There’s a craze on certain
TV channels that allows us to witness the good and bad of the bakery business.
From Championship cook-offs to mild and calm cooking shows, the pastry and
confection crowds have plenty of options. Following the somewhat cult-like
success of the original
Cake Mania,
Sandlot Games offers up a slice of more simulated baking chaos with
Cake Mania 2.
Similar to Theme Park
type simulations, this allows you to run your own business — though only the one
store and its customers (versus a whole park full of patrons and issues). It’s
a niche genre called “Resource Management," which is a fancy term for “running
your own business.” Your wildly diverse customer base will keep you, Jill, on
your toes as you receive orders, create the confection(s) and hand over the
goodies. Balancing the onslaught of quirky cake orders, you have to keep with
the times and demands by upgrading when time allows. Whether it’s equipment or
work areas, there’s always something to do — if you want to grow and thrive in
your bakery.
In an attempt to provide
more diversity from the first game, they have added some “story” to it in
which you must assist with their bakery. You can help your old college
roommate Risha with her city location, or lend a
hand to your ex-love interest, Jack, who thought it would be a great idea to
create a shop in an undersea baking venture.
The customers are clever
and abnormal in a fun way. There are shady Men-in-Black types, along with high-maintenance Diva ladies with a mix of bratty kids thrown in — just to add to the
stress. As they shuffle in, they place their orders using provided menus. You
take their order and begin the process of creating their request — down to the
last candle. Baking, icing, etc… all done in your own
assembly line. That is where buying upgrades help you grow. Getting
better work stations and supplies enables you to handle the growing swarms.
Also, in the distant future, the ability to have more shops is an option.
Didn’t think decorating was such a thriving business? Just watch the Food
Network! Add up your day’s earnings and as long as you hit your goals, you
keep yourself in the dough.
The sounds in the game
are not too special. The music is eclectic and sometimes reminiscent of a cell-phone ring tone. In the underwater shop, you’ll hear aquatic noises
like bubbles and sonar (unless that was my imagination). Guess what kind of
sounds you hear in the busy city location?
The visuals are very
cartoonish, which is not a bad thing. Jill is a bubbly little minx that looks
like she would have ridden in on a My Little Pony doll. Her customers are
unique and well designed, though (still) very surreal. It’s a fun-looking
place to be. Even when the place is sheer chaos (which was often with me
playing it), it looked friendly enough to fit into Smurf Island. Such
exaggerated graphics are handy when working with the decorations. As you build
on to what you have, it may get cluttered, but the style allows function
to remain intact.
The game is not very
different from the original Cake Mania. They added some back story with
her grandparents taking off for a vacation, and the need to help your friend,
but the gameplay is not much different. It feels like an add-on pack more than
an original game. That’s Ok, as the first one was quite popular and a cult hit
online. It’s a pleasant distraction game, but nothing that makes you stay up
all night obsessing about it — as you would after playing four hours of Halo 3!
It delivers what it promises; some light fun with challenge and diversity
without breaking the bank. Although playable online for free, you will not get
the full experience and features unless you upgrade and purchase the full
game. That will open many rewarding options for you to enjoy, and lengthen the
game and depth in which you can take this confectionary challenge.
Review Scoring Details for Cake Mania 2 |
Gameplay: 7.0
There’s
a handy tutorial once you begin a new game. In the absence of a printed
manual, that’s a great way to get started. It starts with the basics of baking
a cake to more complex factors in running the business. Your early monetary
goals are also low enough to meet without too much pain. The game itself,
however, can take off and get out of hand quickly once you really get going.
It will test your planning, coordination and ability to multitask.
Graphics: 6.5
It’s
not very visually stunning, but the cartoonish look is pleasant and easy to
process. The focus is on gameplay. So having minimal graphical challenges is a
plus. I don’t want an ocular headache when trying to differentiate between a
candle and a wedding topper.
Sound: 6.5
The
music is almost too soothing, though there is a little bit of variance. It
fits the game. Likewise, the other sounds tie-in with what setting you are
playing. Underwater or other locations — each have their own environmental
sounds.
Difficulty: Medium
The
beauty of management games like this is that you have some range and
flexibility to make it easier or harder — based on your preference of play.
There is an option to play in a mode that does nothing but push your abilities
to continue without limits. It becomes an avalanche of endless cake making — and
very challenging as you juggle all that such play entails. Some of the cake
orders can get very complex when factoring in different colors on each layer,
and the topper that might be used. All of that is
juxtaposed against the
“clock” of new customers flowing in.
Concept: 5.5
If
you have not played the original, or any similar titles that have been
flooding the market for years, this will appear as a new and fun challenge for
many age ranges. However, it is too close to the original to score any points
for Concept. The story at the beginning unfolds like a comic strip, and then
the game starts. Aside from that short detour, it is very much like its
predecessor.
Overall: 7.0
I
like the pace and challenge the game offers once you settle in to how things
operate and how long certain things take. Once you get into that “groove,” you
can focus on efficiency and buying wise upgrades as you grow. If you don’t
keep that tip jar green, you won’t be in the black. It’s a great lesson for
younger players on how to run a business without “player trading” and ugly
factors you see in other simulations. People that enjoy baking will get some
fun from creating cakes and filling complex orders at a rapid pace. The
rewards are growth, which reflects real-life situations. They kept it simple
and maybe that’s not such a good thing. If they expand into a third Cake
Mania, maybe they will add some new challenges that can hit businesses, yet
still allow it to be fun and entertaining. Yes, you can go online to many
sites and play a shorter version for free, but the world is not limited, so
neither should your business. If you really want to test your baking meddle,
go for the full version and expand your challenges beyond the freebie
universe. The extra you get is just more icing on the cake.
