Community hub
Recent from talks
Knowledge base stats:
Talk channels stats:
Members stats:
The Escapists
The Escapists is a strategy game developed by Mouldy Toof Studios and following a Steam Early Access release in 2014, was released in 2015 for Microsoft Windows, macOS, Linux, Xbox 360, Xbox One and PlayStation 4. It was released on iOS and Android in 2017. A Nintendo Switch version of the game containing all downloadable content was released in 2018. The game was launched on the Epic Games Store on 23 September 2021, with the weekly free game campaign of Epic Games. Players assume the role of an inmate and must escape from prisons of increasing difficulty.
Reviewers praised the freedom of approach the game offered players, yet some were frustrated by the trial-and-error approach required to learn its systems. A sequel, The Escapists 2, was released in 2017.
In The Escapists, the player, who assumes the role of a prisoner, must escape from six primary prisons that progresses in difficulty. Each time a prison is escaped the next prison is unlocked. There are additional prisons released as downloadable content (DLC) which can be played in any order regardless of the player's progress. Outside of the main game, there is also the "Prison Editor" mode, which allows players to create their own prisons out of in-game assets that they can choose to publish online for other players to download.
In the beginning, the player selects their name and can choose the names of prisoners and guards if desired. Once the names are selected the game starts from day 1 waking up in the player character's cell. Players can acquire various items to aid in their escape by buying or stealing them from other inmates, or by crafting them by combining two or three items, such as toothpaste and talcum powder which makes putty that a key can be imprinted then moulded with. Players can do favours for fellow inmates, once the favour is completed the player is rewarded a certain amount of money based on the inmate's opinion of the player. Inmate favours can range from getting them a roll of duct tape to distracting the guards at roll call.
Engaging in exercise and using the library allows players to level up their character's attributes such as strength, speed, and intelligence which improves their abilities and their chance of escape. Each prison has their own daily routines, such as meals, work, exercise and showers. An inmate can skip a meal, showers and exercise without much penalty, however, all roll calls are mandatory and lockdowns will occur if the player character does not attend. Inmates must be careful to hide all contraband as guards will periodically search the inmates' desks. If the player is caught with contraband, it and any weapons equipped are confiscated and the player is sent into solitary confinement. Any damage such as chipped walls, broken vents and tunnels are also repaired.
There are a number of escape methods including inciting riots, via vents, tunnels, roofs, among others. Each prison has layers of security that increase in difficulty from the first playable prison to the last, ranging from electric fences to chip resistant high walls. The prisoner will generally need various weapons to win a fight with inmates or guards. There are many types of weapons that can be acquired (such as a guard's baton or plastic fork) or crafted (such as nunchucks or a whip).
The Escapists is the second game by Chris Davis' one man studio. Davis raised £7,131 for the game through Kickstarter in November 2013, this allowed him to commit full-time to game development for the first time in his career. Unlike his first title, Spud's Quest, Davis signed a publishing deal with Team17 to better market the game. Team17 contributed the tutorial and ported the game to Unity for Xbox One support.
The game was inspired by the 1984 video game Skool Daze, one of Davis's favourite titles. Davis limited the hint system and the tutorial to encourage experimentation by the players. He hoped that by allowing players to discover the solution themselves, they would feel a greater sense of achievement. For inspiration, Davis watched prison films and researched prison escapes.
Hub AI
The Escapists AI simulator
(@The Escapists_simulator)
The Escapists
The Escapists is a strategy game developed by Mouldy Toof Studios and following a Steam Early Access release in 2014, was released in 2015 for Microsoft Windows, macOS, Linux, Xbox 360, Xbox One and PlayStation 4. It was released on iOS and Android in 2017. A Nintendo Switch version of the game containing all downloadable content was released in 2018. The game was launched on the Epic Games Store on 23 September 2021, with the weekly free game campaign of Epic Games. Players assume the role of an inmate and must escape from prisons of increasing difficulty.
Reviewers praised the freedom of approach the game offered players, yet some were frustrated by the trial-and-error approach required to learn its systems. A sequel, The Escapists 2, was released in 2017.
In The Escapists, the player, who assumes the role of a prisoner, must escape from six primary prisons that progresses in difficulty. Each time a prison is escaped the next prison is unlocked. There are additional prisons released as downloadable content (DLC) which can be played in any order regardless of the player's progress. Outside of the main game, there is also the "Prison Editor" mode, which allows players to create their own prisons out of in-game assets that they can choose to publish online for other players to download.
In the beginning, the player selects their name and can choose the names of prisoners and guards if desired. Once the names are selected the game starts from day 1 waking up in the player character's cell. Players can acquire various items to aid in their escape by buying or stealing them from other inmates, or by crafting them by combining two or three items, such as toothpaste and talcum powder which makes putty that a key can be imprinted then moulded with. Players can do favours for fellow inmates, once the favour is completed the player is rewarded a certain amount of money based on the inmate's opinion of the player. Inmate favours can range from getting them a roll of duct tape to distracting the guards at roll call.
Engaging in exercise and using the library allows players to level up their character's attributes such as strength, speed, and intelligence which improves their abilities and their chance of escape. Each prison has their own daily routines, such as meals, work, exercise and showers. An inmate can skip a meal, showers and exercise without much penalty, however, all roll calls are mandatory and lockdowns will occur if the player character does not attend. Inmates must be careful to hide all contraband as guards will periodically search the inmates' desks. If the player is caught with contraband, it and any weapons equipped are confiscated and the player is sent into solitary confinement. Any damage such as chipped walls, broken vents and tunnels are also repaired.
There are a number of escape methods including inciting riots, via vents, tunnels, roofs, among others. Each prison has layers of security that increase in difficulty from the first playable prison to the last, ranging from electric fences to chip resistant high walls. The prisoner will generally need various weapons to win a fight with inmates or guards. There are many types of weapons that can be acquired (such as a guard's baton or plastic fork) or crafted (such as nunchucks or a whip).
The Escapists is the second game by Chris Davis' one man studio. Davis raised £7,131 for the game through Kickstarter in November 2013, this allowed him to commit full-time to game development for the first time in his career. Unlike his first title, Spud's Quest, Davis signed a publishing deal with Team17 to better market the game. Team17 contributed the tutorial and ported the game to Unity for Xbox One support.
The game was inspired by the 1984 video game Skool Daze, one of Davis's favourite titles. Davis limited the hint system and the tutorial to encourage experimentation by the players. He hoped that by allowing players to discover the solution themselves, they would feel a greater sense of achievement. For inspiration, Davis watched prison films and researched prison escapes.