Alpha 29 has been released! Here is our video demonstrating the new features:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CltK6AiV0TI

Parole
All prisoners are now granted a parole hearing when they reach 50% of their sentence, and another at 75%.
To facilitate this you must build a Parole Room, and start the Parole Program.

- A parole hearing requires the Warden, the Chief, the inmate, and in the inmates lawyer.
- At the end of the hearing, the board will make a decision and the inmate may or may not be released early.
- The decision is based on their estimated re-offending chance (viewable in their rap sheet).
- Under the Policy tab there is a new slider that governs how lenient your parole board will be
- Inmates who are denied parole may become angry, and may even attack the parole board staff

- Financial rewards : If a prisoner is paroled early and does not re-offend, you will receive a bonus of $3,000.
If he does re-offend, you will be fined $10,000
This occurs the moment the prisoner leaves the map


- NOTE: Inmates must be able to navigate to the parole room. Eg Staff Only won't work.
- NOTE: Only one parole hearing can happen at a time, because the Warden and Chief must be present.
However you can have multiple parole rooms in different security zones,
and your Warden/Chief will move around as required.

- New failure condition : You will be fired if too many Wardens are killed in your prison
- New failure condition : You will be fired if too many paroled prisoners re-offend after early release


New room : Chapel
About one third of your new prisoners now have a Spirituality need
Build a Chapel (Multi-faith-prayer-room) to give them a place to pray.

- New furniture
Pews
Prayer mat
Altar

- New reform program : Spiritual guidance.
A religious leader from the community will visit your prison, and talk to your prisoners.
This will instill in them a sense of calm, which affects not only them but also those around them.
Prisoners may attend this program as many times as they wish.


New room : Library
Around one third of your new prisoners now have a desire to read books,
for education, curiosity and entertainment.

- New furniture
Library Bookshelves
Librarian's desk

- Boxes of used and donated books will be delivered to your prison once you have a library.
- Employ prisoners in the library to sort these boxes of books and place them on your shelves.
(Prisoners must have the "Foundation Education" qualification before they can perform this job)

- Prisoners can visit the library and borrow books.
- Prisoners will read in their spare time, wherever they are sitting - library/canteen/cell etc.
- Returned books must be re-sorted onto the shelves
- Books wear out and become ruined after a while, and more will be delivered

- Note: Boxes of used/donated books may be used to smuggle contraband into the prison, so plan accordingly


Parallel Deliveries
Trucks will now load and unload in parallel, so long as they are aligned with a Delivery/Exports/Garbage zone when they stop.
Extend your Deliveries zone vertically so you can unload 2 or 3 or even more trucks simultaniously.
Trucks now cope better with multiple Deliveries rooms (and Garbage/Exports rooms)
Trucks now move 50% faster


Mod warning window
Many prisons now use mods to enhance the game, adding furniture, materials, programs etc to the core game.
This causes problems when you attempt to load those prisons without the mods being enabled.
From now on, upon loading such a prison you will be shown a list of all mods that were used to make the prison
If these were Steam mods, you can easily click on each required mod and auto-magically download and activate it
If they were not steam mods, clicking the mod will open a browser to a URL where you can download the mod
Note: This will only work for prisons saved with alpha-29 or later


- World time index now stored in double precision
This only affects prisons that have been running for hundreds of game days
This caused visual bugs such as extremely jerky animation, slow moving particles etc


- Navigation improvements
- Entities will no longer attempt to navigate through "Remote Doors" that don't have a powered Servo attached,
as those doors cannot possibly be opened by anyone.

- Entities will wait at a locked door for 30 seconds. They will then attempt to find an alternative route.
This alternative route may well be longer, but will avoid the door they are stuck on.

- Fixed : Deployment scheduler doesn't always update live deployment (until end of hour)

Alpha 29 has been released! Here is our video demonstrating the new features:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CltK6AiV0TI

Parole
All prisoners are now granted a parole hearing when they reach 50% of their sentence, and another at 75%.
To facilitate this you must build a Parole Room, and start the Parole Program.

- A parole hearing requires the Warden, the Chief, the inmate, and in the inmates lawyer.
- At the end of the hearing, the board will make a decision and the inmate may or may not be released early.
- The decision is based on their estimated re-offending chance (viewable in their rap sheet).
- Under the Policy tab there is a new slider that governs how lenient your parole board will be
- Inmates who are denied parole may become angry, and may even attack the parole board staff

- Financial rewards : If a prisoner is paroled early and does not re-offend, you will receive a bonus of $3,000.
If he does re-offend, you will be fined $10,000
This occurs the moment the prisoner leaves the map


- NOTE: Inmates must be able to navigate to the parole room. Eg Staff Only won't work.
- NOTE: Only one parole hearing can happen at a time, because the Warden and Chief must be present.
However you can have multiple parole rooms in different security zones,
and your Warden/Chief will move around as required.

- New failure condition : You will be fired if too many Wardens are killed in your prison
- New failure condition : You will be fired if too many paroled prisoners re-offend after early release


New room : Chapel
About one third of your new prisoners now have a Spirituality need
Build a Chapel (Multi-faith-prayer-room) to give them a place to pray.

- New furniture
Pews
Prayer mat
Altar

- New reform program : Spiritual guidance.
A religious leader from the community will visit your prison, and talk to your prisoners.
This will instill in them a sense of calm, which affects not only them but also those around them.
Prisoners may attend this program as many times as they wish.


New room : Library
Around one third of your new prisoners now have a desire to read books,
for education, curiosity and entertainment.

- New furniture
Library Bookshelves
Librarian's desk

- Boxes of used and donated books will be delivered to your prison once you have a library.
- Employ prisoners in the library to sort these boxes of books and place them on your shelves.
(Prisoners must have the "Foundation Education" qualification before they can perform this job)

- Prisoners can visit the library and borrow books.
- Prisoners will read in their spare time, wherever they are sitting - library/canteen/cell etc.
- Returned books must be re-sorted onto the shelves
- Books wear out and become ruined after a while, and more will be delivered

- Note: Boxes of used/donated books may be used to smuggle contraband into the prison, so plan accordingly


Parallel Deliveries
Trucks will now load and unload in parallel, so long as they are aligned with a Delivery/Exports/Garbage zone when they stop.
Extend your Deliveries zone vertically so you can unload 2 or 3 or even more trucks simultaniously.
Trucks now cope better with multiple Deliveries rooms (and Garbage/Exports rooms)
Trucks now move 50% faster


Mod warning window
Many prisons now use mods to enhance the game, adding furniture, materials, programs etc to the core game.
This causes problems when you attempt to load those prisons without the mods being enabled.
From now on, upon loading such a prison you will be shown a list of all mods that were used to make the prison
If these were Steam mods, you can easily click on each required mod and auto-magically download and activate it
If they were not steam mods, clicking the mod will open a browser to a URL where you can download the mod
Note: This will only work for prisons saved with alpha-29 or later


- World time index now stored in double precision
This only affects prisons that have been running for hundreds of game days
This caused visual bugs such as extremely jerky animation, slow moving particles etc


- Navigation improvements
- Entities will no longer attempt to navigate through "Remote Doors" that don't have a powered Servo attached,
as those doors cannot possibly be opened by anyone.

- Entities will wait at a locked door for 30 seconds. They will then attempt to find an alternative route.
This alternative route may well be longer, but will avoid the door they are stuck on.

- Fixed : Deployment scheduler doesn't always update live deployment (until end of hour)

Alpha 28 has been released! Here is our video demonstrating the new features:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OZgJAg4qMkE

Merry Christmas everyone! It's been a short month due to the holidays, but that means we've been able to launch early, and we've managed to cram a lot into the time.

User Interface improvements
We have begun to move various interface elements around, and improve other elements,
in an effort to bring the user interface up to Version 1.0 quality.

- New toolbar top left of screen, incorporating Todo/Research/Grading/Main Menu
- Objectives/todo window improved, incorporated into new toolbar
- Topbar "Bank Balance" tooltip now shows recent transactions
- Search box added to Rooms toolbar, and Objects toolbar. Use this to filter the list of icons.
- Greyed out items in the main toolbar now have a greyed out caption as well
- In the main toolbar, "Contraband" has been renamed to "Intelligence"
- Contraband "supply & demand" report has been moved to the "Intelligence" toolbar
- Informants list interface tweaked, should fill less of the screen

Sector targetting continued
- New toolbar button : Logistics.

Allows the user to control Food distribution and Laundry distribution.
"Jobs" button moved from Deployment to Logistics.

- Laundrettes will target all nearby cell blocks automatically.
Every cell block has at least one Laundry servicing it, and every Laundry services at least one cell block.
The system will do its best to make laundries target other sectors of the same security zone, so that prisoners can do the work.
Can manually override the targetting from the Laundry Distribution screen.

Deployment Scheduling tool
You can now change the schedule of guard deployment, and guard patrols, at any hour of the day.
Use this to place more guards in the canteen at lunch time, for example.

- Requires new unlock : Micromanagement
- Click on the timeline at any hour to cycle the current schedule. White is the base schedule.
- You can drag the current time left and right, and change the schedule at any time of the day.

- Patrol icons for guards/dogs/armed guards now enlarge when selected

Truck drivers
Many large prisons suffer from a blocked delivery lane, with materials/prisoners/food etc trapped and unusable.
To combat this, all delivery trucks now come with a driver, who will helpfully spawn when the truck stops.
He will help unload the deliveries and load garbage and exports.
The truck can't leave until he returns.
However if he dies or falls unconcious whilst doing his job, or takes too long to return (>1 hour),
the truck will leave without him and he will be forced to walk home.


Mod changes
Direct mapping of WorldObject variables to Lua variables via Lua metatables.
Allows access and assignment of object properties without the need of complicated function calls (GetProperty/SetProperty)
All variables can now be access via object tables in Lua, such as the "this" table for the scripted object.
Eg: this.pos.x = 10
this.damage = 0

- The Needs system of a prisoner can now be accessed in lua: "this.Needs.Bowels = 1" etc
- The Status Effect systems of a prisoner can also be scripted: "this.StatusEffects.suppressed = 1"


Game Balance
- Escape tunnels now quite a bit less frequent
- Prisoners now more likely to change into a clean uniform, if one is available
- Ironing now takes twice as long

- New research : MicroManagement
Unlocks many of these newly added advanced features:
- Deployment scheduling
- Reform program manual scheduling
- Canteen logistics
- Laundry logistics


Bug fixes
- Fixed : Require at least one informant active to see throw ins determined by phone tap
- Fixed : If there is no infirmary, doctors will now hang out in the delivery area rather than wandering
the prison. This probably isn't the fix many of you were hoping for, but this is a prison,
not a hospital. Doctors don't randomly wander the halls searching for people to heal in prison.

- 0000140: [Control & User Interface] Some objects can be built multiple times in the same location (square) (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0007023: [Gameplay] Fridge error (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0006752: [AI & Behaviour] Multiple hearse waiting for bugged prisoner (Chris) - resolved.
- 0001311: [Other] When all laundry baskets leave the laundry, room requirements are no longer met. (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0000251: [AI & Behaviour] Guard set on a patrol route ignore people attempt to escape (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0006964: [Gameplay] All dirty laundry disappears when put into laundry basket. (lim_ak) - resolved.


Stay up to date:
Subscribe to our Blog
Subscribe to our Youtube channel
Follow us on Twitter
Join our mailing list
Follow our twitch.tv livestream - we sometimes code live on twitch

Alpha 28 has been released! Here is our video demonstrating the new features:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OZgJAg4qMkE

Merry Christmas everyone! It's been a short month due to the holidays, but that means we've been able to launch early, and we've managed to cram a lot into the time.

User Interface improvements
We have begun to move various interface elements around, and improve other elements,
in an effort to bring the user interface up to Version 1.0 quality.

- New toolbar top left of screen, incorporating Todo/Research/Grading/Main Menu
- Objectives/todo window improved, incorporated into new toolbar
- Topbar "Bank Balance" tooltip now shows recent transactions
- Search box added to Rooms toolbar, and Objects toolbar. Use this to filter the list of icons.
- Greyed out items in the main toolbar now have a greyed out caption as well
- In the main toolbar, "Contraband" has been renamed to "Intelligence"
- Contraband "supply & demand" report has been moved to the "Intelligence" toolbar
- Informants list interface tweaked, should fill less of the screen

Sector targetting continued
- New toolbar button : Logistics.

Allows the user to control Food distribution and Laundry distribution.
"Jobs" button moved from Deployment to Logistics.

- Laundrettes will target all nearby cell blocks automatically.
Every cell block has at least one Laundry servicing it, and every Laundry services at least one cell block.
The system will do its best to make laundries target other sectors of the same security zone, so that prisoners can do the work.
Can manually override the targetting from the Laundry Distribution screen.

Deployment Scheduling tool
You can now change the schedule of guard deployment, and guard patrols, at any hour of the day.
Use this to place more guards in the canteen at lunch time, for example.

- Requires new unlock : Micromanagement
- Click on the timeline at any hour to cycle the current schedule. White is the base schedule.
- You can drag the current time left and right, and change the schedule at any time of the day.

- Patrol icons for guards/dogs/armed guards now enlarge when selected

Truck drivers
Many large prisons suffer from a blocked delivery lane, with materials/prisoners/food etc trapped and unusable.
To combat this, all delivery trucks now come with a driver, who will helpfully spawn when the truck stops.
He will help unload the deliveries and load garbage and exports.
The truck can't leave until he returns.
However if he dies or falls unconcious whilst doing his job, or takes too long to return (>1 hour),
the truck will leave without him and he will be forced to walk home.


Mod changes
Direct mapping of WorldObject variables to Lua variables via Lua metatables.
Allows access and assignment of object properties without the need of complicated function calls (GetProperty/SetProperty)
All variables can now be access via object tables in Lua, such as the "this" table for the scripted object.
Eg: this.pos.x = 10
this.damage = 0

- The Needs system of a prisoner can now be accessed in lua: "this.Needs.Bowels = 1" etc
- The Status Effect systems of a prisoner can also be scripted: "this.StatusEffects.suppressed = 1"


Game Balance
- Escape tunnels now quite a bit less frequent
- Prisoners now more likely to change into a clean uniform, if one is available
- Ironing now takes twice as long

- New research : MicroManagement
Unlocks many of these newly added advanced features:
- Deployment scheduling
- Reform program manual scheduling
- Canteen logistics
- Laundry logistics


Bug fixes
- Fixed : Require at least one informant active to see throw ins determined by phone tap
- Fixed : If there is no infirmary, doctors will now hang out in the delivery area rather than wandering
the prison. This probably isn't the fix many of you were hoping for, but this is a prison,
not a hospital. Doctors don't randomly wander the halls searching for people to heal in prison.

- 0000140: [Control & User Interface] Some objects can be built multiple times in the same location (square) (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0007023: [Gameplay] Fridge error (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0006752: [AI & Behaviour] Multiple hearse waiting for bugged prisoner (Chris) - resolved.
- 0001311: [Other] When all laundry baskets leave the laundry, room requirements are no longer met. (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0000251: [AI & Behaviour] Guard set on a patrol route ignore people attempt to escape (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0006964: [Gameplay] All dirty laundry disappears when put into laundry basket. (lim_ak) - resolved.


Stay up to date:
Subscribe to our Blog
Subscribe to our Youtube channel
Follow us on Twitter
Join our mailing list
Follow our twitch.tv livestream - we sometimes code live on twitch

Alpha 27 has been released! Here is our video demonstrating the work done this month.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jDf3wkxSjY4

New food Supply & Demand system
All cell blocks are now assigned a specific canteen to eat in, permitting accurate demand calculation per canteen
All kitchens are assigned specific canteens, such that every kitchen serves at least one canteen, and all canteens are served by at least one kitchen
A new button in Deployment/Logistics can be used to manually override these assignments
This new system permits accurate calculations of supply and demand in all canteens.

Hover the mouse over the Canteen supply/demand icon, to see a breakdown of the calculated demand per hour.
All prisoners will now eat at meal times, not just the very hungry ones.
Some prisoners will leave wasted food behind if they are not that hungry.
"Ingredient Teleporting" from alpha 26 has been removed
Chefs will now cook whatever ingredients are available in their kitchen, rather than requiring specific ingredient types
If cooked food is available in a canteen but there are no serving trays, a stack of serving trays will be instant-purchased

Reform program scheduler
Advanced players can now click the "Edit Schedule" button to manually set the times and locations of all Reform Programs
Programs set manually will be 'pinned' in place, and will not be moved by the auto-scheduler
New programs can be created by clicking in the schedule
Right click on programs to cancel them
Existing reform programs screen now moves camera to current assigned room when mousing over
Reverted back to old style colour scheme : Yellow = prisoner on way, Green = attending class

Phone Tap object
Built in a security room and connected via wires to phone booths
Manned by a Guard
Allows you to listen in to prisoner phone calls, revealing their Reputation, and arranged contraband throw-ins.
Cctv research renamed to Surveillance, and includes cctv equipment and phone monitoring

Names In The Game : Report offensive entry button
All entries in the Names in the game list now have a "Report" button
Click on this button if you feel the bio is offensive and should be removed from the game.
The number of clicks on any entry is recorded in our database, and we will review all reported entries and remove them as appropriate.

Game balance
Reputations rebalanced : Legendary, Volatile, Deadly are all less likely
Contraband smuggling via deliveries has been halved
Prisoners needs now start at zero

Other changes and fixes
Deployment/Jobs screen now shows staff-only work rooms as grey instead of green.
Assigning prisoners to work in those rooms will produce a flashing red warning message saying "STAFF ONLY"
Render change : Different wall types no longer blend wierdly, eg fences, perimeter walls

New Reputation :
Skilled Fighter. Can sometimes disarm an opponent during a fight.
Expert Fighter. Can sometimes take a weapon from his opponent during a fight.

BUG FIXES
Fixed : Markers continuously popping up over Guards during fights
Many language typos and fixes. Thanks to RGeezy911 for doing this work.
Fixed : Blackscreen bug with certain Intel GMA cards
0004332: [AI & Behaviour] Issues with Chef AI (Chris) - resolved.
0004274: [Control & User Interface] AA Program - 'Removes' spelling mistake. (RGeezy911) - resolved.
0002272: [Gameplay] Inconsistent naming - Cook or Chef (RGeezy911) - resolved.
0004139: [Control & User Interface] Failure Condition: Bankrupt - Disastrous spelled wrong (RGeezy911) - resolved.
0002305: [Other] CEO phonecall (RGeezy911) - resolved.
0001647: [Other] Shears item name misspelled as "Sheers" (RGeezy911) - resolved.
0000783: [Other] spelling mistakes in Language File (RGeezy911) - resolved.
0000476: [Control & User Interface] Maintenance is misspelled in Bureaucracy screen, elsewhere (RGeezy911) - resolved.
0000073: [Other] Missing apostrophe in CEO dialogue (RGeezy911) - resolved.
0002681: [Control & User Interface] Typos: In descriptions of CCTV cameras and Holding Cell (RGeezy911) - resolved.
0005187: [Control & User Interface] Possible misspelling in Grant description (RGeezy911) - resolved.
0006688: [Graphics] Black Screen with game running the the background (works fine in Alpha 25) (John) - resolved.
0005835: [AI & Behaviour] Piles of dirty clothing not being dealt with (lim_ak) - resolved.
0006824: [Gameplay] rubble needs to be repaired (lim_ak) - resolved.
0006823: [Gameplay] Water pump continues to supply water after being dismantled (lim_ak) - resolved.
0003579: [AI & Behaviour] Guard Dogs get stuck at the entrance of Kennels (John) - resolved.
0006033: [Graphics] Flashing power symbols after foundations are bulldozed with lights installed. (John) - resolved.
0004767: [Graphics] Single Electric Cable Invisible (lim_ak) - resolved


Stay up to date:
Subscribe to our Blog
Subscribe to our Youtube channel
Follow us on Twitter
Join our mailing list
Follow our twitch.tv livestream - we sometimes code live on twitch

Alpha 27 has been released! Here is our video demonstrating the work done this month.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jDf3wkxSjY4

New food Supply & Demand system
All cell blocks are now assigned a specific canteen to eat in, permitting accurate demand calculation per canteen
All kitchens are assigned specific canteens, such that every kitchen serves at least one canteen, and all canteens are served by at least one kitchen
A new button in Deployment/Logistics can be used to manually override these assignments
This new system permits accurate calculations of supply and demand in all canteens.

Hover the mouse over the Canteen supply/demand icon, to see a breakdown of the calculated demand per hour.
All prisoners will now eat at meal times, not just the very hungry ones.
Some prisoners will leave wasted food behind if they are not that hungry.
"Ingredient Teleporting" from alpha 26 has been removed
Chefs will now cook whatever ingredients are available in their kitchen, rather than requiring specific ingredient types
If cooked food is available in a canteen but there are no serving trays, a stack of serving trays will be instant-purchased

Reform program scheduler
Advanced players can now click the "Edit Schedule" button to manually set the times and locations of all Reform Programs
Programs set manually will be 'pinned' in place, and will not be moved by the auto-scheduler
New programs can be created by clicking in the schedule
Right click on programs to cancel them
Existing reform programs screen now moves camera to current assigned room when mousing over
Reverted back to old style colour scheme : Yellow = prisoner on way, Green = attending class

Phone Tap object
Built in a security room and connected via wires to phone booths
Manned by a Guard
Allows you to listen in to prisoner phone calls, revealing their Reputation, and arranged contraband throw-ins.
Cctv research renamed to Surveillance, and includes cctv equipment and phone monitoring

Names In The Game : Report offensive entry button
All entries in the Names in the game list now have a "Report" button
Click on this button if you feel the bio is offensive and should be removed from the game.
The number of clicks on any entry is recorded in our database, and we will review all reported entries and remove them as appropriate.

Game balance
Reputations rebalanced : Legendary, Volatile, Deadly are all less likely
Contraband smuggling via deliveries has been halved
Prisoners needs now start at zero

Other changes and fixes
Deployment/Jobs screen now shows staff-only work rooms as grey instead of green.
Assigning prisoners to work in those rooms will produce a flashing red warning message saying "STAFF ONLY"
Render change : Different wall types no longer blend wierdly, eg fences, perimeter walls

New Reputation :
Skilled Fighter. Can sometimes disarm an opponent during a fight.
Expert Fighter. Can sometimes take a weapon from his opponent during a fight.

BUG FIXES
Fixed : Markers continuously popping up over Guards during fights
Many language typos and fixes. Thanks to RGeezy911 for doing this work.
Fixed : Blackscreen bug with certain Intel GMA cards
0004332: [AI & Behaviour] Issues with Chef AI (Chris) - resolved.
0004274: [Control & User Interface] AA Program - 'Removes' spelling mistake. (RGeezy911) - resolved.
0002272: [Gameplay] Inconsistent naming - Cook or Chef (RGeezy911) - resolved.
0004139: [Control & User Interface] Failure Condition: Bankrupt - Disastrous spelled wrong (RGeezy911) - resolved.
0002305: [Other] CEO phonecall (RGeezy911) - resolved.
0001647: [Other] Shears item name misspelled as "Sheers" (RGeezy911) - resolved.
0000783: [Other] spelling mistakes in Language File (RGeezy911) - resolved.
0000476: [Control & User Interface] Maintenance is misspelled in Bureaucracy screen, elsewhere (RGeezy911) - resolved.
0000073: [Other] Missing apostrophe in CEO dialogue (RGeezy911) - resolved.
0002681: [Control & User Interface] Typos: In descriptions of CCTV cameras and Holding Cell (RGeezy911) - resolved.
0005187: [Control & User Interface] Possible misspelling in Grant description (RGeezy911) - resolved.
0006688: [Graphics] Black Screen with game running the the background (works fine in Alpha 25) (John) - resolved.
0005835: [AI & Behaviour] Piles of dirty clothing not being dealt with (lim_ak) - resolved.
0006824: [Gameplay] rubble needs to be repaired (lim_ak) - resolved.
0006823: [Gameplay] Water pump continues to supply water after being dismantled (lim_ak) - resolved.
0003579: [AI & Behaviour] Guard Dogs get stuck at the entrance of Kennels (John) - resolved.
0006033: [Graphics] Flashing power symbols after foundations are bulldozed with lights installed. (John) - resolved.
0004767: [Graphics] Single Electric Cable Invisible (lim_ak) - resolved


Stay up to date:
Subscribe to our Blog
Subscribe to our Youtube channel
Follow us on Twitter
Join our mailing list
Follow our twitch.tv livestream - we sometimes code live on twitch

Alpha 26 has been released! Here is our video demonstrating the work done this month.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0p3EgTP2FYA&list=UUuWAgvyiWcBeZ8sT0sJZyBg

This month was dedicated to our second Bug Bash - which means all the programmers at Introversion focussed exclusively on bug fixes for an entire month. We've spent the month slogging our way through the bug database and fixing the highest priority issues to bring you a slicker, faster, better, less buggy Prison Architect. But that's not all - NOT ONLY have we fixed 39 issues and resolved 550 duplicates, we also present a brand new feature! Tell your mates, put it on facebook, set twitter on fire, let the world know that Prison Architect now comes with a digital clock.

At the very start of the month we decided we would aim to resolve the food/kitchen/chefs bugs as a priority. If you are a regular player you have no doubt experienced chefs being dumb, food going to the wrong canteen whilst inmates starve elsewhere, and various issues around kitchen resources. In many ways the food distribution system is the most complex of all of the AI within the game, and none of these problems are 100% solvable simply because everyone builds prisons differently, and there are many variables to take into account. Players can build one or many kitchens, one or many canteens, and can hire chefs or use prison labour. They may intend one kitchen to cook for everyone, or multiple kitchens to cook for one canteen, or multiple kitchens to cook for multiple canteens. If that wasn't bad enough, each kitchen may have a security designation limiting which prisoners can work in there when, and the canteens may be designated as well such that only certain prisoners can eat there, and each category of prisoner can potentially eat at a different time of day. Sometimes you may have a mixture of prisoner types in one canteen. Just figuring out how many prisoners will be eating in a single canteen at a certain time of day is a very complex AI problem. But thanks to the work done this month we think you'll find the whole system much more reliable from now on.

We also resolved lots of nasty bugs to do with zoning your prison into different categories of prisoners. Eg prisoners failing to go to reform programs, or visitations failing, all due to the AI not taking into account the security designation of different sectors.

Normal service will now resume, and we will be getting back to adding new features to the game. See you next month!

Here's the full list of all fixed bugs:

- 0005441: [Gameplay] object_FoodWaste is not being removed properly (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0002141: [Save & Load] Can overwrite save files without warning (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0006069: [Gameplay] Supermax security prisoners are downgraded back to Max security after a murder (lim_ak) - resolved.
- 0006493: [AI & Behaviour] prisoners use the same seat/phone/shower etc (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0001589: [Control & User Interface] Request - digital clock (elDiablo) - resolved.
- 0004535: [Control & User Interface] Enumerate cells by security level (elDiablo) - resolved.
- 0003822: [Gameplay] Always Fog Of War (Chris) - resolved.
- 0004464: [Gameplay] Cooks and reform programs clash with the new regime system (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0004193: [AI & Behaviour] (Some) Prisoners won't attend Reform Programs (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0003542: [Graphics] Full-screen image flash when contraband discovered (elDiablo) - resolved.
- 0004588: [AI & Behaviour] Multiple regimes not working with classroom scheduling (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0004515: [Sound] Riot Music Continues to Play After Loading a Different Prison (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0005846: [Save & Load] Special char in user account name result in the game failing to save (John) - resolved.
- 0001358: [AI & Behaviour] Dead inmate's family still come for visitation (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0004720: [AI & Behaviour] Teacher wanders into adjacent rooms while teaching (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0003948: [Control & User Interface] dragging sound may continue playing when it shouldn't (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0003162: [Sound] Construction sound would not stop (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0006001: [Other] Name in Game ages incorrect (lim_ak) - resolved.
- 0004048: [Sound] carpenter table sound continues even when no one is working at it (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0002093: [Sound] Sirens do not turn off (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0006208: [Sound] Ringing sound when deploying guard for patrols (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0000450: [Other] Make the introduction video skippable (elDiablo) - resolved.
- 0004419: [AI & Behaviour] Having Multiple Psychiatrists running Multiple Counseling Programs causes them to jump between. (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0004528: [Control & User Interface] non-click mouse input still possible when window is not in focus (John) - resolved.
- 0005164: [Control & User Interface] Introduction Objectives (lim_ak) - resolved.
- 0002655: [Save & Load] Incident free timer resets on load (lim_ak) - resolved.
- 0003969: [AI & Behaviour] visitors may go to the wrong visitation rooms (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0000027: [AI & Behaviour] Garbage is unloaded at Deliveries (elDiablo) - resolved.
- 0005611: [Control & User Interface] Clone toolbar not visible (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0001061: [Save & Load] Prisoner's sleep state not saved (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0004784: [Control & User Interface] Policy Tab - Setting punishments to "None" resets after save & load (lim_ak) - resolved.
- 0006021: [Control & User Interface] too many informants cover the screen (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0002563: [AI & Behaviour] Prisoner released same time as family goes to meet him (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0002611: [Graphics] An Invisible Prisoner (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0005896: [Save & Load] Cannot save game. So I cannot load it neither. (John) - resolved.
- 0006020: [Gameplay] Bankruptcy when playing with unlimited funds (lim_ak) - resolved.
- 0004601: [Sound] [motherbug] Issues regarding Sound which does not stop when it should (Icepick) - closed.
- 0002461: [Sound] riots music does not stop after a riot (Icepick) - closed.
- 0004874: [Sound] Lockdown alarm continues to sound after loading a different *.prison (Icepick) - closed.


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Alpha 26 has been released! Here is our video demonstrating the work done this month.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0p3EgTP2FYA&list=UUuWAgvyiWcBeZ8sT0sJZyBg

This month was dedicated to our second Bug Bash - which means all the programmers at Introversion focussed exclusively on bug fixes for an entire month. We've spent the month slogging our way through the bug database and fixing the highest priority issues to bring you a slicker, faster, better, less buggy Prison Architect. But that's not all - NOT ONLY have we fixed 39 issues and resolved 550 duplicates, we also present a brand new feature! Tell your mates, put it on facebook, set twitter on fire, let the world know that Prison Architect now comes with a digital clock.

At the very start of the month we decided we would aim to resolve the food/kitchen/chefs bugs as a priority. If you are a regular player you have no doubt experienced chefs being dumb, food going to the wrong canteen whilst inmates starve elsewhere, and various issues around kitchen resources. In many ways the food distribution system is the most complex of all of the AI within the game, and none of these problems are 100% solvable simply because everyone builds prisons differently, and there are many variables to take into account. Players can build one or many kitchens, one or many canteens, and can hire chefs or use prison labour. They may intend one kitchen to cook for everyone, or multiple kitchens to cook for one canteen, or multiple kitchens to cook for multiple canteens. If that wasn't bad enough, each kitchen may have a security designation limiting which prisoners can work in there when, and the canteens may be designated as well such that only certain prisoners can eat there, and each category of prisoner can potentially eat at a different time of day. Sometimes you may have a mixture of prisoner types in one canteen. Just figuring out how many prisoners will be eating in a single canteen at a certain time of day is a very complex AI problem. But thanks to the work done this month we think you'll find the whole system much more reliable from now on.

We also resolved lots of nasty bugs to do with zoning your prison into different categories of prisoners. Eg prisoners failing to go to reform programs, or visitations failing, all due to the AI not taking into account the security designation of different sectors.

Normal service will now resume, and we will be getting back to adding new features to the game. See you next month!

Here's the full list of all fixed bugs:

- 0005441: [Gameplay] object_FoodWaste is not being removed properly (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0002141: [Save & Load] Can overwrite save files without warning (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0006069: [Gameplay] Supermax security prisoners are downgraded back to Max security after a murder (lim_ak) - resolved.
- 0006493: [AI & Behaviour] prisoners use the same seat/phone/shower etc (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0001589: [Control & User Interface] Request - digital clock (elDiablo) - resolved.
- 0004535: [Control & User Interface] Enumerate cells by security level (elDiablo) - resolved.
- 0003822: [Gameplay] Always Fog Of War (Chris) - resolved.
- 0004464: [Gameplay] Cooks and reform programs clash with the new regime system (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0004193: [AI & Behaviour] (Some) Prisoners won't attend Reform Programs (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0003542: [Graphics] Full-screen image flash when contraband discovered (elDiablo) - resolved.
- 0004588: [AI & Behaviour] Multiple regimes not working with classroom scheduling (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0004515: [Sound] Riot Music Continues to Play After Loading a Different Prison (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0005846: [Save & Load] Special char in user account name result in the game failing to save (John) - resolved.
- 0001358: [AI & Behaviour] Dead inmate's family still come for visitation (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0004720: [AI & Behaviour] Teacher wanders into adjacent rooms while teaching (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0003948: [Control & User Interface] dragging sound may continue playing when it shouldn't (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0003162: [Sound] Construction sound would not stop (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0006001: [Other] Name in Game ages incorrect (lim_ak) - resolved.
- 0004048: [Sound] carpenter table sound continues even when no one is working at it (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0002093: [Sound] Sirens do not turn off (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0006208: [Sound] Ringing sound when deploying guard for patrols (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0000450: [Other] Make the introduction video skippable (elDiablo) - resolved.
- 0004419: [AI & Behaviour] Having Multiple Psychiatrists running Multiple Counseling Programs causes them to jump between. (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0004528: [Control & User Interface] non-click mouse input still possible when window is not in focus (John) - resolved.
- 0005164: [Control & User Interface] Introduction Objectives (lim_ak) - resolved.
- 0002655: [Save & Load] Incident free timer resets on load (lim_ak) - resolved.
- 0003969: [AI & Behaviour] visitors may go to the wrong visitation rooms (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0000027: [AI & Behaviour] Garbage is unloaded at Deliveries (elDiablo) - resolved.
- 0005611: [Control & User Interface] Clone toolbar not visible (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0001061: [Save & Load] Prisoner's sleep state not saved (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0004784: [Control & User Interface] Policy Tab - Setting punishments to "None" resets after save & load (lim_ak) - resolved.
- 0006021: [Control & User Interface] too many informants cover the screen (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0002563: [AI & Behaviour] Prisoner released same time as family goes to meet him (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0002611: [Graphics] An Invisible Prisoner (Icepick) - resolved.
- 0005896: [Save & Load] Cannot save game. So I cannot load it neither. (John) - resolved.
- 0006020: [Gameplay] Bankruptcy when playing with unlimited funds (lim_ak) - resolved.
- 0004601: [Sound] [motherbug] Issues regarding Sound which does not stop when it should (Icepick) - closed.
- 0002461: [Sound] riots music does not stop after a riot (Icepick) - closed.
- 0004874: [Sound] Lockdown alarm continues to sound after loading a different *.prison (Icepick) - closed.


Stay up to date:
Subscribe to our Blog
Subscribe to our Youtube channel
Follow us on Twitter
Join our mailing list
Follow our twitch.tv livestream - we sometimes code live on twitch

Alpha 25 has been released! Here is our video demonstrating the new features:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Z2W05vvIKU

Big changes this month! This is one of the biggest updates we've ever done. Alpha 25 was motivated by seeing prisons that just run themselves - and can even be left running overnight, without anything bad happening. This doesn't sit right with us, and running a prison shouldn't ever be something that can be done fully automatically. This month we've introduced a whole series of new systems and balance changes that bring unpredictability back to your prisoners.

= Reputation
New prisoners sometimes have a reputation, shown when highlighing them or in their rap sheet.
Nb. Existing prisoners (in alpha 24 save games) will not have any reputation - only new arrivals
The reputation specifies unusual abilities or traits they may possess, which affect their behaviour.

- 50% of reputations are known when the prisoner arrives. The other 50% can be revealed through your informants.
- All prisoners have a new "Character" tab in their rapsheet, which gives details on their reputation.

• STRONG hits harder with each punch during fights
  
• TOUGH can withstand a lot more punishment in a fight. He can also sometimes withstand being hit by a Tazer
  
• VOLATILE liable to kick off without warning and for no reason
  
• STOICAL will not become suppressed when locked in Solitary
  
• SNITCH a known informant, and as such his life may be in danger. Don't leave him alone with other prisoners for too long
  
• DEADLY a master in lethal combat moves, and can sometimes kill with a single hit
  
• EX LAW was once a Police Officer, or some other law enforcement profession. His life may be in danger
  
• COP KILLER guilty of murdering a Police Officer. Your prison guards may be unable to restrain themselves when subduing him
  
• FEARLESS not intimidated by the sight of Armed Guards, and is less likely to surrender during a fight
  
• QUICK an unusually fast runner
  
• INSTIGATOR sows seeds of discontent in all those nearby. When he causes trouble, nearby prisoners will feel compelled to do the same

- In some cases, the prisoner will have a high degree of a reputation, eg "Extremely Strong" or "Extremely Volatile".

- In a very small number of cases, you will receive a LEGENDARY PRISONER.
These guys have a potent mix of the above list that makes them very dangerous.


= New Prisoner Categories
To help deal with the new troublesome prisoners, two new categories of prisoner have been created.
Prisoners must be manually assigned to these categories.
These new categories have a corrisponding new Zone in the Deployment screen, and a new Regime column.

- Protective Custody
Useful for hiding your snitches, ex law enforcement etc in a safe zone where they cannot be attacked
Nb. Informants sent to protective custody lose coverage quickly (out of the loop)
Nb. During riot conditions, some of your most dangerous prisoners may attempt to attack the protective custody wing

- SuperMax
If you simply cannot control a particular prisoner, move him to supermax.
Allows you to segregate them away and instigate strong lockdown and security measures


= Escape Tunnels Overhall
Escape Tunnels have been rebalanced, and are now viable once again
Prisoners in neighbouring cells will team up to try to dig a combined escape tunnel.
They can share any tools they have during the operation
Many weapons can now also be used as digging tools, eg Knifes, Forks etc
Guard dogs are now more reliable at discovering tunnels, and will mark the suspected spot with a small flag.
Searching a cell now has only a low chance to discover an escape tunnel, UNLESS the prisoner is digging it when the guard enters!
To discover a tunnel for certain, dismantle the toilets in the cells you suspect.


= Confidential Informants (continued)
- Any single informant now has a maximum coverage of 50% at the time he is hired
- An informants coverage will slowly increase over time (beyond 50%), so long as his suspicion is low and he is not 'active'
- The Informants overlay now shows the highest level of suspicion ever reached by an informant, as a black line.
- You can now highlight and select prisoners and staff etc in the Informants window

- Informants now reveal Assassination Targets - ie prisoners who will be attacked if left alone for too long
This is shown as a red crosshair over the prisoner.
(Known informants / Snitches, ex law enforcement etc)


= Game Balance changes
- Prisoners responsible for a serious injury will have their category automatically increased (min-sec to medium, medium to max-sec)

- Prisoners responsible for a murder will be charged and given an additional 25 year sentence,
and will automatically reclassify as Maximum Security (if they weren't already)

- The 'temperature' of your prison must now be at least 33% before a riot can start

- 10 Prisoners must be rioting before a prison-wide RIOT status can occur.
To stop the riot, you must reduce the number of rioting prisoners to 3 or less.

- Tazer Training Program
All regular guards must now pass the Tazer Certification Program before they are permitted to use a tazer.
This takes place in the classroom and is led by the Chief.
The staff window now shows which guards have body armour and tazers.
Nb. When loading an alpha 24 save, all Tazers owned by regular Guards and Dog Handlers will be confiscated, and a refund given.
Nb. Dog Handlers can no longer carry Tazers.

- Prisoners can now pick up weapons from their current room during fights, escapes, riots etc. (Based on what is available as contraband)
- The Morgue is now a source of Knifes and Scissors
- Prisoners can now improvise a Shank in the Workshop
- Prisoners can now improvise a Baton in the Cleaning Cupboard (by snapping mops)
- Prisoners can now improvise a wooden pickaxe in the Workshop (for digging tunnels)


= Mod System Continued
- Now supports multiple active mods at once, even if those mods all add their own new graphics
- New property to set material auto-consumed on job
- Can now auto-order raw materials

- NEW SCRIPT COMMANDS:
GetNearbyObjects - Get a list of all nearby objects of a certain type
NavigateTo - Instruct an entity to go somewhere
ClearRouting - Clear an entity's destination

- Panic Button mod
A new 'official' test mod that adds a Panic Button to the game, using the new script commands.
Injured staff members will run to it and press it, and guards will be summoned to the area.


- Fixed : You can no longer place Foundations that you cannot afford

- 'Unlimited Funds' option in 'New Prison' screen.
Spend as much money as you like while building your prison - a more pure sandbox mode.

- Prisoners will now be assigned to Rehab programs more reliably, when addicted/alcoholic/withdrawn

Alpha 25 has been released! Here is our video demonstrating the new features:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Z2W05vvIKU

Big changes this month! This is one of the biggest updates we've ever done. Alpha 25 was motivated by seeing prisons that just run themselves - and can even be left running overnight, without anything bad happening. This doesn't sit right with us, and running a prison shouldn't ever be something that can be done fully automatically. This month we've introduced a whole series of new systems and balance changes that bring unpredictability back to your prisoners.

= Reputation
New prisoners sometimes have a reputation, shown when highlighing them or in their rap sheet.
Nb. Existing prisoners (in alpha 24 save games) will not have any reputation - only new arrivals
The reputation specifies unusual abilities or traits they may possess, which affect their behaviour.

- 50% of reputations are known when the prisoner arrives. The other 50% can be revealed through your informants.
- All prisoners have a new "Character" tab in their rapsheet, which gives details on their reputation.

• STRONG hits harder with each punch during fights
  
• TOUGH can withstand a lot more punishment in a fight. He can also sometimes withstand being hit by a Tazer
  
• VOLATILE liable to kick off without warning and for no reason
  
• STOICAL will not become suppressed when locked in Solitary
  
• SNITCH a known informant, and as such his life may be in danger. Don't leave him alone with other prisoners for too long
  
• DEADLY a master in lethal combat moves, and can sometimes kill with a single hit
  
• EX LAW was once a Police Officer, or some other law enforcement profession. His life may be in danger
  
• COP KILLER guilty of murdering a Police Officer. Your prison guards may be unable to restrain themselves when subduing him
  
• FEARLESS not intimidated by the sight of Armed Guards, and is less likely to surrender during a fight
  
• QUICK an unusually fast runner
  
• INSTIGATOR sows seeds of discontent in all those nearby. When he causes trouble, nearby prisoners will feel compelled to do the same

- In some cases, the prisoner will have a high degree of a reputation, eg "Extremely Strong" or "Extremely Volatile".

- In a very small number of cases, you will receive a LEGENDARY PRISONER.
These guys have a potent mix of the above list that makes them very dangerous.


= New Prisoner Categories
To help deal with the new troublesome prisoners, two new categories of prisoner have been created.
Prisoners must be manually assigned to these categories.
These new categories have a corrisponding new Zone in the Deployment screen, and a new Regime column.

- Protective Custody
Useful for hiding your snitches, ex law enforcement etc in a safe zone where they cannot be attacked
Nb. Informants sent to protective custody lose coverage quickly (out of the loop)
Nb. During riot conditions, some of your most dangerous prisoners may attempt to attack the protective custody wing

- SuperMax
If you simply cannot control a particular prisoner, move him to supermax.
Allows you to segregate them away and instigate strong lockdown and security measures


= Escape Tunnels Overhall
Escape Tunnels have been rebalanced, and are now viable once again
Prisoners in neighbouring cells will team up to try to dig a combined escape tunnel.
They can share any tools they have during the operation
Many weapons can now also be used as digging tools, eg Knifes, Forks etc
Guard dogs are now more reliable at discovering tunnels, and will mark the suspected spot with a small flag.
Searching a cell now has only a low chance to discover an escape tunnel, UNLESS the prisoner is digging it when the guard enters!
To discover a tunnel for certain, dismantle the toilets in the cells you suspect.


= Confidential Informants (continued)
- Any single informant now has a maximum coverage of 50% at the time he is hired
- An informants coverage will slowly increase over time (beyond 50%), so long as his suspicion is low and he is not 'active'
- The Informants overlay now shows the highest level of suspicion ever reached by an informant, as a black line.
- You can now highlight and select prisoners and staff etc in the Informants window

- Informants now reveal Assassination Targets - ie prisoners who will be attacked if left alone for too long
This is shown as a red crosshair over the prisoner.
(Known informants / Snitches, ex law enforcement etc)


= Game Balance changes
- Prisoners responsible for a serious injury will have their category automatically increased (min-sec to medium, medium to max-sec)

- Prisoners responsible for a murder will be charged and given an additional 25 year sentence,
and will automatically reclassify as Maximum Security (if they weren't already)

- The 'temperature' of your prison must now be at least 33% before a riot can start

- 10 Prisoners must be rioting before a prison-wide RIOT status can occur.
To stop the riot, you must reduce the number of rioting prisoners to 3 or less.

- Tazer Training Program
All regular guards must now pass the Tazer Certification Program before they are permitted to use a tazer.
This takes place in the classroom and is led by the Chief.
The staff window now shows which guards have body armour and tazers.
Nb. When loading an alpha 24 save, all Tazers owned by regular Guards and Dog Handlers will be confiscated, and a refund given.
Nb. Dog Handlers can no longer carry Tazers.

- Prisoners can now pick up weapons from their current room during fights, escapes, riots etc. (Based on what is available as contraband)
- The Morgue is now a source of Knifes and Scissors
- Prisoners can now improvise a Shank in the Workshop
- Prisoners can now improvise a Baton in the Cleaning Cupboard (by snapping mops)
- Prisoners can now improvise a wooden pickaxe in the Workshop (for digging tunnels)


= Mod System Continued
- Now supports multiple active mods at once, even if those mods all add their own new graphics
- New property to set material auto-consumed on job
- Can now auto-order raw materials

- NEW SCRIPT COMMANDS:
GetNearbyObjects - Get a list of all nearby objects of a certain type
NavigateTo - Instruct an entity to go somewhere
ClearRouting - Clear an entity's destination

- Panic Button mod
A new 'official' test mod that adds a Panic Button to the game, using the new script commands.
Injured staff members will run to it and press it, and guards will be summoned to the area.


- Fixed : You can no longer place Foundations that you cannot afford

- 'Unlimited Funds' option in 'New Prison' screen.
Spend as much money as you like while building your prison - a more pure sandbox mode.

- Prisoners will now be assigned to Rehab programs more reliably, when addicted/alcoholic/withdrawn