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| Notification for Twisted update |
That is because this week's update is twisted. No really - the theme is twisted. There are only a few items available with this 'out there' theme, but here's a list nevertheless:
Tables:
- Twisted - 2 gems
- Twisted - 22,500 coins
- Twisted Cutlery - 9 gems
- Twisted Clock - 9 gems
- Curvy Kitchen - 37 gems (LTO)
- Twist - 26,500 coins
- Twisted - 48,500 coins
There's also a new recipe aboard the Basic Oven.
There's no doubt in my eyes that this is one of those filler updates a bit like the French and Airplane weeks last year. It doesn't represent any special occasion or time of year, but rather serves to fill the hole between the Chinese New Year update and presumably a selection of Valentine's Day additions.
Looking at the content added, the prices are off-putting. You either have to fork out gems or tear into your coin collection. For example, the counter is the fourth most expensive currently on the market and the chair is ranked sixth dearest. So if you plan to deck your diner with twisted stuff then prepare to be robbed of a fortune.
The recent policy of having a limited time offer most weeks continues in this update.
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| Curvy Kitchen limited time offer |
The Curvy Kitchen is 3x3 in size. Here it is previewed in my restaurant:
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| Curvy Kitchen |
There's nothing about this LTO that gets me worked up. Yes it would link to the end of a kitchen section nicely, but there's a lack of character about it. I guess you could say it's quite bland. Having said that, if TeamLava offered the moustached chef on his own I'd be queuing up to get him working next to Action Chef Lee in my kitchen!
The Twisted table and Twisted chair are also rather plain, yet they do interest me. The curves help give a modern feel to them plus the white oozes of cleanliness - these would fit well in a restaurant that is looking for a sleek finish. With my mahogany tables and chairs that restaurant isn't mine though!
That analysis of the table and chair may somewhat contradict the thoughts on the Curvy Kitchen, but I think that's down to the cost - for 37 gems I expect to get something that draws the crowds. This floor decoration isn't doing that for me.
The Twisted counter is clearly supposed to flow in the same way as the table and chair of the same name, but I think it fails dramatically. The orange-brown edge which curls around the side reminds me of a string and consequently the whole counter takes the shape of a yo-yo! Having made that connection straight away I can no longer look at this counter seriously!
Moving to the walls, there's a classy new wallpaper available. The Twist once again achieves that modern finish, and no doubt players with wicked imaginations will dream up plenty of clever ways to utilise it. Sometimes keeping things simple can make a huge difference - it allows the creative among us to come up with ingenious ways of integrating such content.
In contrast, I'm not sure how anyone could incorporate the Twisted Cutlery wall decoration effectively. There's nothing redeeming about this item for me, it just looks so ordinary. For 9 gems its daylight robbery.
Lastly there's another floor decoration in addition to the LTO. The Twisted Clock is quirky to say the least. Is this some form of pop art or something?! Clearly I'm no art expert, but I'm guessing some players will love this piece. Twelve gems isn't that expensive but I'd personally prefer a traditional grandfather clock what with all that mahogany I've got...
As I've mentioned it's the prices of these new items that scares me. Even the coin additions are steep. I'll be staying clear as I'm currently in profit-making mode - there's no food on my appliances as I try to sell off the mountains on my counters and move ever closer to the penultimate expansion.
To cap the update is a new recipe on the Basic Oven.
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| New recipe on Basic Oven |
After last week's demolition of the statistics for the latest goal recipes, I'm delighted to report we've got ourselves a winner. The 5 hour recipes form a small group with the Pretzel Twists now heading it for XP gain. The 101 XP for cooking this dish beats out the Frontier Breakfast (Cowboy Stove) significantly.
When we look at profit and portions the twists don't do quite as well, but it still achieves fifth best for profit and sixth best for portions. That's out of 14 active 5 hour recipes.
Since the Pretzel Twists are the new benchmark for XP at 5 hours, let's throw it into the bearpit of the 4 hour dishes. There are 42 recipes of that length, so performing so admirably will be harder there. And so it proves - on a per hour basis the twists give 20.2 XP, which lists at sixth top among the 4 hour dishes. Incidentally all of those above it in this leaderboard are 2013 additions, including the best of them all, the Garlic Noodles (Basic Stove) at an outstanding 23.5 XP per hour. But the twists have still done good!
So a twisted update in mid-January. Who predicted that?! The question now on my lips is this: will Valentine's Day updates start next week?
New twisted items are for over 65 level players ...
ReplyDeleteReally? Everything? That's surprising but does account for the high prices somewhat.
DeleteBut to have an update which in effect excludes players under level 65 is not good. There should be something from every weekly update that's available to all.
And the amount of locked content when you first start out is overwhelming as it is! :)
Really! Only Curvy Kitchen is available for under 65! And now, reached in this moment level 65, I can buy twisted table and chair. I have unlocked also clock, cutlery, panel and counter! They had come into first position.... :-)
DeleteThat's a nice little bonus for you, but it remains very unfair to lower level players.
DeleteI guess this just plays into TeamLava's strategy for trying to keep users actively playing the game. Let's just hope this isn't something that is going to be done regularly from now on! :)
From my low level account, yes, it looks like everything from this week is level 65, including the recipe but excluding the LTO. So new players only have the option to spend 37 gems this week... Yay! This explains the prices, as you said, and also why the recipe is worth cooking.
DeleteIt's an interesting problem, since we want lower level players not to feel left out but also, as we talked about in last month's suggestion box, want more high level content so the last 30 levels have some point to them. I'm not sure what the solution is and honestly, the prices are probably prohibitive for lowbies as it is.
As for the content itself, I think tables/chairs/counter go really well with the futuristic content already in the game, sleek and white with hints of orange. The counter may remind you of a yoyo (and now I can't not see it, either, so thanks!) but it's one of the better options under "futuristic-looking counters available for coins". And the LTO... It's expensive and would be hard to fit into a kitchen area because of the walls but oh, that mustache!!
A balance is very much needed. I'd suggest that the level that new content is unlocked at should vary within each update: have some stuff available to all, some to middling players and some to the high rollers.
DeleteThen new updates are relevant to all but the motivation to level up is still there.
And I agree - that moustache! :D