Tavern Manager Simulator
- August 13, 2024
- One More Time
- 10h median play time
"Tavern Manager Simulator" is a challenging game where you rebuild, expand, and manage a tavern. You'll need to cook delicious dishes, serve customers quickly and efficiently, and order resources in a timely manner. As you improve your skills and tavern, you'll become a famous tavern master. Restoring and maintaining the tavern requires attention to detail and proper time management.
Reviews
- Engaging and addictive gameplay loop that keeps players invested.
- Charming graphics and a cozy atmosphere that evoke a medieval tavern feel.
- Fun mini-games for various tasks, making the management experience enjoyable.
- Repetitive tasks and quests can lead to boredom, especially in the late game.
- Fairy helpers often glitch or get stuck, reducing their effectiveness.
- Limited customization options for the tavern and lack of meaningful progression after reaching higher levels.
- gameplay140 mentions
- 39 % positive mentions
- 55 % neutral mentions
- 6 % negative mentions
The gameplay in this game is characterized by a satisfying core loop that involves managing a medieval tavern through various tasks such as cooking, serving, and cleaning. While many players find the mechanics intuitive and engaging, some note that the gameplay can become repetitive and monotonous after a few hours, with limited variety in objectives and a lack of deeper progression. Overall, the game offers a relaxing experience with quirky elements, but it may benefit from additional content and improvements to maintain long-term interest.
“The gameplay is very intuitive and captivating.”
“The variety of tasks, from gathering water to washing dishes, chopping wood for cooking, and even the quirky task of beating old ladies with a pan, keeps the gameplay fresh and entertaining.”
“The gameplay is incredibly engaging and has a very cozy vibe that keeps you hooked for hours.”
“The gameplay loop sadly gets boring fast.”
“After tavern level 9, it completely falls off becoming an unmitigated disaster of bugs, poor planning, and obviously incomplete, unthought-out, overly complicated mechanics.”
“While the game is quite linear in structure, the lack of strict focus on specific activities gives the player an illusion of freedom, but this can be frustrating without real sandbox mechanics.”
- story75 mentions
- 12 % positive mentions
- 77 % neutral mentions
- 11 % negative mentions
The game's story is largely criticized for its lack of depth and coherence, with many players expressing a desire for a more engaging narrative that ties the gameplay together. While some enjoy the tavern management mechanics and find the quests entertaining initially, they often become repetitive and grindy, leading to frustration as players feel locked behind tedious objectives. Overall, there is a strong call for more content and a structured storyline to enhance the gaming experience.
“The storyline centers around your character being banned from the town after a disastrous batch of beer/wine which made the entire town sick.”
“Looking forward to new content because it seems there is more to this story!”
“Really great storyline and nice chill fun game.”
“It's a good simulator, though it's missing some story that ties the entire thing together!”
“After a while, the gameplay gets boring as there is no storyline, except the grinding of selling items.”
“But where the game lost me is when I was locked behind meaningless RNG quests that require you to serve 30 of this and 30 of that, hoping that customers actually order it.”
- graphics71 mentions
- 55 % positive mentions
- 41 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their charming, vibrant art style and immersive atmosphere, contributing to a relaxing gameplay experience. Many players appreciate the detailed visuals and the cozy, medieval aesthetic, although some have noted issues with performance and optimization. Overall, the graphics are considered a strong point, enhancing the enjoyment of the game without overwhelming the player.
“The pleasant, detailed graphics and relaxing musical compositions all contribute to creating an atmosphere of comfort and serenity.”
“Graphically, the game boasts a Saturday morning cartoon aesthetic with vibrant colors and characters that look like they've stepped out of a 17th-century painting.”
“The graphics fit the theme perfectly and the gameplay is fun and interesting without being a frantic click fest.”
“Could be me underestimating my hardware, but I think there should be better graphics settings.”
“While the graphics make you think the game is simple (and the repetitive models do leave some to be desired), there are a lot of details that caught me by surprise and eventually the appearance added to its charm.”
“Poor optimization; I have an overclocked RTX 4070 Ti, I can run huge games at max graphics at at least 200 FPS, but I was stuck at around 30 FPS throughout my play period, with it getting worse as I progressed.”
- grinding39 mentions
- 5 % positive mentions
- 5 % neutral mentions
- 90 % negative mentions
The grinding aspect of the game is a mixed bag; while many players find it engaging and fun at first, it tends to become tedious and repetitive, especially in the later stages where tasks feel overly grindy and lack variety. Some users express frustration with the need to complete numerous similar tasks to progress, leading to a sense of exhaustion and boredom. Overall, the game could benefit from more diverse activities to alleviate the grind and enhance the experience.
“Not too grindy except for one section to level up the tavern to level 8 or 9.”
“No farming ingredients for cooking, no searching around for useful items, no brewing your own booze.”
“Starts strong but as other reviewers have pointed out, it gets grindier and more tedious the more you play.”
“Endgame becomes a bit grindy with cooking, cleaning floors, collecting water, and chopping wood, as well as feeding horses - it gets exhausting!”
“If progression was based on your reputation and experience earned and not locked behind tedious objectives, it would be a lot more fun.”
- humor27 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game is widely praised for its humor, featuring quirky characters and amusing scenarios that provide a consistent source of entertainment. Players enjoy the clever references to popular culture, as well as the hilarious interactions with NPCs, especially through the engaging Twitch integration. While some humor may wear thin after repeated play, the overall comedic elements contribute significantly to the game's charm and enjoyment.
“While the game inevitably leans toward repetitive mechanics, the increasing customer traffic and its variety of quirky elements (the persistent thief who keeps trying to rob the tavern even after being smacked on the head with a pan every single time, the drunkards—and the hilariously satisfying act of tossing them out, and the traveler who insists on getting a bucket of water to the face in the middle of all the chaos) help balance out the monotony.”
“I love the fun references to movies like Shrek and Lord of the Rings; it adds a nice touch of humor.”
“The game's style is not only charming but also filled with humor and clever references that fans of the genre will appreciate.”
- atmosphere25 mentions
- 48 % positive mentions
- 40 % neutral mentions
- 12 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its cozy, immersive qualities, effectively transporting players to a serene medieval world filled with charming graphics and soothing music. Reviewers appreciate the detailed environment and engaging gameplay that fosters a relaxing experience, making it ideal for those seeking a lighthearted management simulation. Overall, the atmosphere is described as comforting and inviting, enhancing the enjoyment of the gameplay.
“It completely immerses you in a quiet, soothing atmosphere of managing a cozy tavern.”
“The charming art style and detailed customization options make it easy to get lost in creating the perfect atmosphere for your patrons.”
“The pleasant, detailed graphics and relaxing musical compositions all contribute to creating an atmosphere of comfort and serenity.”
“The atmosphere and vibe is really cozy, especially when thunderstorms roll around.”
“Great setting, environment, and sound design complement the relaxing atmosphere of the daily trudge of working your tavern.”
- music23 mentions
- 26 % positive mentions
- 61 % neutral mentions
- 13 % negative mentions
The music in the game is generally described as calming and fitting for its medieval fantasy setting, contributing to a relaxing atmosphere. However, some players feel the soundtrack is limited and repetitive, suggesting that it lacks variety and could benefit from additional content. Overall, while the music enhances the experience, many players prefer to supplement it with their own playlists.
“The pleasant, detailed graphics and relaxing musical compositions all contribute to creating an atmosphere of comfort and serenity.”
“The music is fitting, medieval, fantasy-type music that you would expect to find in a game set in a fantasy realm.”
“The music and art style are perfect for the game.”
“Only downside is that the soundtrack is a little lacking, but just to turn off game music and put on your own playlist.”
“Some AI was used, but I play these games while listening to podcasts/music, so I turn down the in-game sound anyway.”
“Also, the soundtrack is horrible.”
- stability17 mentions
- 18 % positive mentions
- -12 % neutral mentions
- 94 % negative mentions
The game's stability is a mixed bag, with many players reporting significant bugs and glitches, particularly related to the helper fairies, which can become stuck or fail to perform tasks. While some users have experienced game-breaking issues and freezes, others note improvements due to ongoing patches, indicating that the game is in a better state than at launch. Overall, while there are reports of smooth performance for some, the presence of persistent bugs suggests that the game may still require further refinement.
“Runs great.”
“The game maintains a smooth performance without any crashes.”
“I appreciate how stable the gameplay is, even during intense moments.”
“The game has multiple game-breaking glitches.”
“I like this game a lot, but after I guess level 8, it freezes up.”
“The fairy AI is mediocre and the only job you need to have them on is dish washing; otherwise, they are super buggy and slow.”
- optimization6 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
Overall, user feedback on optimization is mixed; while some players report smooth performance without glitches, others experience significant frame rate drops and bugs, particularly in the late game. Many users with high-end hardware face unexpected performance issues, indicating that the game may not be fully optimized. Additionally, there are complaints about unbalanced gameplay and a lack of content, further affecting the overall experience.
“It runs smoothly and I haven't experienced any glitches or bugs.”
“Quality has improved, and optimization supposedly got better even though I never had any issues on my potato of a laptop.”
“The game runs fairly well overall.”
“Poor optimization; I have an overclocked RTX 4070 Ti, and I can run huge games at max graphics at at least 200 FPS, yet I was stuck at around 30 FPS throughout my play period, with it getting worse as I progressed.”
“Performance issues in late game are horrible, even on a powerful computer.”
“It's a bit unbalanced towards late game; it's not fully optimized, and there are definitely bugs of all sorts. The game needs more content.”
- replayability4 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
Overall, opinions on replayability are mixed; while some players find the effort to level up the tavern provides a decent incentive to replay, others feel that the game lacks significant replay value, leading to a consensus that it may not sustain long-term engagement.
“After 6 hours with the game, I can easily say that it is priced fairly and offers a good amount of replayability.”
“For now, the main driving force for replayability is the effort to level up your tavern.”
“There's just no replayability here.”
- monetization3 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Reviews indicate a mixed sentiment regarding monetization, with some players initially fearing a cash grab but ultimately finding value in the game. However, there is a prevailing concern that many developers prioritize quick releases of incomplete games for profit, leading to a sense of disappointment and frustration among players.
“But in the end, between the similar and (in several cases) same assets and the unfinished feel of the game, I'm left feeling like someone got wind of 'Ale and Tale' and made a cash grab by rushing to get this out first.”
“Starting to feel like all game devs do nowadays is release incomplete work as a quick cash grab and then move onto the next thing.”
- emotional2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game is highlighted by its wholesome visual style and engaging gameplay, which contrasts with the often messy and unglamorous reality of managing a tavern for royalty. Players experience a mix of satisfaction and humor as they navigate the challenges of their role, balancing the charm of the setting with the less glamorous tasks at hand.