Get up before dawn and see what it's like to be a baker. Learn to bake several dozen types of bread, buns and more. Use realistic bakery machines. Deliver orders to stores, earn, and invest. Use original recipes or experiment with ingredients...

Welcome to your very own bakery

Simulator games have always intrigued me. While some, like flight sims or driving sims, are challenging and fun, there's a whole sub sector of niche titles, like pressure washer sims or gardening sims, that on the surface seem like a dull idea. The truth is, even the dullest of jobs can, if handled well, turn into addictive and incredibly fun games. Just look at the popularity of the farming sim market.

Bakery Simulator seems like a strange choice, but once you start to play it soon becomes challenging, not to mention highly addictive. The game opens with a fairly simple tutorial which walks you through the basics. I was originally worried that being stuck in the same room for the duration of the game would become a little tedious. So, it was a nice surprise to see that not only do you order, mix, prepare and cook each recipe, you also get to take to the road and deliver your finished wares to the stores that have ordered them. This additional step breaks up the gameplay a little.

Check out your diary to keep a track of your tasks

Delivering orders is simple enough... Well, in the early stages it is... You just get in your vehicle, view the map and find the quickest, safest route that avoids any hazards. If you're running a little late you can even phone the store to let them know.

In the beginning levels everything is fairly straight forward. But as the game progresses you'll need to keep on top of stock ordering, bake several orders and then deliver them to various stores, all on time. You can spend your hard earned cash on upgrading equipment to make your job easier, or designing the kitchen to be more aesthetically pleasing.

I did run into a few bugs. The worst one meant I had trouble removing the dough from the mixer. It took ages before it finally let me remove it and I still have no real idea why.

Once you've baked your goods you can deliver them to local stores

Like other games in the genre, it is fun and relaxing for a short time. But it soon becomes repetitive and that soon leads to monotony.

Bakery Simulator is an ambitious game with a reasonable RRP. If sim games are where you're happiest, then this offers a new variant on an old favourite.

6

Nick Smithson