Prison Tycoon: Alcatraz

Prison Tycoon: Alcatraz is the fifth entry in the Prison Tycoon series. This time, the player takes control over the famous island prison Alcatraz which was in operation between 1934 and 1963. Like in any tycoon game, the most time is spent with selecting buildings or other structures from a menu and building somewhere in the environment. It is important to balance the aspects security (e.g. by hiring security personnel or building watch towers) to prevent prisoners from fleeing and finances (working prisoners bring in money) in order to be able to cover ongoing and constructing costs. Another aspect is the satisfaction and well-being of prisoners and personnel, which requires additional personnel (e.g. physicians or priests) and rooms (e.g. recreation facilities).

Besides the free-playing mode, which covers the whole life-cycle of the real prison, there is also a campaign mode. It is basically the same as free-play with additional goals which have to achieved within a certain time frame, for example reaching a certain security standard.