Recipe for Disaster
- August 5, 2022
- Dapper Penguin Studios
- 20h median play time
Get on Steam"Recipe for Disaster" is a narrative-driven cooking simulation game where players must manage a chaotic kitchen and restore a failing restaurant. Overcome unexpected obstacles such as broken equipment, unpredictable weather, and challenging customers while balancing resource management and time constraints. The game features a unique cast of characters and a engaging storyline that evolves based on player choices.
PC
Windows
Reviews
- The game offers a unique recipe creation system that allows for creativity in menu design.
- The graphics and overall aesthetic of the game are charming and engaging.
- The developers are responsive to community feedback and have shown commitment to improving the game.
- The game feels unfinished and lacks depth, with many mechanics being simplistic and repetitive.
- There are numerous bugs and technical issues that hinder gameplay, including AI problems and UI glitches.
- The game has been abandoned by the developers, leading to concerns about future updates and content.
- gameplay82 mentions
- 29 % positive mentions
- 67 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
The gameplay is characterized by simplistic mechanics and limited depth, leading to a repetitive experience that feels more akin to a mobile game. While the core systems function well and the aesthetics are appealing, numerous bugs and technical issues detract from the overall experience, making it less challenging and polished than desired. Despite these shortcomings, some players appreciate the potential for enjoyment in the basic gameplay loop and look forward to future updates that could enhance the game's management elements.
“The gameplay flows well between tasks and setting up an efficient restaurant is satisfying when it all works out.”
“It's a full game with a great tutorial, solid mechanics, few bugs, and has plenty to offer in its modes.”
“Fun restaurant tycoon game, sims-like building with very detailed characters and mechanics.”
“The game mechanics are very simplistic, with single-level building and limited choices in styles and objects to place. Disasters are also nothing special.”
“Despite no longer being in early access, the game still has numerous bugs that significantly hinder the gameplay experience.”
“Once you understand how the core mechanic (if you even want to call it that) works in this game, it offers no challenge whatsoever.”
- graphics38 mentions
- 42 % positive mentions
- 47 % neutral mentions
- 11 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some players appreciating the cute and charming aesthetic, simple yet beautiful visuals, and quirky style, while others criticize the low-poly look and roughness of character designs. Although there are reports of minor graphical glitches, many find the overall performance satisfactory and enjoyable. However, a notable portion of players feel that the graphics lack polish and challenge, detracting from the overall experience.
“Really loved playing through the campaign so far, the graphics are simple but beautiful, and it's so fun making recipes (and giving them silly names).”
“The game offers some nice graphics and environments, although some ugly glitches here and there, it is pleasant all the same and has a really great aesthetic.”
“Beautiful graphics and challenging.”
“Know this one is unchangeable, but it is a con for me... personally I hate the art style, especially of the people. I wouldn't downvote simply on this, I wouldn't write a review simply for this... I knew what it was when I bought it... but since I'm here... if this game had better art... it instantly would be infinitely better in my opinion. It's not so much the cartoony stuff I have an issue with, more the roughness. I assume it was to set itself apart, but I'm just frankly not a fan... and it's a big con for me.”
“Graphic is plain.”
“[*] visuals: more of a personal taste, but I hate the generic low-poly look of these games.”
- story22 mentions
- 9 % positive mentions
- 73 % neutral mentions
- 18 % negative mentions
The game's story aspect is criticized for its lack of depth, featuring only eight short jobs with minimal narrative progression, leaving players wanting more variety and challenges. While the campaign missions provide a decent amount of gameplay, many players feel that the absence of a traditional story mode and character development detracts from the overall experience. Despite these shortcomings, the game is still enjoyable and offers a fun management simulation.
“I could understand if that's the story behind the game: you're helping these failing restaurants.”
“I would love to have more variety in the story mode and harder challenges, but it's worth the price!”
“No story mode - the game has 8 short jobs where you have to achieve the objective but no actual progression of why you're doing these jobs.”
“Only hope is there would be a deeper story and life advancement for the character you play as.”
“Really fun game so far, played through some of the campaign missions but it does feel like it's lacking a good amount of content, which is fair seeing it's early access.”
- optimization18 mentions
- 44 % positive mentions
- 39 % neutral mentions
- 17 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's optimization is mixed; while some players report smooth performance and charming graphics, others experience significant GPU usage even at low settings, leading to concerns about performance on older systems. Despite these issues, many find the game enjoyable and engaging, with effective in-game performance analytics available.
“The game runs smoothly for me.”
“I'll also mention it runs smooth as butter, seems greatly optimized.”
“Only major issue I've had with the game is the very poor performance. At lowest settings, this game used more of my GPU than Witcher 3 does at high. Nothing that renders the game unplayable, but it is a little disconcerting.”
“This is also the hotkey for in-game performance analytics, and it is not mentioned anywhere.”
“At the end of an in-game day, you get some data on the performance of the restaurant, the staff, and the dishes.”
- stability12 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game suffers from significant stability issues, with numerous bugs and glitches reported, particularly during the tutorial and build mode. Players have experienced frequent freezes and persistent UI problems, detracting from the overall experience despite the appealing graphics and environments.
“Extremely buggy from the get-go.”
“Could not even progress through the tutorial without freezes.”
“It took a bit to get used to, but the game is still quite buggy, especially in the build mode.”
- music8 mentions
- 25 % positive mentions
- 25 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The music in the game receives mixed reviews; while some players find it catchy and a highlight of the experience, others consider it poor or annoying, though the option to adjust the volume is appreciated. Overall, the music aspect seems to be a polarizing feature among users.
“The music is very catchy, probably the best part of the game.”
“Love the music and management aspect of the game.”
“Music is poor.”
“I found the music a little annoying, but you can turn that down and maybe it's just me.”
- monetization6 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The monetization aspect of the game has been criticized for feeling incomplete and resembling a quick cash grab, with users expressing frustration over the heavy reliance on advertising and a lack of polish. Overall, players perceive the monetization strategy as prioritizing profit over quality.
“This game does not feel finished at all... it almost feels like an incomplete mobile game that was a quick cash grab.”
“Hate to say it but it looks like it's just a cash grab for the developers.”
“Advertising?”
- humor6 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game is widely praised for its humor, with players finding it both fun and engaging. The inclusion of "natural deserters" adds a particularly amusing element, contributing to the overall captivating experience.
“The game is funny, engaging, and captivating.”
“Very fun and humorous game.”
“Natural deserters are funny.”
- atmosphere6 mentions
- 67 % positive mentions
- 33 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is highly praised for its calm and soothing qualities, reminiscent of the game "Tastemaker." Reviewers express a desire for more variety in wall paint and tiles to enhance the overall ambiance further.
“This game has a very calm atmosphere, reminiscent of Tastemaker.”
“I think it would be cool if different wall paints and tiles could enhance or change the atmosphere.”
- grinding4 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and frustrating, particularly due to the high stakes that make frequent restarts necessary. This design choice contributes to a sense of monotony, especially when combined with broken mechanics related to cleaning tasks.
“High stakes, I get it, but it makes restarting incredibly tedious, and considering this game is seemingly designed to be challenging, you will probably be restarting a lot.”
“Cleaning is tedious and broken.”
- emotional2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Players have expressed a strong emotional connection to the campaign, indicating that it has deeply engaged them for extended periods, as evidenced by the significant time spent solely on this mode.
- replayability2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The game has limited replayability, but many players find it worthwhile to purchase on sale for an intense, albeit brief, gaming experience.
“Not much replay value, but it was definitely worth picking up on sale and playing obsessively for a week or so.”
