[Game Review] Merge Cooking : Theme Restaurant

 

<Game Review>

[Merge Cooking: Theme Restaurant]

Among the various merge games I play, 'Merge Cooking: Theme Restaurant' has been one of my favorites for several years. Let me introduce you to this engaging game.

#Basic Gameplay

The opening screen of Merge Cooking: Theme Restaurant is as shown in the image above.

The screen changes to a new design with each season.

The game board consists of a 7x9 grid. Since the theme revolves around restaurants, each item generator is food-related. There are generators for fruits, flour, meat, drinks, alcohol, and fish, as well as recipe books and special event generators. Cooking equipment, such as tables, frying pans, grills, and ovens, can be upgraded by merging pieces obtained through leveling up or completing missions. Higher-level cooking tools work faster.

As you progress, recipes require more merges, making each dish more time-consuming to prepare. However, the pacing remains manageable, allowing for continued enjoyment of the game.

Below is a mission showing the types of dishes that need to be served.

Several cooking set missions are given at once. When a row of missions is completed, you receive 'lightning bolts' that can activate special boxes or generators. This gives you a sense of achievement each time you finish a set.

The helmet and tool icons in the image above appear when you've collected a certain amount of coins. When you use the tool after accumulating enough coins, you receive 5 to 15 lightning bolts. True to its name, Theme Restaurant allows you to continuously decorate various restaurants according to each round, enhancing the thematic experience.

As shown in the image above, there's also the enjoyment of decorating various themed restaurants.

 #Game Advantages

1. Continuity

A major advantage of this game is that once you complete a theme restaurant through multiple repairs, you receive gems and lightning bolts, allowing you to immediately continue with a new restaurant theme.

As you merge items, some lower-level items are encased in bubbles. By watching an ad, you can acquire the item inside the bubble. Ads range from 5 to 30 seconds, but considering the significant amount of lightning and time required to create a level 4 item, watching these ads is often more beneficial.

Ads for collecting lightning bolts are also easily accessible, and you have the opportunity to earn coins or lightning bolts each time you complete a cooking mission. This makes it enjoyable to play the game at a reasonable level without necessarily using gems or making in-app purchases, which I appreciate.

2. User-Friendly Features

In addition to the current cooking missions, special event boards open periodically. These include dice-rolling event boards or boards where you break stones to find hidden pictures. These events continuously change and appear.

These events are useful when waiting for lightning to charge on the main game board or during the few minutes it takes for a dish to be completed.

Cooking times vary from a few seconds to several minutes. You can reduce this time by using acceleration items earned during gameplay or by watching ads.

3. No Forced Ads and Offline Play

There are no sudden forced ads that interrupt gameplay by covering the screen. Instead, watching ads is an optional choice that benefits the player without wasting time, which demonstrates thoughtful strategic design.

Another advantage of this game is that it can be played without Wi-Fi or mobile data. While you can't watch ads in this mode, the core gameplay remains fully accessible.

This makes it perfect for enjoying the game in situations like on an airplane during a flight.

#Overall Assessment

'Merge Cooking: Theme Restaurant' is perfect for those who enjoy simple puzzle games and prefer solo play. Unlike some merge games that become frustratingly slow at higher levels, this game maintains a reasonable pace, likely leading to lower player attrition.

One minor drawback is the accumulation of unused generators that cannot be deleted, taking up space on the game board or in storage. As the game progresses, board space becomes limited, and expanding storage requires gems, which are precious.

Despite this, 'Merge Cooking: Theme Restaurant' remains one of my most beloved games, and I highly recommend it.

Happy gaming, everyone!