Recent reviews by HotcakeNinja

Short free game that had me smiling the whole time. Great spin on each maze. 7/5

I enjoyed this game, but only just, largely due to having obtained most of the achievements early on, and my completionist nature. It has turned into something I'd like to 'just finish already' instead of something I look forward to doing. Lemon Cake can't decide if it wants to be a casual cozy relaxing game or a difficult arcade time-management. I don't think these two things are necessarily incompatible, but it seems like only the most incompatible parts of each were utilized.

As a 'beat the clock' arcade game, the frustratingly capricious hit boxes and clunky controls (all left hand for some reason, no controller support) leave the player falling short through no fault of their own. I say 'falling short' though the juxtaposition of racing a countdown and the complete absence of urgency in the overall story gives the player no sense of what could be considered a 'good time' or 'profitable day' and would even leave a casual gamer feeling a bit lost. Money only has any meaning in relation to upgrades which, without the frame of any long-term deadlines, pretty much means nothing other than 'how many days will I have to make $100 until I can make gameplay insignificantly less difficult?' or 'how many days until I can uninstall?'

I am particularly let down by the upgrade for a server. To me, 'serving customers' means I don't have to bring their food out to them personally. Not saying it isn't a helpful upgrade, but the wording could use some adjustment to avoid disappointment.

I've enjoyed this game more than games I've paid for. Like a better version of Cultist Simulator with an economy/ecology theme. Nice to look at as well.

I really want to like this game. The premise is great. The aesthetic is great. Unfortunately, in its current state it's not polished enough to enjoy. Lack of explanation and feedback make it nearly unplayable for someone who isn't willing to study and test every variable through countless new sessions to figure out why education or oil decreases, seemingly randomly. And if it is random, that's even worse.

Levelling up adds more expensive cards to the deck and it's gotten to a point where half of the games I start end quickly with a full hand of cards I can't afford or discard.

"Surely the fourth installment will be several iterations of improvement beyond the first," I erroneously thought to myself before purchasing. In the 6 years between the two games, the series has somehow taken a step backwards in story and mechanics, to say nothing of the obvious improvements fans of the genre would expect ever since almost any other farming/life sim. I really enjoyed the first one. It's a shame this one was phoned in.

This installment in the series drops you into the world with the laziest premise and dialogue, sporadic and often late introductions to characters and mechanics, objectives so vague you'll find yourself spending entire days wandering around the map hoping to trigger a cut scene, and generally an unrewarding experience from things like building a monster hut and filling it effortlessly within a couple of weeks. It lacks a sense of accomplishment so even though I'm not struggling or stuck with the game, I find myself lacking sufficient motivation to pick it back up.

Cute dialogue, wonderful art, choice aesthetic, 110% on an April Fool's (not) joke.

Amazing how much an early access game with a relatively simple concept can steal my whole day. Extract raw resources to build machines to help you extract raw resources better. Once you get that sustainably automated, the technology to refine resources and supply cities grows alongside you while a hauntingly nostalgic soundtrack etches itself into your subconscious to play on repeat even when you aren’t in the game.

I’m excited to see where it goes. I’m here for it.

Cheap, straightforward, simple, rougelike game. Not super deep, but it does make other games seem a bit bloated. Definitely worth full price. Stupid not to pick it up on sale.

Like a bigger budget version of Recettear. Negotiation is a lot clearer too. Few 3D animation projects come out as fluid.

A few things could be better, mainly UI stuff and even though it says it's Deck compatible, it's not optimized for controller input, and some font is impossible to read.

Very nostalgic style artwork and soundtrack. Wonderful start as an early access game. I can't wait to see more content added.