Pub Sim
- August 14, 2024
- 1st impact games
- 1h median play time
Get on Steam"Pub Sim" is a game that simulates the experience of running your own tavern, where you must clean, expand, manage stocks, and carefully pour drinks to fully satisfy your customers. Improving the building, purchasing furniture, and setting prices all affect your reputation, efficiency, and overall aesthetic. You can even hire staff to help out, but be careful as they may not do everything perfectly.
PC
Windows
Reviews
- The game offers a fun and engaging management experience, allowing players to customize their pub and manage various aspects of running it.
- The developers are very active and responsive, frequently releasing updates and addressing community feedback, which bodes well for the game's future.
- Despite being in early access, the game has a charming atmosphere and is easy to pick up, making it a good choice for casual gaming sessions.
- The game is plagued by numerous bugs, including issues with object placement, customer interactions, and game-breaking glitches that hinder gameplay.
- The financial system is unbalanced, with a high starting loan that makes it difficult for players to progress, leading to frustration and potential bankruptcy.
- Many features, such as customer interactions and pub decorations, feel underdeveloped, resulting in a lack of engagement and immersion in the gameplay.
- gameplay7 mentions
- 57 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 43 % negative mentions
The gameplay is centered around managing a bar, focusing on drink flow, stock management, and interacting with quirky patrons, creating a fun and casual simulation experience. While the core mechanics are strong and engaging, early game challenges, particularly with loan repayments, can be tricky. Some players feel that the cleaning mechanic could use more depth, but overall, the gameplay loop is enjoyable and offers a nice balance of challenge and relaxation.
“Its core gameplay is keeping the drinks flowing, managing stock, and dealing with quirky patrons while providing a fun and casual simulation.”
“It's surprisingly engaging for how simple the gameplay is.”
“The core gameplay loop is super fun and honestly pretty challenging; I'm having trouble getting out of debt still.”
“The standard gameplay loop feels typical for management simulation games, and the early game is quite challenging due to managing loan repayments, but it becomes manageable over time.”
“The 'clean' mechanic could use more development; currently, you either press a button once or three times, depending on what you're cleaning, which feels overly simplistic.”
“While the core gameplay involves keeping drinks flowing, managing stock, and dealing with quirky patrons, it ultimately lacks depth and variety in the simulation experience.”
- music5 mentions
- 40 % positive mentions
- 20 % neutral mentions
- 40 % negative mentions
The music aspect of the game is well-received, allowing players to customize their experience by uploading their own tracks to the jukebox, enhancing the enjoyment of running a British pub. This feature, along with the ability to personalize pub decor, adds a layer of creativity and engagement, making it a suitable backdrop for listening to other media like podcasts or videos. Overall, the inclusion of custom music is seen as a significant positive, contributing to the game's charm.
“There's already some nice design ideas with the ability to give your pub a custom name/sign and add custom music to the game via the jukebox.”
“It was enjoyable to be able to upload custom art for frames and custom music for the jukebox when you can afford it; if this could be added to the beer logos in the future, it would add some additional novelty.”
“Pub sim decently captures the spirit of running a British pub, minus the sticky floors and questionable music choice.”
“I'd highly recommend it if you're looking for a game that you can play while listening to a podcast, YouTube video, or music.”
- graphics4 mentions
- 75 % positive mentions
- -25 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are praised for being impressive for an indie title, featuring a simple yet standard aesthetic typical of similar simulators. While not overly fancy, they convey a gritty and cozy atmosphere that enhances the pub management experience. Overall, the visuals contribute positively to the game's enjoyment.
“The game also has great graphics for an indie game.”
“The graphics aren’t fancy, but they’ve got that gritty, almost cozy feel you’d expect in a real pub.”
“The game is a pretty fun management game with very good graphics.”
“The graphics are simple, but they are pretty standard compared to similar simulators.”
“The graphics aren’t fancy, but they have that gritty, almost cozy feel you’d expect in a real pub.”
- stability1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game is currently plagued by numerous bugs, significantly impacting its stability.
“It's very buggy in its current state.”
- humor1 mentions
- 300 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game effectively blends humor with realism, particularly in its portrayal of characters who exhibit relatable, comedic traits, such as those who have overindulged.
“The game has a great mix of humor and realism, especially when managing characters who’ve clearly had one too many.”
“The witty dialogue and absurd situations had me laughing out loud throughout my playthrough.”
“I love how the game uses humor to lighten the mood, even in the most intense moments.”
