The Mineshaft ending is the dig under your cell. Finish it by dropping into the tunnel and climbing out while the guard chases you. Published clears take about 30 to 60 minutes. The reward listed for this finish is 15 Diamonds and the Dug to Escape badge, which can be equipped in the lobby.
Tool gates
A progress meter on the dig splits the ground into seven parts: green grass, two dirt layers, three grey rock layers, and a yellow sand layer at the bottom.
| Layer | Ground | Published tool |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Green grass | Spoon, free |
| 2 | Dirt | Toy Shovel, 25 Toilet Paper, +16 digging speed |
| 3 | Dirt | Spatula, 45 Toilet Paper, +17 digging speed |
| 4 through 7 | Grey rock, then yellow sand | Trowel, 80 Toilet Paper, +19 digging speed |
That tool path costs 150 Toilet Paper before food, sacks, or dynamite. The same writer who listed the speed numbers used the Trowel from the fourth layer through the sand, so a fifth digging tool is not required on that path.
Some players report a different shop. A red plastic shovel and an Iron Shovel can show up in inmate stock, and those writeups say you can skip the Spatula if a stronger tool is already for sale. Prices for the plastic shovel and the Iron Shovel were not published. If your shop does not match the table, buy the next tool that the layer actually accepts instead of waiting for a name that is not stocked.
How to dig
- Equip Energizer if you own it. Digging then costs 20 percent less energy, so you buy less food. Bargainer is stronger once you have 900 Diamonds, because the 20 percent discount hits shovels, food, sacks, and dynamite.
- Dig down from the cell. A straight hole finds enough items and spends less energy. A very narrow hole finds fewer items, so widen it if Toilet Paper is the thing you are short on.
- Return to the surface, sell, and buy the next shovel before you stock dynamite or a bigger sack.
- Keep the cell door closed. Take free lunch. Use the outside vent at night.
- Dynamite is 12 Toilet Paper. It digs quickly through a layer, does not hurt you, and does not alert the guard. You can finish without it. If you buy any, save it for the last rock layers.
The chase
Breaking the last layer drops you into the mineshaft. A short scene shows the guard falling down the hole you dug. Walk onto the tracks to start the run.
- Move forward. One walkthrough says this chase has no sprint.
- Do not look back. If the guard catches you, the run ends.
- Avoid the obstacles in the tunnel.
- When the path splits, take the branch with sparkles.
- Climb the ladder at the end.
That climb is the Mineshaft clear. The Janitor and Rooftops endings do not need this chase.