[Forge]

If it's made with realism in mind, it's going to end up being boring. There has to be more stuff to do in a Prison server. As people have pointed out on here, shops and jobs and such. Ability to get weapons too.

From my experience too, Prison Roleplay servers generally gather a few deathmatchers or people who don't know the rules joining. I'm not sure what it's like on other servers though.

The reason buyable cells are made is to substitute the removal of player owned houses. Players enjoy spending their hard earned cash on things other players can't get. If everyone had a cell, no one would use them either if all they had in them is a bed.