Bakery Simulator Review – Out of the Oven and onto the Road

Bakery Simulator by Live Motion Games

If you love baking, Bakery Simulator will allow you to experience all the highs and lows of owning your own bakery. You are responsible for upgrading and maintaining the equipment in your kitchen, ordering all your baking supplies, and ensuring they are delivered in a timely fashion. You also have to manage your money and time, and of course, you have to bake and deliver all your tasty buns, rolls, bread, and biscuits.

Highly Detailed Recipes

I was impressed with all the detail in this game. Orders from various restaurants and stores are posted on your bulletin board, and you can choose which ones to expedite. Your order will tell you which items you have to bake, how much you will be paid, the location of where you will deliver the items, and your time limit. Time limits include your baking time as well as delivery time.

The recipes are detailed and show exactly which ingredients you will need and in what quantities. Your bakery shelves are fully stocked with ingredients but you will run out of items and have to re-order them. Delivery takes time but you can pay extra for immediate delivery. Running out of an ingredient mid-recipe costs time and money and I quickly learned that a little maintenance and upkeep between orders kept my bakery running smoothly. Everything from quantities to mixing time to bake time is precise, and if you are off, your product will be ruined and unacceptable for sale.

The gameplay is fast and linear. You have to do a lot of baking to level up. If you manage to bake and deliver your goods in the allotted time, you receive experience, reputation points, and cash. The longer you take, the less you receive, and if you are really late, your reputation suffers.

They Call Me Bakery Driver

Playing with my mouse and keyboard was frustrating when I was trying to go fast and be precise. I could manage in the bakery itself and did very well. I hated the driving. If I wanted to be a delivery driver, I would play a delivery driver simulator. I found the driving controls extremely frustrating and my time would suffer a lot. You have a map, but just like in real life, you have to contend with road construction, traffic accidents, and closed roads.

It was always night, and with all the speed racing and horrific collisions, it felt like the game had changed into Grand Theft Auto. Thankfully, once I gained enough experience and started making money, I could pay a delivery service to take my baked goods to customers, and that saved me a lot of stress and frustration.

I’d Rather Just Loaf Around

There is something very satisfying and relaxing about baking, and this feeling does come across in Bakery Simulator. I enjoyed stocking my bakery, kneading the bread dough, and baking the bread to that perfect golden hue! I was not a fan of the driving. Visually, it was jarring, as even the graphics didn’t seem to fit with the rest of the game. It changed the entire feeling of the game and really took up a lot of time – more time than the actual baking. The driving controls were not intuitive and didn’t work well at all.

Ultimately, I quickly tired of this game. The more skilled I became in the bakery, the more I upgraded my equipment and automated my baking and the less work – and therefore gameplay – there was to do. As a career simulation and time management game, it is a fun challenge at first but needs more of a narrative and higher stakes to truly engage players long term.

Bakery Simulator is available via Steam.

Watch the trailer for Bakery Simulator below:

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