Many people who know me in the gaming industry probably know that I work on the railway in my day job. Before this career path though, I was a baker for 12 long and grueling years. A job that I both loved and hated at the same time because I had immense pride in making products from scratch and seeing the end presentation, but I was not too fond of the early morning wake-up call and the immense pressure baking creates. Baking is all about science and time management, get it wrong and you’ll see yourself in a right pickle. Sweet Bakery Tycoon, developed and published by Baltoro Games, is now available on Xbox after being on Nintendo Switch for a period of time.

Gameplay

Sweet Bakery Tycoon commences the first couple of levels by showing you the basics. How to pop cakes in the oven, when to take them out and how to decorate them. You’ll also be shown how to serve coffee and knock-up smoothies alongside ice creams. The first few levels take it nice and easy, giving you plenty of time to figure out and serve the handful of customers popping in. Soon the game ramps up with intensity and you’ll be introduced to more ingredients to mess around with. For instance, you may have a customer who wants a cake with chocolate topping and raspberries, vanilla and sprinkles and a treacle with oranges and cream. There are a plethora of combinations and when people want coffees and smoothies as well all at the same time, that is where you’ll need to plan ahead.

Upgrade Your Kitchen

As you progress through each level you’ll generate coins which can be spent on a number of things. You’ll be able to invest in up to four ovens rather than one, a better coffee machine and more space on your tabletop to decorate cakes and make smoothies. During the later levels, you simply won’t get by with one oven and a dozen cakes to think about, so my advice is to concentrate on the oven and decoration side first. Other investments include making ingredients cheaper for more revenue return and sprucing up the interior of your bakery. Burn cakes, melt ice creams and ruin coffees though and you’ll be throwing money in the bin.

DLC Levels Included

Once you proceed through the core game, there will be some additional levels to work through which were originally launched as DLC on the Nintendo Switch. They are a lot more challenging and the advice is that your bakery is fully kitted out before taking them on. This knocks up the level count from 60 in the core game to 90 in total. The DLC levels will throw the additional hurdle of putting some of your cake creations into decorative boxes which adds an extra layer of chaos to the mix.

Graphics & Audio

The presentation is similar to what you’d expect of a high-end mobile device game but beamed onto the big screen. I like the simplicity of the layout and what is great about Sweet Bakery Tycoon is that the aesthetics of your establishment will change as your progress and pour money into improvements. As you generate revenue through the levels, you’ll be able to upgrade tables and chairs and the backdrop to your sweet-smelling business. During gameplay, I experienced no graphical hiccups whatsoever and everything ran silky smooth. It isn’t a particularly demanding game, but I always appreciate a game running exceptionally well during high-speed bouts of gameplay.

Even the animations of cakes burning, ice creams melting and coffee overflowing is well done and before you know it, looking at the mess can thrust you into a sense of panic to get things back to normal. Unfortunately, I did turn the music off after some time as I did start to find it a bit repetitive and overpowering but you can randomise the playlist in the menus if you wish. Sound effects are spot on with alarms of ovens bleeping with intensity and the flow of coffee pouring from the machine.

In Conclusion

Sweet Bakery Tycoon is well worth its super low price point of just £4.19 which wouldn’t even pay for a pint of beer here in the UK. Its addictive and moreish gameplay loop will keep you entertained for a substantial amount of hours. Depending on your playstyle and ability I’d estimate there is a good 8-10 hours of fun here and there is a steady trickle of achievements that are manageable to obtain for that all-important 1000 gamerscore if you want it. If you’re a fan of the dash mechanics and time management games then I would highly recommend giving it your time and if you enjoy this one, then I would suggest giving Food Truck Tycoon a look also as it has the same style of play with different themes, you can see my review for that HERE.