Born of Bread

75%
Game Brain Score Based on 500 reviews
  • story
  • gameplay
  • music
Born of Bread Game Cover
It's always a pleasure to experience such a well-crafted, lighthearted game, and if that's what you're in the mood for, then get your wallet ready.
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"Born of Bread - Baker Edition" is a 2.5D adventure game where you play as a mysterious flour golem named Loaf. Explore diverse locations, meet intriguing characters, and team up with unique companions, each with their own abilities and personalities. Engage in a quirky battle system, discover upgrades, and complete side-quests in this lighthearted, yet intense narrative.

  • Nintendo Switch
  • PC
  • Play​station 4
  • Play​station 5
  • Windows
  • Xbox Series X|S
  • Play​Station
  • Xbox
Genres & TagsPlay Modes

Reviews

75%
Audience ScoreBased on 500 reviews
story83 positive mentions
stability82 negative mentions
  • Charming visuals and art style that captures the essence of classic Paper Mario games.
  • Engaging characters with unique personalities and witty dialogue that adds humor to the experience.
  • Fun and simple combat mechanics that, while easy, provide a nostalgic feel reminiscent of turn-based RPGs.
  • Numerous bugs and glitches that can lead to softlocks and disrupt gameplay.
  • Combat lacks depth and challenge, making battles feel repetitive and unengaging.
  • Quest design can be confusing, with some quests not updating properly or being difficult to complete.
  • story363 mentions

    The story of "Born of Bread" is generally straightforward and lighthearted, featuring charming characters and engaging dialogue that keeps players entertained despite its simplicity. While the narrative may not be groundbreaking, it effectively fits within the whimsical universe, complemented by beautiful visuals and a delightful soundtrack. However, some players noted pacing issues and bugs that detracted from their overall enjoyment of the story and quest progression.

    • “Beautiful visuals, impressive world-building, exploration and soundtrack, tons of side content, fun characters and comedy, and a super engaging story.”
    • “Born of Bread was a delightful time all around, a story that both kept me laughing and warmed my heart, as well as a solid set of mechanics.”
    • “The story is a light-hearted adventure that will make you smile the whole way through!”
    • “The game is made for toddlers, far too easy and not really a game that provides anything other than a story, albeit an ill-conceived one.”
    • “After experiencing the full story and everything the game had to offer, I really wish I could recommend it, but remembering all the frustration the bugs and small design decisions put me through... I just can't in good faith tell anyone else to put themselves through that.”
    • “The story is very basic and not all that fun.”
  • gameplay142 mentions

    The gameplay of "Born of Bread" draws heavily from the Paper Mario series, featuring familiar mechanics like timed blocks and audience interactions, but suffers from a lack of depth and polish, leading to repetitive combat and various bugs. While the charming art style, engaging characters, and humorous writing enhance the experience, many players find the battle mechanics simplistic and unbalanced, with some expressing a desire for more complexity and challenge. Overall, the game offers a delightful, albeit flawed, RPG experience that may appeal to fans of the genre, particularly those who enjoy a casual playstyle.

    • “Born of Bread was a delightful time all around, a story that both kept me laughing and warmed my heart, as well as a solid set of mechanics.”
    • “Incredibly charming game with stellar art direction, characters, music, and gameplay.”
    • “Everything from the story, artwork, music, and gameplay are great to form an amazing package.”
    • “Mechanically, everything is more or less pulled directly from TTYD (audience charging abilities, badges, timed blocks in combat, etc.), and whilst this is not by itself a problem, the game doesn't really develop these ideas and is severely lacking in complexity.”
    • “The combat lacked mechanical depth and proper exploration; RP was basically useless, and at the end, they double your HP if you did all partner quests.”
    • “There are so many gameplay-interfering bugs, the combat is boring and extremely easy, quests involve just running back and forth (Coldstock Manor... like really?), boons are boring, items are barely used, and all attacks are practically identical.”
  • music127 mentions

    The music in the game has received widespread acclaim for its charm and quality, with many players describing it as fantastic, delightful, and fitting for various environments. While the soundtrack enhances the overall experience, some reviewers noted that the battle music could be less impactful compared to the rest of the score. Overall, the music is considered a standout feature, contributing significantly to the game's engaging atmosphere and enjoyment.

    • “The music was fantastic: there were so many times that I would just stand around and listen to the music before moving on to the next area.”
    • “Born of Bread absolutely nails it in terms of both music and visuals.”
    • “Incredibly charming game with stellar art direction, characters, music, and gameplay.”
    • “I don't know why it always goes back to the combat, but the battle music, while there is a variety for each area, really doesn't feel as impactful and is very hit or miss for me.”
    • “Even the boss fight music feels off, and the only reason I can think of is that it doesn't have that 'Paper Mario pop' or intensity.”
    • “Maybe it's the audio channel mixing, maybe it's the instrumentation, maybe I'm wrong and musically impaired; either way, I'm not feeling it.”
  • graphics105 mentions

    The graphics of the game have received widespread praise for their beautiful visuals, charming art style, and engaging world design, often drawing comparisons to the Paper Mario aesthetic. Players appreciate the vibrant colors, cute character designs, and the overall whimsical atmosphere, although some have noted occasional graphical bugs and issues with settings. Overall, the art and music contribute significantly to the game's appeal, creating an enjoyable and immersive experience.

    • “Beautiful visuals, impressive world-building, exploration and soundtrack, tons of side content, fun characters and comedy and a super engaging story.”
    • “The graphics are by far the most stunning of any of the clones, and exceeds most of the actual Paper Mario games besides maybe Origami King.”
    • “Everything from the story, artwork, music, and gameplay are great to form an amazing package.”
    • “Worse yet, the graphical modes don't seem to behave correctly.”
    • “I did run into a number of random bugs including a quest that would reset every time I tried to hand it in, sound effects stopped working, weird graphical bugs, and sometimes the controls getting funky.”
    • “The combat visuals are also very minimal.”
  • stability82 mentions

    The game is widely reported to be very buggy, with numerous minor glitches affecting gameplay, such as dialogue freezes, visual issues, and pathfinding problems. While most players have not encountered game-breaking bugs, the overall experience is hindered by these issues, leading to frustration and lost progress. Despite the fun gameplay reminiscent of Paper Mario, many reviewers express a desire for more stability and quality-of-life improvements, hoping for future patches to address the numerous bugs.

    • “Overall fun Paper Mario-like game, but lots of bugs and glitches that hinder progression in some areas.”
    • “This game is full of many soft locks, glitches, and bugs that can diminish any playthrough of this game.”
    • “While I do really enjoy the game, it is hard to recommend at this moment because of how buggy the game is. I know making a game is difficult, but it feels unprofessional to release a game with this amount of problems at launch.”
  • humor76 mentions

    The humor in the game is widely praised for its charm, clever puns, and endearing characters, reminiscent of titles like Paper Mario and EarthBound. While many players find the comedic elements delightful and well-integrated into the gameplay, some feel it occasionally overshadows the story. Overall, the humor is seen as a highlight, contributing to a lighthearted and enjoyable experience, though opinions vary on its effectiveness and balance with the game's narrative.

    • “Born of Bread was a delightful time all around, a story that both kept me laughing and warmed my heart, as well as a solid set of mechanics.”
    • “It's cute, it's very funny, and the game does a good job giving even NPCs lots of dialogue and their unique voices.”
    • “The dialogue is on point and consistently charming and funny.”
    • “Others will tell you it's not funny enough; they're wrong.”
    • “It is clearly not meant to be taken super seriously, and constantly cracks jokes and puns that are both fun to listen to and also not so in your face as to be unfunny.”
  • grinding22 mentions

    Overall, players find the grinding in the game to be lighthearted and not overly time-consuming, with sufficient upgrades available through casual play. However, some aspects of combat and item management can feel tedious, particularly due to repetitive attacks and cumbersome menu navigation. While achievements may require more grinding, the gameplay remains engaging for those who enjoy power-grinding, despite some mixed feelings about the story and frequent backtracking.

    • “Achievements are grindy.”
    • “There's no way to store items if you want to save one for later, swapping to your partner in battle causes Loaf to lose a turn, defending with Loaf gives enemies an extra turn, getting the first strike before a battle starts is made tedious by the fact that only Loaf's ladle affects enemies, and there aren't enough unique attacks in combat; I feel like they all do basically the same thing but with 1 more damage or a different element.”
    • “This makes menu navigation both in and out of combat tedious.”
  • optimization12 mentions

    The optimization of the game has received mixed reviews, with some players experiencing significant stuttering and performance issues, particularly on high-end systems like an i9 processor with an RTX 3080 at 4K. In contrast, others report smooth performance even on lower-end hardware, indicating that optimization may vary widely depending on the setup. Overall, while some players enjoy a seamless experience, many encounter frustrating glitches and frame rate drops, especially during combat and character interactions.

    • “Performance is great; I have a crappy laptop and it still runs well.”
    • “Everything runs smoothly, and if you're into this genre of game, I think it's an easy pick-up.”
    • “And yet somehow, a game that runs in buttery smooth mode on the deck abjectly struggles to maintain decent frame rates on an i9 processor with an RTX 3080 at 4K, stuttering quite often during combat.”
    • “As of this review, I often experienced performance issues such as stuttering, rooms not loading correctly, actions not triggering (laying in bed, talking to others, glitches when swapping partners after using abilities, saving the game, etc.), just to name a few.”
    • “Specifically, while moving, the character's animation stutters when reaching collision, as well as the camera stuttering.”
  • emotional10 mentions

    The emotional impact of the game is mixed; while the story has potential for depth and touching moments, the transition feels awkward and fails to fully engage players. Many find the overall experience enjoyable and wholesome, with charming visuals and fun gameplay, but it lacks the emotional resonance typically expected from standout titles.

    • “The world is bright and colorful, the characters are whimsical and wholesome, and the whole audiovisual presentation is warm and inviting.”
    • “It's not super egregious, but I will say that the story becomes about something else in the later parts which was actually quite strong and could have been very touching but the transition to it was a tad awkward.”
    • “Great wholesome game, really enjoy the game; the art style is adorable and gameplay is fun. Love the 2.5 style.”
  • atmosphere8 mentions

    The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its charm and immersive quality, with each of the four main locations—ranging from enchanting woods to a quirky mansion and a pirate-infested area—contributing to a rich and engaging environment. Reviewers highlight the seamless integration of music, art style, and intricate details, which collectively enhance the overall experience and enjoyment of the game.

    • “The game's biggest upside is definitely the cast and atmosphere.”
    • “Each of the four main locations is very atmospheric, from the woods you start in after the tutorial, to an ancient monastery that's constantly being built higher and higher, to an old mansion with a quirky family living within, and the last main area has pirates, so what's not to love?”
    • “Everything is fantastic - the atmosphere, the music, the towns and wilderness areas, the chapters and story, the characters, the art style, the puzzle aspects, the pop culture references, the little details in the background; it all really comes together to make an incredibly enjoyable experience.”
    • “Locations: each of the four main locations are very atmospheric, from the woods you start in after the tutorial, an ancient monastery that's constantly being built higher and higher, to an old mansion with a quirky family living within, and the last main area has pirates, so what's not to love?”
    • “Positives: the game's biggest upside is definitely the cast and atmosphere.”
  • character development4 mentions

    Reviewers appreciate the character development in the game, particularly praising the charming and fun character designs that are reminiscent of the Paper Mario aesthetic. The unique art style contributes significantly to the overall enjoyment and engagement with the characters and world.

    • “I am a sucker for the Paper Mario aesthetic; both the character designs and the world designs were genuinely one of my favorite things about this game.”
    • “The character designs are just so fun!”
    • “The character designs are just so fun!”
  • replayability4 mentions

    The game offers decent replayability, particularly for players who enjoy power-grinding, though overall, it has been rated low in replay value by users.

    • “Gameplay is pretty engaging, with decent replayability for most areas, for those who enjoy power-grinding.”
    • “Replay value: 1/5”
    • “Replay value: 1/5”
Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

Critic Reviews

72% average critic score

Buy Born of Bread

Play time

16hMedian play time
29hAverage play time
11-80hSpent by most gamers
*Based on 8 analyzed playthroughs

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