Why Early Access?

“Prison Cook Simulator is our first game, and instead of finishing it behind closed doors on our own and releasing it as a finished product, we want to shape it together with players. Things like the suspicion system, task balance, and difficulty curve are the kind of mechanics you can only really judge by watching how real players behave, not in our own internal testing, but with an actual community playing the game. It's also our first game, so building a genuine connection with the players who'll be part of this process matters a lot to us.”

Approximately how long will this game be in Early Access?

“We're not giving an exact date right now, because how long we stay in Early Access will depend a lot on the feedback we get and which parts of the game turn out to need more time. What we can say is this: the game will be in Early Access for at least 6 months. We'd rather take the time to get it right than rush out a half-finished version and slap a "1.0" label on it before it's actually ready.”

How is the full version planned to differ from the Early Access version?

“The Early Access version already includes the full core loop: cooking in the kitchen in the morning, illegal jobs from inmates during the lunch distribution (smuggling items, poisoning food, passing messages, disabling cameras), a suspicion system driven by security cameras, guards, and warden inspections, traveling between locations on the map, the general store/black market economy, and arranging meetings with a drug dealer over the phone. The main things we're planning to add for the full release are a casino area (extra risk/reward mechanics like a slot machine and blackjack) and Block B being fully fleshed out with new inmates and cells. The exact scope and order of these will become clearer based on the feedback we get throughout Early Access.”

What is the current state of the Early Access version?

“Prison Cook Simulator is entering Early Access as a fully playable game, not a demo or a teaser. What's already in place: a complete day cycle (morning–afternoon–evening–night), cooking in the kitchen, interacting with inmates during distribution and the job offers they give you, a suspicion system driven by cameras, patrolling guards, and surprise warden inspections, free travel between 7 different locations, the general store and black market economy, arranging meetings and buying from the drug dealer over the phone, and an inventory and task-tracking system. Right now we're finishing up the remaining UI screens (like the main menu and the game over screen) and dialing in the overall balance. The core experience is there, we're just putting on the final touches.”

Will the game be priced differently during and after Early Access?

“No. Our price will stay the same throughout Early Access and after the full release. We don't see Early Access as a way to sell cheap now and raise the price later, for us it's a shared development process with players.”

How are you planning on involving the Community in your development process?

“We'll be actively following feedback from our Steam community hub, our Discord server, and our website. Most of our balance adjustments, bug fixes, and new feature decisions will be shaped directly by what comes in through those channels. We're not just saying we're listening, we'll actually be updating the game based on what you play and tell us.”