A Criminal Past Achievement Guide: Mastering Deus Ex's Prison Break DLC

A Criminal Past is a story DLC for Deus Ex: Mankind Divided, plunging Adam Jensen into his first TF29 mission. Sent undercover to a high-security Arizona prison, he must connect with a missing agent. Distinct from the main game, this DLC delivers classic Deus Ex gameplay with excellent level design, replayability, and value. This guide will provide the insights and strategies needed to successfully navigate this challenging add-on and unlock all achievements.

Augmented or Non-Augmented?
General Tips
Walkthrough (A Criminal Past)
Collectibles
Trophies

Augmented or Non-Augmented?

A unique element of A Criminal Past involves Jensen’s suppression chip, which initially strips him of his augmentations. You can regain these powers but doing so will lock you out of the Winners Don’t Use Augs (or Biocells) trophy, meaning a separate playthrough will be required.

Non-Augmented Playthrough:

Reliance on the Stun Gun is critical due to the inability to perform takedowns.
Automated enemies are prominent, necessitating low-tech solutions. A silenced pistol with EMP rounds effectively disables cameras, turrets, and robots. Follow up with a combat rifle loaded with armor-piercing rounds to dismantle them.
Multitools become essential for mission-critical doors and keypads.

Augmented Playthrough:

Acquire Hacking Capture (level 1 is sufficient), Turret Domination, and Robot Domination as priorities.
Hacking Stealth can mitigate frustration from challenging hacks.
Optimized Musculature is beneficial.
Avoid Implanted Rebreather, Electromagnetic Pulse Shielding, and Smart Vision, as their utility is limited.

General Tips

Alarm Awareness: The “no alarms” trophy only applies to the initial section of the game. Alarms later in the game may draw attention but won’t void a playthrough.
Pacifist Run: Avoid killing anyone throughout the entire expansion to unlock the Code of Conduct trophy.
Inventory Management: Be selective about what you pick up. Neuropozyne is the most valuable “sellable” item.
Merchant Strategy: The sole merchant appears late in the expansion. Save Neuropozyne (worth 1000 credits each) to purchase essential items.
Crafting Priorities: On the non-augmented playthrough, save Crafting Parts for Multitools. Conversely, on the augmented playthrough, biocells will be plentiful, freeing up crafting resources for ammunition such as Typhoon or Tesla rounds.

Walkthrough (A Criminal Past)

Go Out to the Yard

After the opening scenes, you start in cell A-318. Check the cell to the right, A-320, for a secret panel with Neuropozyne. Many cells have hidden stashes:

A-315: Kylmyster Candian Whiskey, Gyroscopic Regulator, Stop! Worm Software (behind towels above the sink)
A-311: Crafting parts
A-307: Crafting parts, Praxis Kit (in the roof panel above the toilet)
A-301: Stun Gun (no ammo!) behind the toilet
A-304: Crafting parts
A-306: A poem

Descend to the first level. A prisoner offers a Multitool in exchange for alcohol, unlocking the Quid Pro Quo trophy.

Proceed through the door and up the stairs. D-Town will nearly recognize you. Choose any option during the conversation with Flossy, who directs you to the Fixer.

(Optional) Speak to the Fixer in the Yard

The Fixer is behind an electrified fence. To pursue both augmented and non-augmented playthroughs, make a hard save here. Choose “Dig Deeper” then “Accept” to be directed to cell A-309. Discuss augmentation retrieval. To get the Winners Don’t Use Augs (or Biocells) trophy, refuse. Accepting the pill allows you to use Experimental Augs.

(Optional) Search the Fixer’s Cell

Return to level 3 of Cell Block A and head to A-309. Find a letter in the fox teddy directing you to the showers and laundry. Cells on level 2 are now unlocked.

A-213: Absinthe
A-211: Crafting parts
A-203: Stun Gun ammo
A-201: Crafting parts
A-204: Praxis Kit (in the roof panel above the toilet)
A-208: Neuropozyne, Angry Note
A-214: eBook ‘Top Ten Tech… Trends in VR’
A-220: Old Man’s Prestige

Flossy (A-212) provides the General Access Keycard. An inmate in A-214 trades Multitools for Neuropozyne.

Cell A-204 also has a secret wall panel above the sink that leads to a vent. It takes you to an outside area with an eBook ‘The Moment To Fight Back.’ Beware of the patrolling guard.

(Optional) Retrieve the Package

Showers on the ground floor are now accessible. Find a note with “6014” in the teddy in the laundry basket.

Access the shower cubicles by climbing via the sink and lockers in the northeast. Climb onto the pipes and enter the vent in the ceiling for a 300XP pathfinder bonus. The breaker switch is through another vent (requires EMP resistance). Use code 6014 on the laundry room door. Grab the Altered Biocell from the teddy.

Pick up the basketball on the counter and score a basket to unlock the Don’t Reach, Kid trophy.

(Optional) Bring the Altered Biocell to Flossy

Consuming the Biocell locks you out of the Winners Don’t Use Augs trophy. Go to cell A-212 to inform Flossy, who wants you to give it to Red Shoes in Cellblock B.

(Optional) Give the Altered Biocell to Red Shoes

Taking the Altered Biocell yourself gives Praxis points but makes the later part of the mission harder. Given that the mission is balanced to be playable without no augmentations, you may wish to give it to Red Shoes as intended.

Return to level 1 and use code 6014 on the Supply Room door. Grab a HypoStim injector, whiskey, and Crafting Parts. Enter the vent for a 400XP trailblazer bonus, emerging on level 4. Find a Pocket Secretary (Secret Stash Point of Interest and code 3499) and an eBook ‘CellRead – Everyday Items’. Change into the B-Block Prisoner Jumpsuit in the locker to unlock the Dressed for the Occasion trophy.

The Secret Stash requires disabling a camera with the code or a Multitool. It contains Crafting Parts, whiskey, EMP ammo, a Stun Gun, and Neuropozyne. The teddy contains a HypoStim Injector. Move cardboard boxes to uncover a vent.

Proceed toward Cell Block B, avoiding the camera. Climb the stairs, hugging the side, and enter the cable duct to level 4 of Cell Block B for a 400 XP Trailblazer Bonus. There are two cable ducts on the western side of the room. The Security Office reached via the duct in the southwest corner has a Tranquilizer Rifle and grenades. The security laptop disables cameras and alarm panels. A drawer contains Overclock Software.

A ladder outside the security office leads to a guard with an eBook ‘Calming Eye Exercises & Meditation’ along with a 10mm pistol.

Return to level 4 and use the cable duct in the northwest. This leads to the security office on level 3 of Cell Block B. The guard here may investigate, requiring a Stun Gun. The adjacent office has Crafting Parts and a Pocket Secretary.

Most of the cells on this floor are locked, although you can find a secret panel above the toilet in B-319 containing some Revolver Armor Piercing Ammo. On the second level, a number of cells are open. B-204 has a secret panel above the toilet that reveals a vent that we’ll come back to later.

(Optional) POI: Roll Call

If you picked this up in the security office earlier, the POI is cell A-116. Level 1 is restricted access, but if you can disable turrets and cameras, you can do this right now. Go to the stairs at the northern end of level 2 so that the guards on level 1 are facing away from you. Go into cell A-116 and read the note on the table for 750 very easy XP. While you’re down here you can look in A-114 for a Note from Cooper.

Exit to the yard on level 2 and find the holding cell. Talk to Red Shoes behind it. Give him the Altered Biocell to unlock the A Just Cause trophy.

Find Guerrero in Cell Block B

Return to the cell block and use the vent behind the toilet in B-204. Punch through the destructible vent for a Praxis Kit. The opposite direction yields a 10mm Pistol. Another destructible vent leads to the Supply Room on level 1 for a 300 XP Pathfinder bonus. The laundry room opposite is reachable by waiting for the camera to move, but entering the vent to hide until the alarm goes down is recommended. Knock through the destructible vent and proceed. Enter the Shower Room for a scene. If you haven’t triggered any alarms, you’ll earn the Smooth Like Soap trophy.

Setting off alarms from this point won’t invalidate any trophies. You still want to avoid doing so, however, since the expansion is already difficult enough!

You’ll engage in a conversation with Stenger after the scene. Play along for information.

Enter Solitary Confinement

The wings are off-limits due to the riot. Hack or Multitool the security laptop to disable cameras and alarms. Grab the Praxis Kit from the desk. A dead CO at the bottom has Pistol EMP Ammo.

Return to the office and grab the Praxis Kit from next to the lockers. Take the exit and proceed to the corner security office, using the window to access the yard.

Follow the quest marker, avoiding encounters. Visit the guard tower on the east for an eBook ‘CellRead – Signs of a Riot’.

Climb the ladder to find a dead CO and the eBook. At the foot of the ladder is a cable duct. Enter for a 100 XP Traveller bonus and go into a tunnel.

(Optional) POI: The Death of Wilburg

Find Crafting Parts at the end of the tunnel. The door leads to a dead end, but there’s a vent behind some boxes. Emerge in cell B-116 on level 1 of B Block. Pick up the Shower Duty Reminder. Disable cameras from the security office. The turret may require EMP rounds followed by armor-piercing ammo. Loot the entire area. A Praxis Kit is in the showers behind the dead inmate. Another is in a secret roof panel above the sink in cell B-108.

Examine the burning robot on the floor and the hacking device for 750 XP.

Return to cell B-116 and proceed to the tunnel for the main mission. Avoid the turret by manipulating crates. At the end, enter the air shaft for a 300 XP Pathfinder bonus. You can grab a Biocell from the dead inmate here. Be careful as you go along the shaft because there’s a mine. Climb the ladder at the end and enter another vent to emerge in the prison’s administration complex.

This part of the complex is under prisoners’ control. However, there’s a turret guarding the elevator that will turn hostile so you may want to disable it. If you are able to hack the nearby door, you can find a Praxis Kit on a cart. It’s quite hard to spot, so use the screenshot as a guide.

The Weapon Cabinet contains a Tranquilizer Rifle and ammo among other things. There’s an eBook ‘Cellread – Fictional Guard’ on the desk.

Use the elevator to get to the Observation floor. Go down the stairs to the Processing Area and go into the large white structure since there’s an important item that you need to collect. In the western office, look for a desk with an unlocked laptop and an inmate leaning against it. Search the drawers for a Pocket Secretary containing a piece of evidence “Schedule Change”.

Besides lots of other loot in the offices, be sure to pick up the Multitool on the trolley in the corridor between the two offices.

Go through the security door at the end of the corridor and look for a couple of dead guards leaning against the wall. Examine the female guard’s body for the Restricted Access Keycard.

Return upstairs to the Observation level and look for the East Wing sign. Call the East Wing Elevator and, once inside, look for a keycard reader that you can use your Restricted Access Keycard on.

Alternatively, if you’re using augmentations, take the door to the right of the double doors and hack the keypad for the security office here. You’ll find Tranquilizer Ammo, a Praxis Kit and an EMP grenade in the lockers. If you fancy mixing your weapons up, there’s a Battle Rifle leaning against the desk and a Silencer on a shelf.

Now take the lift up to Automated Security. As your lift arrives, there will be a firefight going on towards your left. Avoid it and go into the office opposite. Look for a desk with an unlocked safe underneath it.

Loot the Praxis Kit and the Pocket Secretary. Read it for another piece of evidence “Recovered Turret Command Logs”. Look on the desk next to the door to the western stairwell for an eBook ‘The Profitable Prophet’. Grab all the loot in here, including a bunch of Crafting Parts and a Multitool and leave via the door that you came in through and enter the vent. Punch through one destructible vent and then turn right to find yourself in the lift shaft. Leap over the large crates and drop down to platform where you can find a teddy and a 10mm Pistol hidden behind some boxes. The teddy may well contain a Praxis Kit but appears to be a little bugged. I suggest you save before examining it.

Return to the vent and go in the opposite direction, punching your way through a number of destructible vents. You will emerge on a walkway overlooking the Administration Building and will receive a 400 XP Trailblazer bonus. Head for the vent on the opposite side of the walkway and you will emerge on the stairs leading down to Solitary Confinement.

At the bottom of the stairs you’ll find a dead guard against the wall. Read the Pocket Secretary next to her for a password. The next bit is a little tricky: you’ll have to sneak to a vent while avoiding a turret and a guy in an exo-suit.

Go through and round for a 100 XP Traveller bonus. You will emerge on the other side of the open area. Use the (mercifully unlocked) terminal to open the doors and go through. Approach S-04 and your goals will update.

Restore Power to the Emergency Override System

Before attending to the main objective, look to the south end of the floor you’re on to see a ladder leading up to the roof space. There are a number of cable ducts up here. Make your way to the northeast corner for a 200 XP Explorer bonus. The cable duct here leads to the outside of Automated Security which is crawling with guards and drones. If you want to do some exploring, take the ladder down to the ground level. There are at least two Praxis Kits in the area around Solitary Confinement. Make your way to the northwest corner of the compound. There’s a Praxis Kit here hidden among grass and rocks.

Follow the southern wall of the area where you’ll find a Praxis Kit next to a Fragmentation Mine.

Return to the ladder and make your way back through the vent to the roofspace of Solitary Confinement.

The two ducts in the southeast and southwest corners lead to a maintenance area behind the cells. Take the southwest one and drop down to the maintenance passage. Pick up the Crafting Parts and then go through the southern tunnel for a 400 XP Trailblazer bonus. Go down the ladder here and you’ll find a caged area. Examine the Augmented Heart. There’s some Typhoon Ammo if you need it and a teddy containing a Praxis Kit. The door at the end leads outside.

Go back up the ladder to return to the maintenance area. Go to the end of the western tunnel to find a destructible vent. You’ll emerge into a room with an eBook ‘Model AA-02 Stun Baton User Manual’. Beyond the door is a turret, which you’ll want to take out ASAP. Alternatively, you can sneak to a vent on the opposite wall. Be sure to pick up some Crafting Parts and go through to the Emergency Override room. The console presents you with a little puzzle: press each corner button and the centre button to restore power.

Use the Security Computer to Unlock Cell S-04

Return to the previous room and go up the ladder to find a room with a Pocket Secretary on a desk that unlocks the ‘Vanishing Act’ Point of Interest. Use the security laptop here to disable all cameras. You only have to unlock the one door but you may as well unlock them all while you’re at it. If you want to go through the door here, be aware that there is a turret that you’ll need to scrap first. Return to the cells area however you wish.

Release Guerrero from Solitary Confinement

Before opening S-04, make sure you have read the Pocket Secretary logs ‘Schedule Change’ and ‘Recovered Turret Command Logs’. Interact with the door for a scene. During the conversation, exhaust all conversation options. Bring up the topic of Wilburg’s murder. Since you have the evidence, you can call him out on the inconsistencies of his story to unlock the Objection! trophy.

(Optional) POI: Vanishing Point

Just entering S-06 is enough to give you the XP bonus. There’s a hatch in the floor that opens onto a chute. This solves the mystery of what happens to inmates in cell 6! Don’t try going down yourself unless you have the Icarus Landing augmentation. Before leaving this area, look in cell S-01 to find a Praxis Kit lying on the floor.

Shut Down the Transport Tracking System

You’ll need to return to the Tower the way you came. Exit the building and quickly sneak behind the large crate before the turret goes hostile. Duck into the vent and make your way back to the other side of the open area. When you emerge from the other side, you’ll probably want to shoot the turret above you with a silenced EMP round, dash for the large crate and then dash for the open doorway. You should be able to avoid anyone (or thing) turning hostile. Enter the lift and take it down to the Infirmary & Morgue level.

When you exit the lift, you’ll see a vent on your left. This leads to the lift shaft. You can pick up some Crafting Parts along the way, but eventually you’ll end up here. There’s a door opposite the lift which leads to a cleaning cupboard. You can pick up some more Crafting Parts in here. The vent leads to the Morgue where we’ll go later.

(Optional) Speak to the Fixer in the Infirmary

Go into the Infirmary. Talk to the Fixer for background information. You can get a pill from him but if you’re going for an aug-free playthrough, I assume you’ll refuse. If you did take the pill at the start, you can take another for 3 Praxis points, although the blurred vision that you get when using your powers will worsen. Refusing twice will unlock the Primrose Path Point of Interest. If you talk to Teddy on the desk, he’ll act as a shop. You can trade in all the Neuropozyne you’re been picking up for credits and buy a whole load of Crafting Parts to keep you in Multitools.

A Medical Crate contains some Tranquilizer ammo and Neuropozyne and you can pick up the Infirmary Keycard from a medical trolley. Use it to access the Morgue. Examine Ian Wilburg’s corpse and then use the Keycard to access the storeroom here.

(Optional) The Primrose Path

Loot the storeroom for Neuropozyne, Painkillers and Biocells then duck down behind the trolley to find a Computer Mode Switch.

The laptop will change to a security computer which you can Multitool and use to turn off a camera and open the back door. Note that this doesn’t lead to fabulous loot (although you can pick up some Crafting Parts), just a route to the outside area.

Return to the entrance area of the building and go through the door marked “Administration”. The passageway ahead is blocked by electricity so duck into the room on the left. Pick up some more Crafting Parts and jump through the vent to the room next door. Use the boxes to keep off the floor as you make your way to the Breaker switch. The corridor outside is now safe so leave the room you’re in and enter the room slightly further along to find more Crafting Parts and a Multitool along with some ammo in the lockers. Finally go through the double doors at the end to access the Administration Block. Do not go through the next door. Instead, go up some stairs to a storage area. There’s some excellent loot in the various Searchable Containers, including Multitools and three Praxis Kits. Leave through the double doors to go outside. Turn right and go up the stairs and look for a vent set into the wall. Use it to access the interior of the Administration Building.

As you make your way down, use the furniture to keep yourself out of sight of the camera ahead of you and the patrolling guards wandering around above. When you can, duck into the hallway on your right, but beware of patrolling guards – a Gas Grenade works wonders if they’re bunched up. If you like reading, check out office 103. There’s an ‘Cellread – Dating a C.O.’ on a shelf behind one of the desks. It’s kinda hard to spot so use the screenshot as a guide.

In room 106, look on the ground for a Pocket Secretary concerning Wothmuller. You know you’ve found something important when Adam and Delara discuss it.

Make your way to the east of the area where there’s a staircase leading down. Go down to the lower level. There’s a patrolling guard that you may want to deal with. A vent in the ladies’ toilets will give you a 100 XP Traveller bonus and leads to a storeroom with a Multitool. Go back into the vent and continue along to find yourself in the lift shaft for a 200 XP Explorer bonus. If you have Optimised Musculature, you can move a large crate in the lift shaft to reveal a teddy containing a Praxis Kit and a Biocell. If you have the Klipspinger Jump Mod you can continue into another vent and jump up to get back to the cafeteria level. Otherwise, retrace your steps and go into the Cafeteria. If you have Optimised Musculature, go to the stairs in the southwest and move a vending machine out of the way to reveal a Praxis Kit.

Make your way to the lift. Be careful as you approach the it because there’s a mine on the wall. The vent here leads down to the lift shaft where you were earlier so ignore it. Instead, take the lift up to the Management level.

This level is controlled by the inmates so you can move around freely. There are a couple of eBooks to read up here. Office 305 contains ‘Library Book Policy’. You can find ‘A Lasting Legacy’ in office 302 on the bookshelf.

Make your way to the Warden’s Office for a scene with Flossy. If you take a confrontational approach, you can find yourself with a fight on your hands. If you choose this path, you can grab a Praxis Kit from Flossy’s body. Afterwards, pick up the Pocket Secretary on a table to get an unlock code 2027. Go into the toilet at the back and use it on the terminal here to disengage the tracking system. There’s a handily unlocked safe with a Praxis Kit among other things. On your way out, use the security laptop to disable cameras and open doors.

(Optional) Investigate the Infirmary

Take the lift back down to the cafeteria and take the stairs back up to Administration. If you want a shortcut, hack or Multitool the door to storage. Make your way to the infirmary to find Stenger deservedly dead. Loot Stenger’s Keycard and an important Pocket Secretary from his remains. This also opens up the Head of the Snake Point of Interest.

(Optional) Head of the Snake

Make your way back to the elevator in the Administration block and ride it up to the Management floor. As you make your way to the bridge to your destination, a firefight will break out. Wait it out – it won’t take long – and proceed across. You can find a Pocket Secretary here with the code for Stenger’s Office. You’ll need your Restricted Access Keycard to gain access to the interior. There’s a camera guarding the corridor which you may want to disable. The room to your left contains two guards. Open the door and back away to draw one of them out. The other will be further into the room and not facing you, making him easy to take out with your Stun Gun. Grab the loot and check out the balcony. There’s a Praxis Kit on the ground here.

Use the keycode or hack / Multitool the lock to gain access to Stenger’s office. Look under his desk for a button and press it to reveal a space in the wall containing a Stun Gun and ammo and a Praxis Kit.

Finally, use Stenger’s Keycard on the card reader to open the safe and take the Pocket Secretary from inside with an audio recording of Majia and Wilburg. Before leaving, check out the bookshelf for an eBook ‘The Vacillating Lover’.

Disable the Anti-Aircraft Turrets

Return by whatever route you want to the Infirmary / Morgue level of the Tower and take the East Wing Elevator up to Observation. When you arrive, you’ll find a firefight going on between the inmates and guards and drones which the inmates are losing. Avoid getting mixed up by taking the stairs to the ground floor and going across crossing over to the other staircase. Your goal is the West Wing Elevator. When you call it, you’ll have a cutscene with D-Town (the antagonistic inmate who thinks he recognises Jensen). Afterwards, shoot him with the Stun Gun and loot his body for a Praxis Kit.

With that obstacle out of the way, take the lift up to Roof Access. Emerge onto some walkways. Your first target is nearby. It is protected by a camera and a turret and there are two patrolling Sentry Robots and four Drones defending this. Take them out piecemeal and run for the elevator when things get too hot. If you have the necessary augmentations, you can climb the tower on the north side of the area and use the security laptop to disable the cameras and the Drones (which are the most dangerous enemies). You can disable the robots and turret from a laptop in the central well (although you’ll likely have to disable everything to get there safely anyway). The central well area also has two cable ducts, one blocked by a heavy crate. Both lead to same maintenance room. Look on a stool in the corner for an eBook ‘Natural Way Resort Vacations’.

When the coast is clear, make your way up to the turret platforms and hack / Multitool the terminals, unlock the manual override and then press the manual override button. If you don’t have Multitools, there are lots of Crafting Parts in the area.

When both turrets are disabled, check that you have the following pieces of Pocket Secretary evidence:

‘Schedule Change’ from the office in Processing
‘Recovered Turret Command Logs’ from Automated Security
‘Worthmuller’ from the psychiatrist’s office (room 106) in Administration
‘RE: This week’s list’ from Stenger’s corpse
‘Audio Transcript’ from the hidden safe in Stenger’s office.

Arm yourself with the Stun Gun just in case and return to the elevator and ride it down to the Landing Pad for a scene with Mejia and the Fixer. Choose “Challenge” and “Confront About Wilburg” / “Hold Accountable”. If you have read the evidence, you can choose the “Blackmail” option to get Mejia to back down. If you have augmentations enabled, you’ll have a “Persuade” option (follow up with the Beta options). Otherwise, choose “Side with Mejia” and then quickly – quickly – shoot him with the Stun Gun. Talk to the Fixer afterwards and choose what to do with him to unlock the Umlauts or No Umlauts trophy. Finally, interact with the Prison Transport to complete the mission. If you’ve met the necessary requirements, you’ll unlock the Winners… and Code of Conduct trophies at this point. Following the last scene with Delara Auzenne, you will also receive the

A Criminal Past Achievement Guide: Mastering Deus Ex’s Prison Break DLC

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