Lemon Cake is an enjoyable game that plays like a relaxed version of Overcooked. The characters aren’t anything special, but the gameplay and graphics are good for a game like this.
In this game, you run a bakery that you randomly walked into. A ghost tells you about the place and walks you through the basics of playing the game. The story isn’t all that interesting, and it feels like the game is trying to be both Stardew Valley and Overcooked. I don’t think it pulls either off all that well.
I wanted to like Lemon Cake more than I did. It is one of those games that I usually gravitate towards. It is a tycoon game that I enjoy, but it needs something that would make it unique.
TLDR: Lemon Cake is an above-average game with decent graphics and solid gameplay.
Narrative
The story of the game is a little bare bone. It doesn’t need much of one to move the game forward.
Your character enters the bakery, the controls are explained, and you meet a ghost. The ghost explains that this is her bakery or was her bakery when she was alive. For some reason, the ghost thinks it is a great idea for you to run her bakery.
That is how the game starts! From here, you learn new recipes and make improvements to the bakery. This is slowly rolled out over the course of the game.
Gameplay
The gameplay is relatively simple and, once you get the hang of it, is rather enjoyable. You take orders, add the ingredients together, bake the order, and then clean up. It plays just like Overcooked but with far less urgency.
Every action you take, baking, cleaning, and selling, will earn you experience points. As you level up your character, you will learn new recipes for better and more complex baked goods. This will let you make more money.
After each day, you can spend your money on improvements to the bakery. These improvements allow you to make the new baked goods and seat more customers. I like how the game does this.
It feels more organic and lets you focus on the task at hand. I like it because of all the stuff you need to focus on during the workday. These include:
- Take Orders
- Mix the ingredients
- Bake the ingredients and add fuel to the oven
- Deliver the order
- Clean up the table
As the game progresses, you must water plants and clean up the kitchen. The ghost you meet will sometimes appear to give hints and explain the new things you’ve unlocked. It is a fun concept and makes for an above-average game.
Visuals
The visuals get the job done. This is about the only good thing that I can say about it. It isn’t bad looking, and it isn’t good-looking.
It is easy to tell what is going on in the game. Everything is easy to see; if you get lost, you can see big arrows pointing out where you need to go.
The game does create a wholesome art style. It looks a little old-fashioned, and the ghost character sometimes looks adorable. However, all of the other characters blend together. They don’t stand out in any way.
8/10. This is an enjoyable simulation game that tries to combine Stardew Valley and Overcooked. It isn’t the party game that Overcooked is, nor the fun game that Stardew Valley is. It tries to combine these two games to create something new, but it doesn’t succeed as well as it could.
Pros
- Simple story
- Familiar gameplay
- Easy to learn
Cons
- Graphics are okay. It would have been better if they were more retro.
- Slow pace of improvements
- It feels like the game doesn’t know what it wants to be.
Conclusion
I like the game. However, it is one of those above-average games that doesn’t stand out as well as it could. Much of the things in the game are okay.
Games like Lemon Cake are some of my favorite games. I find them relaxing and can be played at their own pace. Lemon Cake tries to add in stand out but doesn’t.
The more I get into this game, the more I think it has some great things. The gameplay is very good for a game like this. However, I don’t think the visual style is as good as it should be. It is one of those games that is good but isn’t as good as the other games in the genre.