Prison. Film and Television have created a mythos around prison life, but its accuracy is often in question. What's not in doubt, though, is that prison is not a place you want to find yourself in. Unless you're playing a video game, that is.
Video game prisons allow you to live out a variety of prison fantasies. You can build a prison, govern one, guard one, escape from one, break into one and more. Video game prisons can be detailed and immersive, fantastical or horrific, grounded or futuristic. There's a plethora of prisons in video games to experience.
10 Twin Caliber
Twin Caliber is a twin-stick shooter horror game that you can play with a friend or on your own. You take control of either a Sheriff or a convict, forced to team up to escape a prison island that has been overrun by horrifying monsters.
Twin Caliber is one of many games that makes prison a truly horrific experience. You can't explore the prison much, though, because the game is on rails, forcing you to shoot at enemies and little else. Throughout the nightmarish adventure, you explore the many areas of the prison, from the cellblocks to the yard, to the surrounding forests and other areas of the spooky island.
9 The Suffering
The Suffering is another horror-driven prison game. Here you play as death row inmate, Torque, who is spending his final days in Abbott State Penitentiary on Carnate Island. When hell is let loose on the island, you have to fight your way to freedom, battling demonic beasts and monsters and uncovering the secrets of the prison and the island.
The Suffering allows you to fully explore the prison. You venture from the usual prison cell blocks and yards, to the quarry, the death chamber, the psychiatric wing and more. The prison in The Suffering is layered and detailed, with a twisted history waiting to be discovered.
8 Prisoner of War
In Prisoner of War, you play as Captain Stone, an American pilot shot down during World War 2, who must now either spend his remaining war days incarcerated in POW camps, or escape and fight the Nazis once again.
Prisoner of War brings to life several WW2 POW camps, including the infamous Castle Colditz. Each prison has its own unique set of characters, prisoners, guards, and Commandants. They all look and feel different, with varying weather effects and rules and regulations in place. While the overarching narrative of Prisoner of War is linear, it does allow you ample room for exploration, and to live out a fantastical POW life.
7 The Callisto Protocol
The Callisto Protocol is set in Black Iron Prison on the planet Callisto. Like some other horror-themed prison games, monstrous creatures break loose, and you are forced to fight them on your quest for freedom.
As you venture the prison, you interact with surviving inmates, explore the various wings, each given a science fiction, horror twist, and you discover the origins of Black Iron. There was once a laboratory on the grounds, as well as a colony, and plenty of other secrets to be found.
6 The Escapists (Series)
In The Escapists you create a character and then have to strategize a way out of several prisons. You can buy or steal items from other inmates, do favors in return for tools and goods, and as long as your fellow inmates like you, they’ll continue to aid you in your escape attempts.
You can exercise, read in the library, work off your crimes, attend daily meals and more. The Escapists is not only a prison life simulator, but also a prison escape simulator. Guards react to your actions, keep an eye on you, make you attend roll call, and try to keep you incarcerated. If what you want is to experience life in prison without going to prison, The Escapists is one of the best games to play.
5 Prison Architect
If you don't want to be a convict in a prison, the alternative is Prison Architect. In this game, you are given a set amount of money to build and then govern your own prison. You have to manage the prison, including its intake of inmates, its water supply and electricity and more.
Prison Architect is a game that makes you think. You can hire staff for certain roles, but each member has their own capabilities. You must carefully manage your income and outgoing expenses, adjusting when needed. The game allows you to be a strict, ruthless governor, or the nicest governor on the planet.
4 The Chronicles Of Riddick: Escape From Butcher Bay
In The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay, you play as the titular Riddick, portrayed by Vin Diesel. As the title suggests, you must escape from Butcher Bay. It tells the origin story of the titular Riddick, before he shows up in the movie series.
Butcher Bay is a multi-layered, science-fiction prison. You start on the surface, in a fairly standard, if somewhat filthy, prison complex. As you keep trying to escape, you get transferred to higher security wings. There’s an underground prison drenched in darkness, with harsher living arrangements, and then there’s a wing you don’t get to experience unless the stasis wears off.
3 A Way Out
A Way Out is only partially a prison set game. You and your friend play as convicted felons, Leo and Vincent. As the game starts, you are both in prison, and you must conjure up a plan of escape. You steal from guards and fight fellow inmates.
Once you escape from the prison, the rest of the game is about remaining free. You re-encounter loved ones, fight the police and run for your life. The prison in A Way Out is a detailed one, but you only spend so much time in it, and much of the game is set after the escape.
2 Resident Evil – Code: Veronica
After investigating the Umbrella Corporation and getting caught, Claire Redfield is incarcerated in a prison complex run by the corporation in Resident Evil – Code: Veronica. Like other prison games with a horror vibe, and other Resident Evil games, monstrous creatures are unleashed, and you must do battle with them.
Surviving the chaos is no easy feat. Claire must team with fellow inmate, Steve Burnside, and together they fight for freedom. You eventually escape on a seaplane, only to end up at another Umbrella facility, which is again overrun by zombies.
1 Batman: Arkham Asylum
While transferring the Joker back to Arkham Asylum, a dastardly scheme is put in place, trapping Batman inside the prison/hospital complex, with the many inmates who all want him dead. In Batman: Arkham Asylum, you explore each wing of the prison, slowly regaining control and order of the island facility.
Arkham Asylum has a deep, dark history: one you uncover throughout your run. There are Easter eggs and secrets, documents and reports, guards and inmates to interact with, and more. Each wing has a unique identity and look, with a specific purpose too. Each prisoner of note even has a personalized cell. Arkham Asylum is one of the most layered and detailed prisons ever created in video games.