Pawn Shop Master

About

Pawn Shop Master is a single player casual simulation game. It was developed by Lion Studios and was released on May 28, 2020. It received negative reviews from players.

"Pawn Shop Master" is a game where you run your own pawn shop, haggling with customers to buy items at low prices and resell them for a profit. The challenge is to identify valuable or authentic items while avoiding fakes. With a variety of items to pawn, your goal is to become the most successful pawn shop in the city. This game tests your observational skills and haggling abilities in a fun and engaging way.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

Skip User Reviews

30%

Audience ScoreBased on 1,180 reviews

gameplay17 positive mentions

monetization1k negative mentions

The game has a cute and simple design.
The concept of running a pawn shop is engaging and fun.
The gameplay can be enjoyable if you can tolerate the ads.

There are excessive ads, often after every action, making the game frustrating to play.
Bugs cause money to get stuck at $1000 and items to disappear.
The game often crashes or freezes, disrupting gameplay.

monetization
1,090 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
4%
96%
The monetization aspect of the game has received overwhelmingly negative feedback due to the excessive number of ads, which many players find intrusive and frustrating. Users report spending more time watching ads than actually playing, with mandatory ads appearing after nearly every action, including forced ads to deal with in-game robbers. While some players acknowledge the need for ads in free games, the sheer volume and frequency have led to a consensus that the game is nearly unplayable without purchasing an ad removal option, which itself does not eliminate all ads.
- “The game needs an update; I paid for the no ads version.”
- “Fun game, but I paid for the no ad bundle. No ad bundle should mean no ads whatsoever, including for the VIP customers. Yet I still have to watch ads for things in the game even after the no ad bundle purchase. I want a refund on that purchase because it clearly does not make the game ad-free.”
- “I paid $4.99 for 'no ads' and watched 4 30-second ads in the next 3 minutes.”
- “The gameplay is decent but the amount of ads there are makes it to where it basically becomes unplayable.”
- “I understand ads are needed to keep a game running for free, but there is a certain point where it becomes unrealistic and unbearable.”
- “You can either watch two ads, or lose 75% of your money.”
gameplay
76 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
22%
60%
18%
The gameplay is generally described as simplistic and repetitive, with many users expressing frustration over the overwhelming number of ads that significantly detract from the experience. While some players find the core mechanics enjoyable, the constant interruptions from ads make it difficult to fully engage with the game, leading to a perception of it being more of an advertisement platform than a playable game. Overall, the gameplay is seen as decent but severely hindered by excessive advertising.
- “Gameplay is pretty fun, with robbers, thieves, and goals to achieve.”
- “Surprisingly very addictive and simple yet interesting gameplay, especially once forced ads are removed.”
- “Great gameplay and not too boring.”
- “The gameplay is decent, but the amount of ads makes it basically unplayable.”
- “I'm all for ads for free games, but this was a different level; there were more ads than gameplay.”
- “The gameplay is boring and poorly thought out: you do only one thing over and over again without any entertaining twist.”
stability
58 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
5%
98%
The game's stability is heavily criticized, with numerous users reporting frequent freezing, glitches, and crashes, particularly during ads and key gameplay moments. Many players express frustration over the game's inability to function properly, often requiring restarts and leading to lost progress or in-game currency. While some enjoy the gameplay, the overwhelming presence of bugs significantly detracts from the overall experience, making it nearly unplayable for many.
- “The game is enjoyable, but it does have its share of bugs. For instance, my cash won't go over 1k, and sometimes customers don't appear. I recommend it for the fun factor, but be prepared for some stability issues.”
- “Overall, the game is fun when it runs smoothly, but there are quite a few bugs that can disrupt the experience.”
- “While I really enjoy the game, I have encountered several bugs that affect gameplay, such as cash limits and missing customers. Just keep in mind that stability can be an issue.”
- “It freezes when you go to watch a video every single time.”
- “The game has great potential and you can get past the ads, but the amount of glitches and bugs makes it unplayable.”
- “It freezes constantly, which I thought was just a one-off thing at first, but after I restarted the game and my phone, I realized the game was playing with me completely!”
graphics
23 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
13%
61%
26%
Overall, the graphics of the game have received overwhelmingly negative feedback, with many users describing them as poor, low-quality, and reminiscent of amateur artwork. Complaints also highlight a lack of animation and sound, alongside frequent ads that detract from the gaming experience. While a few users noted that the graphics could improve, the consensus is that they fall short of expectations, contributing to an unsatisfactory gameplay experience.
- “Its a fun game with cute graphics.”
- “The graphics are ok (like I said earlier, it will get better).”
- “Graphics could be much better.”
- “Sloppy artwork, little animation, minimal sound, many bugs, and repetitive one-track gameplay which gives no satisfaction or meaningful growth.”
- “The graphics are cheaply designed, and to top it off, every 5 seconds there's an ad.”
- “Art work looks like it was done by a junior high student at best.”
music
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
40%
60%
The reviews highlight a significant lack of music and sound effects in the game, leading to a dull experience for players. Users express frustration over the absence of background music and suggest that adding audio elements would enhance enjoyment and engagement. Overall, the consensus is that the game feels incomplete without proper sound design.
- “The game developer must add music and sounds to make this game more interesting.”
- “No music or sound effects.”
- “But you guys need to focus on the sound; without music, it's boring.”
- “I can't click the money with the wings, there is no background music, not even voices are available, and when you don't have the money to give the robber and internet, you can't do anything. You can't even click the shelf to sell stuff or call the police.”
story
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
75%
50%
The story is minimal and lacks depth, revolving around a simple robbery scenario that fails to engage players. Many reviewers express a desire for a more developed storyline, noting that the limited maps and decor items contribute to an overall lack of narrative richness.
- “The story involves a robber coming to the shop asking for $500, but I only have $300.”
- “That's a different story.”
- “Maybe if there were more of a storyline, I could engage with it more.”
- “Maybe if there were more of a storyline... as it is, I just couldn’t take too much of it.”
- “There are limited maps and decor items though, with no storyline, making the game not as bad as it sounds.”
replayability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
100%
Players feel that the game's replayability is significantly hindered by excessive advertisements, which detract from the overall experience. Many suggest that introducing a paid option to remove ads could enhance long-term engagement and enjoyment.
- “The game has the potential to be really good, but unfortunately, there are way too many ads. I understand the need for revenue, but without an option to purchase an ad-free experience, it makes the game feel overly spammed. I suggest adding a no-ads feature for a fair price of 99p or something similar; it would definitely help improve the game's long-term playability.”
- “After completing the main storyline, I found little incentive to replay the game. The lack of varied outcomes or new content makes it feel repetitive and uninviting for a second playthrough.”
- “While the game initially offers a fun experience, the limited choices and predictable outcomes make it hard to justify replaying. Once you've seen everything, there's not much left to keep you engaged.”
optimization
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's optimization has been widely criticized, with users reporting numerous bugs, particularly issues with item purchases not being processed correctly, alongside an excessive number of ads.
- “Horrible optimization; I experienced a lot of bugs. The most frequent issue was when I bought an item but didn't receive it, in addition to the horrendous amounts of ads.”
- “The game's optimization is terrible, leading to frequent crashes and long loading times that ruin the experience.”
- “I encountered numerous performance issues, including frame drops and stuttering, which made the game nearly unplayable.”
grinding
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players express frustration with the grinding mechanics, noting that the effort to upgrade and gather items often results in minimal profit, making the experience feel tedious. Additionally, frequent interruptions for ads contribute to a sense of stagnation in gameplay.
- “As days go by, customers begin wanting nearly what the item is worth, allowing for a very small profit. So even with upgrades and grinding, you still don't make a profit.”
- “Unless you like to come to a grinding halt every 3 seconds to watch an ad.”
humor
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find humor in the irony of the game's ad system, where they are unable to watch ads for in-game benefits but are immediately confronted with unskippable ads upon exiting. This contradiction adds a layer of comedic frustration to the experience.
- “It's kind of funny that you can't watch an ad to get more out of the game, but the moment you exit, bam! An ad you can't skip.”
emotional
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional response to the game is overwhelmingly negative, with users expressing frustration and disappointment due to excessive ads and technical issues, leading to a feeling of wasted time and dissatisfaction.