Steam and Xbox One on Feb. 13, 2015.

When you are not actively trying to escape prison your character has to live normal prison life. A typical day of a prisoner includes morning and evening roll call, Three meals a day, a period for prison work, exercise time with a shower afterward, free time, and of coarse lights out.

The game also has a crafting system that allows you to create 100+items you might need to escape or make friendly with your fellow inmates. The crafting system can get a little complicated. Mainly because the only thing you are taught is how to make a sock mace using a sock and a bar of soap. Everything else you are left up to trial and error of what makes what. Some recipes make sense like the sock mace one but others like timber, wire, and a razor is used to make a whip I would have never have thought if someone didn’t tell me.

Other inmates can help or hurt your escape plans. Well when I say hurt I mean they will attack you on sight if you make them angry by picking fights with them. Some inmates will sell items to you as well as ask you to do favors for them for coins. The favors include stuff like cause a ruckus during a mealtime or roll call which involves picking a fight, just plain ol’ knocking either a guard or prisoner out, or taking an item from another inmate. The item that needs to be taken could be on their person, which you need to fight them in order to steal from them or its in their desk in their cell. If they don’t like you they won’t sell to you of course.

You can use the workout equipment to increase your strength which allows you punch people out quicker. It don’t take too long to get strong enough to knock them out in one punch. Increasing your strength also increases your health and lets you take more hits from guards and angry inmates. You can run on the treadmill to increase your speed and allows you to outrun everyone. You can use things like the books and computers to raise your intellect. Intellect is needed to create some of the more complicated recipes and do certain jobs around the prison.

Several jobs are available around prison. Jobs are used to better relationships with guards and inmates and scavenging resources. There are currently ten jobs available in the game. Completing the quota for the work period will result in being paid. Performing additional work once the quota has been met will not result in additional money, so you can leave once the quota has been met without the guards becoming aggressive.You can apply for any vacant job at the job board. You don’t have to have a job but they can make getting certain items easier. For example if you have the a job in the laundry you can smuggle out guard uniforms.

There are many ways to escape once you’ve gathered everything you need. You can use multiple tools to dig the walls. Be sure to make fake walls so the guards don’t catch on. You can use a screwdriver to get into the overhead vents, fake vents are needed there. You can use molded keys to unlock doors. Use shovels and pickaxes to dig holes in the floor, if you dig long tunnels braces are needed so it doesn’t collapse. If you use guard uniforms you can just walk around when and where you’re not supposed to. You can also just take over the prison by tying up all the guards with rope or duct tape. There are so many ways to escape that I haven’t even thought of yet.

The Escapists is definitely a fun game. Future updates that are planned include multiplayer, I’m looking forward to that. If you like 8 bit simulation games about prison then this game is 10 out of 10 perfect for you, but if you’re a normal person then this game is still good.

*Code Supplied by Publisher*

Written by: Stuart Pitchford Writer