First off, for a noob this is a pretty unforgiving place.  I made a lot of mistakes but somehow Imma thinking that even with that I got off pretty easy.  The game has, for me, hit that point of why push further?  Sure, I can push for more $'s, more fights, more this and more that but is that the whole point of the game?  Why would I want to move to another house if I have found a comfort zone where I am?  There is no stimulation, there is no reward, there is little or no social value to the present format.

Here are some thoughts:

1.  Guards are totally absent from the game as are trustees.  Having guards, rats, snitches, and trustees interacting would totally change the social dynamic.  Biggest reason for the suggestion...  It would give the cons a reason to socialize and join gangs.  It would ramp up the social potential for the game.

2.  Cons can acquire skills while in the joint.  Right now I cook and go to the gym.  I get rewarded for my trips to the gym and I get paid to cook.  But is money really enough for the trades.  Why not have a social scale coupled with a technical scale for each job and allow that to earn respect points as well?  Likewise, one con needs a favor from another working in the kitchen, why shouldn't I earn some favors for getting that apple to the guy stuck in the hole?  The social and respect aspects of jobs is totally not accounted for.

3.  Every prison has a library where the cons can learn and grow and take classes, even earn a degree.  So why not Prison Block?  Duh!!!!  Why not have a library that has prescreened links to some sites where cons can learn basic law, health, etc. etc.?  From this a con can earn experience quicker, up his nerve, hitpoints, or even petition the governor for a pardon or reduced sentence.  I leave PB every day to go to another site and read about shit that ultimately is related to prison life.  Why wouldn't you just find those links for me and have them in a library.

4.  Where's the means to learn survival skills?  What do cons do when they get sick and can't get drugs from the infirmary?  The mentor tool is a start in that direction but then there is only so much they can teach you about or help you with because the game is pretty much limited to fighting and buying shit.  There's more to life than buying shit and fighting, even in prison.

5.  What about escapes, parole hearings and the like?  Escapes happen, parole boards happen even for Charles Manson, why aren't they engineered into PB?  How about organizing a riot in the yard or the chow hall?  I know that these are not simple software tasks but algos for them exist in many arenas, many publicly available so why not work them in?

6.  Why the graft in the game design?  WHY should I invest much time in a game where I can whip out the ol' plastic and fucking buyt my way to wherever the fuck I think it is I should go?  Whoever thought of that being as pervasive as it is had his head up his ass, I'm sorry.  I have ZERO motivation to invest much time in a game where someone else can go around and buy their way to the top.  Great for you, it turns the game into some real coin but it won't last forever and the game will suffer, as it is now.  The membership rolls have declined just in my short time here.  THERE IS A REASON and it is fixable!

7.  Everyone needs to start with a basic avatar that gets dressier as they progress.  Right now I can look at a level 1 noob and they got more shit than some level 15 people.  Make them earn the additions to the avatar.  Everyone comes in with hair, face, and one feature.  Hat, necklace, tat, glasses, or whatever but that is it.  Want more?  Earn it by levelling up.

8.  Ditch the cemetary unless I can make money as a gravedigger.  And if you want to get spooky and shit, that's fine and let some religion flow into the game.  There is NOTHING like religion to get a conversation moved to a new level.  I won't say more cuz I am sure I know many of the reasons it's not there now.  But if you do consider it and short on ideas, I have "one or two."

Lastly, I like the game, I like the format, I like the overall intent.  Otherwise I wouldn't be writing this.  The game appears to be dying guys and you might want to do something about that.  Unless of course it has run its course and you're in cash cow mode right now.  I had some thoughts, something needed to be said, I could find where no one has said it, so it is said.  Thank you and good night.

TP

The "escape" button is top right corner (red X)....good luck out there without your plastic bro.

Ni99a u drunk?

The game is actually on a slight rebound on it's way back up. We will never see the amount of people we used to have 3-4 years ago, but as long as we have the core players staying around and more of them coming back the game will still be here. I'm not referring to the troll retreads who continue to create accts with the sole purpose of talking shit in lower prisons. I'm referring to the guys who have already progressed in the game to SD and put in the time to know what rewards this game has to offer for your accomplishments. So far you know absolutely nothing yet you're here suggesting almost a complete overhaul of the game. Yeah people can use "plastic" to acquire items/amens needed to make things a little easier, developers design these games to make $ and it's part of almost every game. BUT, even with spending $ on this game it does not give you the stats needed for any type of respect. You still need to physically put time and effort into the game to progress. Feel free to search online for any game similar to this genre and I can assure you that this is by far the best game out. If you're looking for more of a family/social environment I suggest playing a game like Farmville, I hear there's plenty of people there who are very social and would love to have you. Like Buck said previously, all you have to do is click on the "escape" button on the top right corner. Until then, feel free to take your panties off and work your way up here to SD.

ThadP, I see you are new here. In the interest of avoiding any confusion, I think it's important to mention at this point that Tony speaks for all of us here at pb.

Points taken.

You are right, I'm new, but then I know that as well.

If my suggestions are shit then so be it.

Thank you for reading my post, thank you for your thoughtful comments. Meant nothing by it other than "I just discovered this game that I like and would hate to see it disappear." None of my suggestions were to change the game but rather grow or enhance it.

Nevertheless. I've had my say, I've been heard, so now I'll shut up and get back to cooking. Thanks...

"I just discovered this game that I like and would hate to see it disappear."

This has been the topic of many discussions for pretty much the past 3 years or so. The game definitely has it's ups and downs in regards to volume of players online but we've consistently been around the 15-30 players online for the past few months and that's about as good as it will get to be honest. There have been many suggestions made and staff already knows what they can do to grow and enhance it. The problem is that this was a side project and in my opinion I think even they are surprised with how long we've lasted. They don't put much time into it anymore and we are here to basically do as we please with what we have. There's a pretty solid core of players that will be here until the wheels fall off so feel free to stick around and enjoy it with us.

+10000000000000

A year later, a year of actively embracing the game and getting to understand it better. First off, thank you all for your patience with my noob's rant that originally started this thread. Thank you. Much respect to each of you. Given that, I thought it appropriate to put some personal context to my original post and if for no other reason, to show some respect to those of you who took the time to read it. Here goes...

1. If someone were to invest the time to add code, that would be a logical venue to expand the game boundaries although the inmate to inmate interaction more than suffices to keep one busy and engaged. Unnecessary.

2. I was on drugs at the time I wrote that one.

3. Kinda like #1, it would be a logical venue to expand game boundaries but then again, cost of coding and integrating would be prohibitive. Unnecessary.

4. One too many blunts.

5. Just fucking dumb on my part.

6. I was totally out of line on this one, totally. I do believe that buying favors, respect, and the like does financially support the game? If it does, I do apologize for the severity of my remarks.

7. Pointless prattle on my part. Grrrr...

8. Totally forgot about the cemetary, what was I thinking?

So there you have it, what a con learns in a year in the joint. I do like the game a lot and it is the one that garners my time when real life ain't in the way. Made a few friends along the way so far, and again, respect to each of you for your patience.

Last edited by ThadP 6 years ago

lol, very well then