Why can’t people ever fix their security in prisons? I mean, for goodness sake, you’d think that after years of people breaking out through the sewage system Shawshank Redemption style, prisons would increase security, o at the very least, use some stronger cell bars. But, no, they always leave one crack in their prisons to allow prisoners to escape… So, naturally, video games have quite a lot of those. In video games, it seems that getting out of those prisons are as easy as getting out of any. So, today, I want to share with te all the ten best prison breaks in video games. First, some rules. Only one game per franchise. Also, I am including games that I haven’t played, because if I didn’t, I would have no idea what I am doing here. Also, it doesn’t matter if the protagonist is trying to break out himself o if they are trying to break someone else out. If it involves a prisoner breaking out, than it goes on the list. So, with that said, let us start the list.
#10: Stilwater Penitentiary from Saints Row 2
Let’s start with one that’s pretty simple. After waking up from a coma, The Boss, along with the prisoner, Carlos, are forced to find a way out of prison in order to get back to the mainland. So, naturally, the first the the Boss does after waking up from a coma is running through the prison yard, shooting police officers as he and Carlos make their way to the boats. Granted, te could sneak up to the roof, but that only delays the inevitable shooting from the outside. After getting to the boats, Carlos will drive the barca to the mainland as the Boss shoots at police boats and helicopters in order to lose them… That’s something I find funny in sandbox missions. te can slaughter officers and they will be gone in a few minuti during missions, but outside of missions, killing officers only increases their numbers. I never understood that. Still, this is a pretty interesting and attention grabbing way to start off a game like Saints Row 2. Good job, developers
#9: castello Jail from Chrono Trigger
So, for a game that was rated E back in the day, te should expect that having a girl with te is punishable with death…. Oh, those old medieval times and their extremely unnecessary punishments. So, after being captured da the royal guards for the supposed kidnapping of Princess Nadia, te are put on trial for it. Of course, if you’re found innocent o guilty, te are still dato the death penalty no matter what. What I find neat about this one is that te have two options of escape. te can either wait for three days, and your friend Lucca will come and save you, o te can piss off the guards enough to where te can attack them and leave through the door. Eventually, te will regroup with your Friends in time to face the boss, a Dragon Tank, which can heal itself if te don’t destroy the head. It’s pretty simple, and it’s kinda dumb that the king just decides to let te go once te escape, but whatever. It’s a JRPG. When did those ever use logic
#8: Coldridge Prison from Dishonored
Just like Saints Row 2, Dishonored starts te off in a prison as the game's tutorial. However, this one is a bit più interesting. After being told that te were used da the Spymaster as a fall guy (That’s old noir talk) for the Empress’s death, te are then dato a letter da a group of rebels who wish to have te unisciti them, and leave a key under the note to help te escape. So, from here, te are now on your way to the exit. However, there are guards here that te must be aware of. te could just walk over and kill them, but the true challenge comes when someone wants to avoid killing everyone in the game, in order to keep Chaos low. Here, te will need to do an assortment of sneaking through alternate routes and choking guards until they go unconscious. And it all ends with te jumping off a bridge into the water as guards shoot at te (Unless te are better at stealth than I am, which, let me tell you, I am not the best with). It’s simple, sure, but still a neat start to a stealth game.
#7: Bargate Prison from Fable
te know, I never understood some things about prisons, but tell me why the guards of Bargate prison feel the need to take your clothes when te are arrested? Seriously, they end up leaving te in your boxers. Oh well, the escape is pretty interesting. In order to get out of Bargate prison, te will need to spend a full anno there, being tortured, and when a whole anno comes around, te will be forced into a race, where guards bet on prisoners to see who will win. After winning, te will be sent to the Warden’s Office, where the prison warden will read to te a line of poetry… I’m not making this up. While he is reading, te need to look over the combination on a bacheca in order to open one of the three libri that holds the cell key to your cell. After this, te will be able to break out of prison, as well as your mother, and maybe even the other prisoners if you’re feeling like a good guy. And after that is done, te will make your way out, only to be faced with a fight against a giant Kraken… It’s not as dangerous as it sounds. As horrible as Peter Molyneux is, at least this was a time before he Lost what little of his mind he had left.
#6: Imperial Prison from Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
Man, there are a lot of game tutorials that take place in prisons. Anyway, te know te have a good game when the first person te meet is a prisoner who insults te due to what race te chose. Boy, racism right off the bat. Quite a tutorial. But what makes this one interesting are the many different ways te can escape. te can go with the Imperial guards, who will be flanked da assassins and killed, leaving te to fight them, te can go through a crumbled wall, filled with rats, skeletons, and the body of a Goblin Shaman. After which, te will arrive to meet the Emperor, who will try to be attacked da Mythic Dawn members, which te will basically kill. And for the first time in forever, the member of royalty actually DOESN’T want the guards to kill you. What a shock. Instead, he gets killed da assassins, and te kill them as well, with the last of the Imperial guards giving te a key to leave and go out into the world of Oblivion. With all the story being told and all of the events occurring, it’s interesting to see how this all happens just within the tutorial. Easily the best of the prison tutorials.
#5: Forsaken Fortress from Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker
After having Link’s sister, Aryll, taken da a giant bird, what is the best thing for a twelve anno old boy to do? Go to a large prison alone filled with giant monsters with no weapons to find her. Either bravery o stupidity. I’ll let te decide on that one. Anyway, This is the only moment besides the opening where te are empty handed. The place is filled with Moblins and Bokoblins using large cerca lights. The only way te can hide is da either staying out of the light o da hiding underneath the barrels. This is so much like Metal Gear Solid in a way (And don’t worry, we’ll get to a Metal Gear Solid entry soon). This is completely different from the other sneaking sections from other Zelda games before. Ocarina of Time had te going through some castello hedges. Majora’s Mask had te go through a Deku garden. All of which had the punishment for getting caught being thrown out with no penalty. They both also had te go into the Gerudo thieves hideouts, but those were pretty simple. Here, te are a young boy sneaking past real dangerous monsters. And all this without a weapon. At least Link had weapons in Ocarina of Time and Majora’s Mask. Here, te got NOTHING! Toon Link is truly the Snake of Zelda.
#4: Island from Resident Evil 4
So, after Ashley gets sent to a prison island, the only thing for the badass Leon to do is to go to that island with a multitude of weapons to go and get her out… Resulting in a lot of things, like much più intelligent Ganados that wield better weapons, a J.J, with a mini-gun, a psychotic ex-marine with incredible coltello skills and the dumbest boss fight ever (Krauser), a giant centipede-ish monster, and don’t even get me started on the nightmare inducing Regenerators. This is a lot different from the Spanish village and the large castello just outside of it. I mean, this is a maximum security facility, complete with gatling guns, large trenches, and even a room with freaking lasers. All of that just screams what Spain is known for. But, of course, this is still a great place, as it is where the climax for the game is, and is a very fun idea. Also, if te ever wanted to see just how much of an action film this game is, look no further than the freaking helicopter that helps te blow up Ganados. Seriously, how come no one ever talked about that one?
#3: Groznyj Grad from Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
Yes, I know, Metal Gear Solid probably had a better prison break than this. I’m sorry for not including it. But this one is just so good in my opinion. After being tortured da Volgin and having his freaking eye shot out, Snake is left inside of a jail cell, where there different places te would think to try, but fail. te can hide under the bed, but that never works. te could try to stab the guard with a fork, but that never works. No, instead, the only way to get out is to either use Frequency 144.75, get sick for the guard to see, o use a pill to fake your death. Pretty interesting stuff. And after that, you’re on your own from there. te have to make it through the prison, all the way ending with te jumping out of a large pipe into the river in an attempt to avoid capture. te may just bleed to death once there, but at least you’re out of your prison cell… Well, this is Metal Gear Solid, so it’s gotta be depressing for the protagonist in some way
#2: Undead Asylum from Dark Souls
Am I cheating… Does this count as cheating? I can’t really say, because this looks so much più like a prison than an asylum. Asylums don’t have creatures trying to kill te every chance they get. te start off pretty weak… obviously for the start of a game. te are then forced to walk out of your cell and out into the asylum, where other Hollowed prisoners await you. Granted, they aren’t much of a challenge. However, the true challenge comes in the form of the Asylum Demon, who te can’t even fight the first time te meet him. te have to run off into an opening, then go and talk to a dying knight to get some equipment, and once te got your weapon, then te can go back and fight him. This prison shows te how the game works, and it shows te that this is as easy as the game gets. After te leave this prison filled with insane hollow undead wanting to kill you, it gets so much harder. Than again, this is Dark Souls, so that isn’t too surprising.
#1: Carnate Island from The Suffering
All of these prisons, while interesting, all just had te go through them for one o two levels, and never had to deal with them again after that. The Suffering is all about escaping prison. Only, it is a lot più dangerous than te thought. As a death row inmate, Torque is sent to Carnate Island to the prison there. Here, many horrifying things happen. Monsters come from the ground and start killing everyone there, and all te can do is do your best to get out of the prison and off of the island. te are sent through many different parts of the prison, such as the cell blocks, the execution rooms, the boiler room, the courtyard, the old quarry, an abandoned asylum, the underground room, the front of the prison, and the town that surrounds it. It’s interesting how much effort went into just mostrare te the prison in a state where even the inmates and crazed officers are not the most dangerous thing there. Oh, and te gotta Amore the fact that monsters like ones with blades for limbs, creatures that have rifles on their backs, monsters with needles all over their body, and so much più horrifying creatures. And in the end, all of this happened because Torque was suspected of killing his wife and kids. Is he innocent o is he really the one who did it? Well, that’s what the morality system is. Either help the survivors o kill them. Either way, it will tell te what happened. But, are we here to talk about prison breaks o how to be a morally good person. Carnate Island; a dark, terrifying, and insane place to be, but if it isn’t the perfect sign of a hidden horror gem, I don’t know what is.
Well, there te have it. Did te enjoy the list? Tell me what te thought of it. With that said, I will see te all successivo time.
#10: Stilwater Penitentiary from Saints Row 2
Let’s start with one that’s pretty simple. After waking up from a coma, The Boss, along with the prisoner, Carlos, are forced to find a way out of prison in order to get back to the mainland. So, naturally, the first the the Boss does after waking up from a coma is running through the prison yard, shooting police officers as he and Carlos make their way to the boats. Granted, te could sneak up to the roof, but that only delays the inevitable shooting from the outside. After getting to the boats, Carlos will drive the barca to the mainland as the Boss shoots at police boats and helicopters in order to lose them… That’s something I find funny in sandbox missions. te can slaughter officers and they will be gone in a few minuti during missions, but outside of missions, killing officers only increases their numbers. I never understood that. Still, this is a pretty interesting and attention grabbing way to start off a game like Saints Row 2. Good job, developers
#9: castello Jail from Chrono Trigger
So, for a game that was rated E back in the day, te should expect that having a girl with te is punishable with death…. Oh, those old medieval times and their extremely unnecessary punishments. So, after being captured da the royal guards for the supposed kidnapping of Princess Nadia, te are put on trial for it. Of course, if you’re found innocent o guilty, te are still dato the death penalty no matter what. What I find neat about this one is that te have two options of escape. te can either wait for three days, and your friend Lucca will come and save you, o te can piss off the guards enough to where te can attack them and leave through the door. Eventually, te will regroup with your Friends in time to face the boss, a Dragon Tank, which can heal itself if te don’t destroy the head. It’s pretty simple, and it’s kinda dumb that the king just decides to let te go once te escape, but whatever. It’s a JRPG. When did those ever use logic
#8: Coldridge Prison from Dishonored
Just like Saints Row 2, Dishonored starts te off in a prison as the game's tutorial. However, this one is a bit più interesting. After being told that te were used da the Spymaster as a fall guy (That’s old noir talk) for the Empress’s death, te are then dato a letter da a group of rebels who wish to have te unisciti them, and leave a key under the note to help te escape. So, from here, te are now on your way to the exit. However, there are guards here that te must be aware of. te could just walk over and kill them, but the true challenge comes when someone wants to avoid killing everyone in the game, in order to keep Chaos low. Here, te will need to do an assortment of sneaking through alternate routes and choking guards until they go unconscious. And it all ends with te jumping off a bridge into the water as guards shoot at te (Unless te are better at stealth than I am, which, let me tell you, I am not the best with). It’s simple, sure, but still a neat start to a stealth game.
#7: Bargate Prison from Fable
te know, I never understood some things about prisons, but tell me why the guards of Bargate prison feel the need to take your clothes when te are arrested? Seriously, they end up leaving te in your boxers. Oh well, the escape is pretty interesting. In order to get out of Bargate prison, te will need to spend a full anno there, being tortured, and when a whole anno comes around, te will be forced into a race, where guards bet on prisoners to see who will win. After winning, te will be sent to the Warden’s Office, where the prison warden will read to te a line of poetry… I’m not making this up. While he is reading, te need to look over the combination on a bacheca in order to open one of the three libri that holds the cell key to your cell. After this, te will be able to break out of prison, as well as your mother, and maybe even the other prisoners if you’re feeling like a good guy. And after that is done, te will make your way out, only to be faced with a fight against a giant Kraken… It’s not as dangerous as it sounds. As horrible as Peter Molyneux is, at least this was a time before he Lost what little of his mind he had left.
#6: Imperial Prison from Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
Man, there are a lot of game tutorials that take place in prisons. Anyway, te know te have a good game when the first person te meet is a prisoner who insults te due to what race te chose. Boy, racism right off the bat. Quite a tutorial. But what makes this one interesting are the many different ways te can escape. te can go with the Imperial guards, who will be flanked da assassins and killed, leaving te to fight them, te can go through a crumbled wall, filled with rats, skeletons, and the body of a Goblin Shaman. After which, te will arrive to meet the Emperor, who will try to be attacked da Mythic Dawn members, which te will basically kill. And for the first time in forever, the member of royalty actually DOESN’T want the guards to kill you. What a shock. Instead, he gets killed da assassins, and te kill them as well, with the last of the Imperial guards giving te a key to leave and go out into the world of Oblivion. With all the story being told and all of the events occurring, it’s interesting to see how this all happens just within the tutorial. Easily the best of the prison tutorials.
#5: Forsaken Fortress from Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker
After having Link’s sister, Aryll, taken da a giant bird, what is the best thing for a twelve anno old boy to do? Go to a large prison alone filled with giant monsters with no weapons to find her. Either bravery o stupidity. I’ll let te decide on that one. Anyway, This is the only moment besides the opening where te are empty handed. The place is filled with Moblins and Bokoblins using large cerca lights. The only way te can hide is da either staying out of the light o da hiding underneath the barrels. This is so much like Metal Gear Solid in a way (And don’t worry, we’ll get to a Metal Gear Solid entry soon). This is completely different from the other sneaking sections from other Zelda games before. Ocarina of Time had te going through some castello hedges. Majora’s Mask had te go through a Deku garden. All of which had the punishment for getting caught being thrown out with no penalty. They both also had te go into the Gerudo thieves hideouts, but those were pretty simple. Here, te are a young boy sneaking past real dangerous monsters. And all this without a weapon. At least Link had weapons in Ocarina of Time and Majora’s Mask. Here, te got NOTHING! Toon Link is truly the Snake of Zelda.
#4: Island from Resident Evil 4
So, after Ashley gets sent to a prison island, the only thing for the badass Leon to do is to go to that island with a multitude of weapons to go and get her out… Resulting in a lot of things, like much più intelligent Ganados that wield better weapons, a J.J, with a mini-gun, a psychotic ex-marine with incredible coltello skills and the dumbest boss fight ever (Krauser), a giant centipede-ish monster, and don’t even get me started on the nightmare inducing Regenerators. This is a lot different from the Spanish village and the large castello just outside of it. I mean, this is a maximum security facility, complete with gatling guns, large trenches, and even a room with freaking lasers. All of that just screams what Spain is known for. But, of course, this is still a great place, as it is where the climax for the game is, and is a very fun idea. Also, if te ever wanted to see just how much of an action film this game is, look no further than the freaking helicopter that helps te blow up Ganados. Seriously, how come no one ever talked about that one?
#3: Groznyj Grad from Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
Yes, I know, Metal Gear Solid probably had a better prison break than this. I’m sorry for not including it. But this one is just so good in my opinion. After being tortured da Volgin and having his freaking eye shot out, Snake is left inside of a jail cell, where there different places te would think to try, but fail. te can hide under the bed, but that never works. te could try to stab the guard with a fork, but that never works. No, instead, the only way to get out is to either use Frequency 144.75, get sick for the guard to see, o use a pill to fake your death. Pretty interesting stuff. And after that, you’re on your own from there. te have to make it through the prison, all the way ending with te jumping out of a large pipe into the river in an attempt to avoid capture. te may just bleed to death once there, but at least you’re out of your prison cell… Well, this is Metal Gear Solid, so it’s gotta be depressing for the protagonist in some way
#2: Undead Asylum from Dark Souls
Am I cheating… Does this count as cheating? I can’t really say, because this looks so much più like a prison than an asylum. Asylums don’t have creatures trying to kill te every chance they get. te start off pretty weak… obviously for the start of a game. te are then forced to walk out of your cell and out into the asylum, where other Hollowed prisoners await you. Granted, they aren’t much of a challenge. However, the true challenge comes in the form of the Asylum Demon, who te can’t even fight the first time te meet him. te have to run off into an opening, then go and talk to a dying knight to get some equipment, and once te got your weapon, then te can go back and fight him. This prison shows te how the game works, and it shows te that this is as easy as the game gets. After te leave this prison filled with insane hollow undead wanting to kill you, it gets so much harder. Than again, this is Dark Souls, so that isn’t too surprising.
#1: Carnate Island from The Suffering
All of these prisons, while interesting, all just had te go through them for one o two levels, and never had to deal with them again after that. The Suffering is all about escaping prison. Only, it is a lot più dangerous than te thought. As a death row inmate, Torque is sent to Carnate Island to the prison there. Here, many horrifying things happen. Monsters come from the ground and start killing everyone there, and all te can do is do your best to get out of the prison and off of the island. te are sent through many different parts of the prison, such as the cell blocks, the execution rooms, the boiler room, the courtyard, the old quarry, an abandoned asylum, the underground room, the front of the prison, and the town that surrounds it. It’s interesting how much effort went into just mostrare te the prison in a state where even the inmates and crazed officers are not the most dangerous thing there. Oh, and te gotta Amore the fact that monsters like ones with blades for limbs, creatures that have rifles on their backs, monsters with needles all over their body, and so much più horrifying creatures. And in the end, all of this happened because Torque was suspected of killing his wife and kids. Is he innocent o is he really the one who did it? Well, that’s what the morality system is. Either help the survivors o kill them. Either way, it will tell te what happened. But, are we here to talk about prison breaks o how to be a morally good person. Carnate Island; a dark, terrifying, and insane place to be, but if it isn’t the perfect sign of a hidden horror gem, I don’t know what is.
Well, there te have it. Did te enjoy the list? Tell me what te thought of it. With that said, I will see te all successivo time.