Suggestion: Bonuses for rooms that are bigger than required

[direvus]

Various rooms have a minimum size (3x2 for cells, 4x4 for offices, and so on). It would be interesting if rooms conferred a bonus of some kind if they are larger than the minimum.

So, if you put a prisoner in a 3x3 cell instead of the standard 3x2, maybe some of his needs are better satisfied. If you put an administrator in a 4x5 office, maybe he does his work more efficiently -- for example, the Warden might get a bonus to his research speed.

It creates an interesting tension between the amount of space you're willing to commit to a room, versus how good you want the room to be.

Theme Hospital and Dwarf Fortress both have mechanics of this sort. In TH, your staff gain XP when they work in larger-than-minimum rooms. In DF, room size factors into the total room value, which affects the inhabitant's happiness.

[Parker22]

Im down with this. It will make the prison layouts much more interesting, and there would be less repetition. You could expand a room in the future if you werent getting enough out of it, also e.g. security

[FourWinds]

This may be the case already; certainly for cleaning cupboards and laundries you get to assign more jobs the bigger they are. I'm not sure about kitchens as I've never let my con's anywhere near the sharp and shiny things.

[christopher1006]

I don't think it should have to do with size but rather what we put in it. Lets say we have that 3x3 cell instead of a 3x2, well now we can add extra items like a tv which is a luxury item which will increase the value of the cell. This in turn will allow us to have different cell blocks, or even sections within the cell block, with varying values that will allow you to be able to reward prisoners with higher value cells that have tvs and showers and give the trouble makers something that looks suspiciously like a solitary confinement area.

[AgentPaper]

Simple size should affect the value of a cell. The devs mentioned that prisoners who had TVs in their room would be less likely to "kick off", since they're afraid of losing their TV, well other stuff built into a cell should serve a similar purpose, as well as the size of the cell. If your prisoner is in a 10x10 luxury suite of a cell, then he should be less likely to kick off since he doesn't want to move back into a 2x3 closet.

[direvus]

Simple size should affect the value of a cell. The devs mentioned that prisoners who had TVs in their room would be less likely to "kick off", since they're afraid of losing their TV, well other stuff built into a cell should serve a similar purpose, as well as the size of the cell. If your prisoner is in a 10x10 luxury suite of a cell, then he should be less likely to kick off since he doesn't want to move back into a 2x3 closet.

Exactly; the amount of space has a big impact on how comfortable somebody feels. A 3x3 cell should be more pleasant for the prisoner than a 3x2, even if it's equipped with the same items.

[christopher1006]

Simple size should affect the value of a cell. The devs mentioned that prisoners who had TVs in their room would be less likely to "kick off", since they're afraid of losing their TV, well other stuff built into a cell should serve a similar purpose, as well as the size of the cell. If your prisoner is in a 10x10 luxury suite of a cell, then he should be less likely to kick off since he doesn't want to move back into a 2x3 closet.

Exactly; the amount of space has a big impact on how comfortable somebody feels. A 3x3 cell should be more pleasant for the prisoner than a 3x2, even if it's equipped with the same items.

That's not always true, if you have a 3x3 cell with a toilet and bed a prisoner will probably like the fact that he gets extra space but if there's a cell that's 3x2 which has a bed, toilet and a tv chances are he'll want the 3x2 cell because he can use more things to satisfy his needs while more open space might reduce the rate of a need for freedom for the prisoner that lives in there.

[Great Magical Hat]

That's not always true, if you have a 3x3 cell with a toilet and bed a prisoner will probably like the fact that he gets extra space but if there's a cell that's 3x2 which has a bed, toilet and a tv chances are he'll want the 3x2 cell because he can use more things to satisfy his needs while more open space might reduce the rate of a need for freedom for the prisoner that lives in there.

The "conversation rate" between space and equipment is a tough one and hasn't been attempted by anyone in this thread. It's probably also quite different for different people in real life.

[Parker22]

Simple size should affect the value of a cell. The devs mentioned that prisoners who had TVs in their room would be less likely to "kick off", since they're afraid of losing their TV, well other stuff built into a cell should serve a similar purpose, as well as the size of the cell. If your prisoner is in a 10x10 luxury suite of a cell, then he should be less likely to kick off since he doesn't want to move back into a 2x3 closet.

I'm going to make my solitary cell a marble-lined, 2 bed little 'home from home', with a guest chef and a private lawn. Then lets see what happens!

[BlueTrin]

What would be nice is that if some items are together they would give a combo to the room: something like bed + TV = couch potato combo or bench press + bed + some other thing = gym combo

[AgentPaper]

Well certainly a small room with a TV, phone, chair, bookcase, shower, and so on should be valued higher than a slightly larger room with just a bed and toilet. But a huge room with a bed and toilet should be more valuable than a tiny closet with a bed, toilet, and say, a bookcase. Size would just be another way of making a cell more valuable, along with adding in objects.

[KELIK]

or maybe add a new need, a space need or something that is satisfied only by being outside but goes down slower if they are in larger-than-minimum rooms. if they ever add psychological disorders than there might be penalties for keeping a prisoner with claustrophobia in a small cell as well.

[Great Magical Hat]

a space need or something that is satisfied [only] by being outside

Like the freedom need?