Alpha 30

Android first look)

Introversion Software Proudly Presents: Prison Utility Tangled Wire Simulator. We've mostly been focused on the tablet version of Prison Architect (stand by for another mail calling for testers soon), but we haven't neglected our desktop players.

We've passed control of prisoner intake back to the player and adjusted the budgets a bit to balance things out. Parole is a lot more sensible and you can no longer murder prisoners by starving them to death in solitary - enjoy!

Tablet versions!

We spent a lot of time this month working on the tablet versions of Prison Architect , and the game is now running very nicely indeed on iPads and Android. We will be starting beta testing on the tablet version very soon - sign up to our mailing list if you want to be a tablet tester. 

As a result of the tablet focus this month, this alpha update is a touch lighter than usual, but we did find time to add some serious game updates for alpha 30. We hope you enjoy the new build - normal service will resume next month.

Prisoner Intake

You can now control the intake of inmates to your prison , via a new Intake report tab. Use the controls to set an exact number of inmates you'd like to receive each day. Any prisoners not accepted will accumulate in a pool, and can be brought in at a later date. You can use the ratio sliders to alter which categories of prisoner you will receive. 

NOTE: The ratio sliders affect which prisoners will be coming next from the pool, but they also affect which categories of prisoners will be added to your pool each day 

- You now receive a one-off payment for each inmate you accept into your prison : 

• • Minimum security : $300 
  • Medium security : $500 
  • Maximum security : $1000 

- You now receive a fixed daily grant of $150 per prisoner , regardless of category  - Prisoners now arrive by bus , instead of on the back of a delivery truck.

Parole (continued) 

- The Warden and Chief are no longer required for Parole hearings. The Parole program now uses a 'Parole Officer ' and a 'Parole Lawyer ', both of whom count as external staff. They will arrive on site to hold the parole hearing with a prisoner , and leave when it has completed. This means you can now run as many parallel parole hearings as required. 

- The $10,000 fine incurred if paroled prisoners re-offend has been removed. The $3,000 bonus is still available, and can be won by paroling a prisoner who does not re-offend. This can be a significant source of income if you work to reduce the re-offending chances of your inmates through punishment and reform. 

- The failure condition still exists: If 10 of your paroled prisoners re-offend, you will be placed on warning. If 5 more paroled prisoners re-offend within the next 48 hours, you will be fired. 

Wire Tidy Mode 

If your wiring diagram is becoming too messy, you can now tidy up the layout using the new tool in Utilities : Tidy Wires. Click on any Wired object to begin, then you can click on the wires to pin them into fixed positions. You can click and drag pins around as you wish, and Right click on pins to remove them. 

Grant cancellation 

You can now cancel any Grant currently in progress, from the Reports/Grants window. You will have to repay any money advanced as part of the grant , as well as a 10% fine. The grant can be accepted again at a later date if you wish.

NOTE: Some grants cost you money to accept, e.g. the Investment grants . Cancelling these grants will refund the money you invested, but you will still pay a 10% fine. 

• Prisoners in solitary confinement or locked-down in their own cells will now have meals brought to them.This should prevent prisoners starving to death in solitary . 
• The Logistics/Jobs view now shows the qualification required to work in each room type. E.g. the Workshop says "Required: Workshop safety induction".
• The range at which prisoners will surrender when shot at has been reduced from 6 squares to 4, and a maximum of 10 prisoners will now surrender per gun shot. This should stop huge crowds of rioting prisoners being defeated by a single gunshot 
• Added new animations for prisoners exercising on a weights bench 
• New toolbar icons for Intelligence , Dangers , 7 days/24 hours contraband , and Informants 
• Prison Architect now uses significantly less memory, as a result of work done for iPad/Android 

BUG FIXES 

• Prisoners sent to solitary could sometimes end up stuck there forever 
• Extreme performance glitch in the Laundry/logistics system, if you had a single extremely large sector with lots (hundreds) of cells

• 0007880: [Control & User Interface] Easier canceling of "dismantle" and "dump" 
• 0007864: [AI & Behaviour] guards escort dead prisoners to their cell
• 0006901: [AI & Behaviour] Workmen not installing certain small pipes
• 0004853: [Gameplay] Prisoner 'Home' set to Solitary
• 0006170: [AI & Behaviour] Prisoner keeps getting sent to solitary , can't break out of loop (causing starvation) 
• 0007691: [Control & User Interface] "NO TEACHER" glitch when Editing Schedule for Programs