Review: Prison Boss Prohibition
One game I never anticipated would receive a sequel is Prison Boss. I thoroughly enjoyed playing it back in 2018, and revisiting it on PSVR2 was also a blast. However, I was uncertain about what new features it could offer. Then came the announcement of Prison Boss Prohibition, which sparked my excitement for returning to my contraband crafting adventures. Now, I’ve been involved in the underbelly of New Yolk City; have they succeeded in keeping the gameplay feeling fresh?
Release Date: July 10th 2025
Developer: TREBUCHET
Publisher: TREBUCHET
Price: £15.99
Reviewed On: Meta Quest 3
* Access Provided For Review *
Part Tycoon Sim, Time Management And Interior Design
Gone are the restraints and confinement of a prison cell, as you now find yourself in New Yolk City, which has its own set of rules. Even though you are no longer locked away in a cell, you are still somewhat confined behind a bar of sorts in New Yolk. What are the new regulations in this city? Essentially, anything enjoyable has been prohibited, including cigarettes, beer, and risqué materials, to name just a few, all thanks to the mayor – what a buzzkill.
This is where you step in; even though you are now a free-range chicken, you can’t resist the enticing world of creating contraband and breaking the law as well as the regulations set by the Mayor. Your days will unfold in a cycle similar to the original, where you have the opportunity to purchase the necessary ingredients, tools, storage and unlock new recipes to ensure your business operates efficiently. Then, as night falls, you’ll have a limited time to produce your contraband for sale the following day. Once daytime arrives, customers will swarm to your shop, eager to get their hands on what you’ve been crafting to satisfy their cravings. A newly introduced feature allows you to receive phone calls at your stand. These calls will involve customers placing more intricate orders for you to fulfil. If you find that you don’t have enough items prepared for the order, you can rip up the order form to cancel it. However, if you do have sufficient stock, you can prioritise this order over your regular customers at the stand for greater rewards.
However, this situation is not as straightforward as you might wish. While the prison guards are no longer patrolling, you now have to contend with the corrupt law enforcement in New Yolk City. It’s essential to be vigilant when creating or even selling your contraband, as any visible items will attract their attention, leading to confiscation – this includes any cash you might leave unattended in their view. This increases the risk of losing money and potentially hampers your ability to serve customers or fulfil phone orders, putting you at a disadvantage in your business operations.
Similar to the original, Prison Boss Prohibition is an incredibly hands-on and tactile experience, requiring minimal button pressing. Instead, you’ll be engaging in activities like turning on taps, shaking bottles, fuelling your oven, and drawing pictures, among other tasks related to the twenty different prohibited items you’ll be crafting. With a wide array of items to unlock, you’ll discover ample opportunities to keep the gameplay feeling new and maintain a sense of progression.
Next, incorporate law enforcement patrols, and you’ll find yourself rushing around anxiously to ensure everything is concealed, safeguarding your inventory and profits from being seized. This is where the layout of your space becomes crucial; as you advance, you begin to introduce additional storage and equipment to maximize your output while discreetly hiding your ingredients and contraband with minimal stress. You can manually position these items throughout your area and easily relocate them if you need to rearrange for a new addition. This game combines elements of tycoon simulation, time management, and interior design – offering a familiar experience for fans of the original while remaining accessible to newcomers to Prison Boss.
The most significant addition to Prison Boss Prohibition is the ability to play the game in co-op mode with a friend or even a random criminal buddy from the internet (let’s hope they’re trustworthy). Together, you’ll form a wicked duo managing a criminal empire. While this introduces an extra layer of excitement, it also doubles the chaos as you assist each other while trying to conceal even more from the law – plus, there are more ingredients, contraband, and cash to hide. In co-op mode, you each have your own little building connected to the other player’s. However, you can’t enter their building (thanks to those annoying invisible walls), but you can toss items back and forth. So, if you need an ingredient that only they possess, they can pass it over to you. Initially, this setup feels strange as it keeps you at a distance, but once you adapt, you understand the reasoning behind it; it heightens the intensity – especially when the police come knocking.
Shell-Shaded New Yolk City
The game visually retains its cel-shaded graphics, but now features a more details in the textures that bring New Yolk City to life, especially when compared to the cramped, dilapidated cells of the original. This is a clever decision by TREBUCHET, as it preserves the original’s charm while the Job Simulator meets Borderlands aesthetic perfectly complements your criminal endeavours. The residents of New Yolk City remain egg-people, and you (along with your co-op partner) play as chickens. Why, you might wonder? I can’t say for sure, but it aligns wonderfully with the quirky nature of Prison Boss.
Initially, you may believe that many of the egg-people appear alike, but this is actually a gameplay element. When you receive an order via phone, you’ll be provided with an order form detailing what the customer wants, along with a photo of the individual who will be picking up the order. This leaves you with the challenge of identifying the correct person, which could hinge on something as straightforward as the shape of their mouth serving as the distinguishing characteristic.
These choices allow humour to be infused into every element of the game. From egg-shaped characters being served by a chicken to clever puns like New Yolk City, combined with the fast-paced and chaotic gameplay along with the visuals, you create a game that doesn’t take itself too seriously. It’s evident that this has allowed the team to explore and thrive within this central theme, while ensuring the humour continues as you engage in the feathered criminal escapades.
In terms of audio, the game encompasses everything necessary for gameplay and aligns with the overall atmosphere. During the day, you’ll enjoy jazz music that fits the era and the vibe of New Yolk City. As night falls, the soundtrack shifts to evoke a more criminal underworld ambiance while you craft your contraband. Each eggy resident makes sounds upon arrival or grumbles if you toss their bag away, denying them service. When the phone rings to signal an order, you’ll hear a blend of English and chicken clucks. This audio design seamlessly integrates with the game’s humour and feel, keeping you fully immersed in the cartoon cel-shaded world of New Yolk City.
The TREBUCHET team has included a mixed reality mode in the game, allowing you to immerse yourself in contraband creation and shady dealings right in your own space. While this mode is enjoyable and definitely worth exploring, I discovered that the game truly shines in its full cel-shaded environment, and I plan to continue playing in this mode when I return.
Comfort
The Verdict
Prison Boss Prohibition takes everything that made the original so appealing and amplifies it, delivering an outstanding second instalment in the series. Transitioning from the confines of a prison cell to the bustling sidewalks of New Yolk City has injected a sense of freshness, even though the core gameplay loop remains unchanged, but now featuring a wider array of contraband to craft. This means that fans of the original will feel right at home engaging in crime within this new environment, while newcomers to the series will quickly adapt and still enjoy the same level of excitement and fun as they build their criminal empire, manage their time, and dabble in a bit of interior design, all while trying to evade the “feathered arm of the law”. With the addition of a new co-op mode, the experience becomes even more chaotic and enjoyable, as you and a friend strive to become the dynamic duo of the New Yolk City underworld. Despite my initial doubts about the possibility of a sequel, I have genuinely relished my time with Prison Boss Prohibition, and the team at TREBUCHET has introduced fantastic enhancements and improvements from the original, creating a game that is brimming with humour and never takes itself too seriously.