Baking Bad?
Get up before dawn and see what it’s like to be a baker! Learn to bake several dozen types of bread. Use realistic bakery machines. Deliver orders to stores, earn, and invest. Use original recipes or experiment with ingredients.
Baking is somewhat a big thing over here in the UK, especially with shows like The Great British Bake-Off which still gets a sizable audience, despite Paul Hollywood…(oops, I went off into a tangent then…Ok, back to business!) There have been a good amount of cooking simulator games over the years, but not one that is so focused on baking itself, so I can see the appeal of making such a game. But does it rise to the challenge or does it knead more? (Ok, no more baking puns!)
Bakery Simulator places you in a kitchen with a board of orders to fulfil. You order in the ingredients you need and follow the recipe, including the right measurements for each item needed. You begin with a basic oven, but can eventually upgrade to a better one and also you’ll be able to buy tools to help you cut loaves into certain shapes like triangles, as well as getting individual trays for loaves as opposed to just one big baking tray.
The controls are easy to get to grips with and besides baking, you’ll also have to drive the order across town to which customer has ordered this fast baked delivery. The driving section itself is top-down, almost reminiscent of the old GTA games and you’ll have to deal with roadblocks that can slow you down or you can find another route that won’t hinder you. You’re also against the clock from the moment you accept the order, so the quicker you get it delivered, the better XP and money you’ll receive.
I have noticed a few glitches with selecting the right measurements, but these happen rarely and you can always undo the last item selected by tapping on the bin, or you can empty your entire bowl in and start from scratch. The difficulty definitely increases as you go, but later on you’ll be able to hire someone to do the deliveries for you, eliminating the driving section and saving yourself time.
The visuals are simple but nice, though the driving section does look a bit rough around the edges. Load times between both are quite long and the first time I transitioned from the kitchen to the car, I honestly thought the game had crashed. Music is chilled and the framerate is mostly consistent, but I do wish there was a native PS5 version.
The Verdict
Bakery Simulator does a good job in delivering what it promises, even if it does occasionally mess up with measurement selection and doesn’t always run the smoothest. For fans of baking, this will definitely keep you entertained for quite some time.