On Wednesday 3rd June there was a London themed update. Trust there to be an update focused on my home country while I'm not there! Although I've never been to London I do relate to a lot of the content. London must be one of the easiest places to pull apart in a game like Restaurant Story since it's got so many unique quirks.
The Storm8 Blog has a glimpse of the décor in the update:
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| Items from London update as shown on Storm8 Blog |
Perhaps the finest symbol of London is the red bus, and the Double Decker attempts to capture this. However I'm not too sure why the gamemakers opted not to model a standard red bus but instead produce a café in the shape of a red bus. I guess it's got a kind of charm about it, but I'd have preferred a more traditional design. Combined with the hefty 45 gem price tag, I'll pass on this.
Talking of tradition, the Crown Jewels are available to buy, although technically you're not getting the full set! Only the crown itself is featured, standing proudly on a royal red cushion which itself is on a slate grey stool. The glint included on the crown is a clever touch, and really conveys the riches of the crown.
To ensure none of the bots try to steal the crown (it has been known!) you can employ the Queen's Guard. Available for coins, the three soldiers do make me laugh. The Queen's Guard are supposed to be there to protect the monarch, not beat a drum and wave some Union Jacks!
Among the other additions are the Telephone Box which looks lovely (complete with diamond patterned sweatshirt adorning caller!); the English Bulldog joins the legion of pooches in-game; the Tavern Sign makes for an excellent wall decoration next to the door of a dingy pub scene.
As for the walls, the London Skyline includes a number of landmarks, most notably Big Ben and the London Eye. The issue here is that repeating this wallpaper is not ideal - no city has lots of Ferris wheels all lined up in a row!
For the floor you can indulge in the Keep Calm tile. I didn't know before that the 'Keep Calm and Carry On' phrase originates from the outset of World War II, when it was used as a motivational poster by the government in the UK. These days it is parodied just about everywhere and is very much considered a hallmark of Britishness. Although the floor tile doesn't include the phrase, it does bear the very same image of a crown that the original poster does.
There was also a limited time offer in this update from two weeks back, with the Art Gallery returning.
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| Art Gallery limited time offer |
First appearing in April 2014 under a French theme, this is a decent 4x4 item, although I've always disliked the fact that most of its contents are recycled from previous decorations.
We're almost done with the London update, except for one more item: the Pub Stove. We've had our fair share of controversy over the years, and this one ranks right up there. This is a standard appliance with three recipes, yet out of the blue comes at 5 gems a pop. Cue derision on the Storm8 Forum. And for once I actually empathise.
Five gems for an appliance with only six gems to gain for mastery means that although you can make a profit from this cooker, it will take a long time to earn (from only one stove). With mastering recipes being the main source of gems in the game, this is a potentially sinister twist which could change the dynamics of the game if it becomes a regular thing.
Most players spend their gems on décor. That kind of makes sense - purchases of weighty decorations are justified by the fact that they may sit on show in your restaurant for the rest of time. In contrast an appliance becomes meaningless after its recipes are mastered, and since the number of cooker slots is limited, keeping it on display as a decoration isn't really plausible. So appliances for gems isn't justifiable for most players.
I think that this is a case of 'testing the waters' by Storm8. If enough players purchase the Pub Stove (and more importantly spend real money to do so) then the game's developers may choose to make this a regular occurrence. As long as it is restricted to non-goal appliances I can't see it causing me to abort the game, but it does cause some concern.
What we should remember is that non-goal appliances have only recently made a comeback, so if you don't want to buy them for gems then you're not going to be missing out massively. Nevertheless it does introduce that inability to 'complete' the game (whatever that means) which we all strive for.
Anyway, here are the three recipes on the Pub Stove, with thanks to bobbyrae over on the Storm8 Forum for posting the images of the hidden delicacies:
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| Pub Stove recipes |
I have to admit I'd never even heard of Cheese Soup before! I think the naming of the other two dishes need some work - the Beans n Eggs should really be 'Full English Breakfast' since it seems to have all the trimmings, while 'Bangers and Mash' would be more apt for the latter recipe.
Whatever! Here are the associated ratings...
| Beans n Eggs | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Profit | XP gain | Portions | Profit per plate | Availability | Rating |
| 3 | 5 | 3 | 10 | 9 | 4.6 |
| Cheese Soup | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Profit | XP gain | Portions | Profit per plate | Availability | Rating |
| 5 | 4 | 3 | 8 | 9 | 4.8 |
| Bangers | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Profit | XP gain | Portions | Profit per plate | Availability | Rating |
| 2 | 6 | 2 | 8 | 9 | 4.2 |
These aren't the worst recipes in the world, but they certainly don't merit the five gems needed to purchase the stove in the first place. Indeed I'm not going to waste by breath with any further thoughts on them, since there are probably not that many players who actually have these dishes at their disposal anyway...
From London to lemons, the Wednesday 10th June update brought a fresh set of goals. For all the details on those head on over here. The Storm8 Blog again has a preview of the stuff in this update:
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| Items from Lemons update as shown on Storm8 Blog |
After the fallout from the Pub Stove this was just the sort of update that was needed. Cheery and colourful, this is very much a Summer themed update. It's lemons all the way and there are lots of pieces to add to your diner.
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| Introduction to Lemon goals |
I'll post a goals content report in due course (I'm taking my time on these goals!) but even the unlocked additions look the part. It's unusual to get a 3x3 decoration such as the Yard Sale freely available in a goals update, but we do here. It's one of the busiest and most detailed items I have ever seen! A tea set, teddy bear, clothing rack, pillow, skateboard, four pairs of shoes, shirts in a basket, baseball cap, books - it's all there! And with two bots hanging around (the girl is clearly the seller considering how delighted she looks by the guy's interest in the books!) this is a top drawer piece.
The Lemon Tree is much less intricate, but I actually like it's relative simplicity. The shading of the lemons is well done, so that they look like rounded and luscious fruit ready to drop out of the tree. I can imagine a lot of players flanking a pathway with some of these beauties.
There's also Cashier Lee who seems to have been charged with charging the customers. His cash box is cleverly positioned on a rickety wooden table, and with lots of trinkets scattered in front this is another busy decoration. And what about Action Chef Lee?! I think this is his first appearance since his introduction in the Asian goals way back in 2013. A large portion of players have never had the chance to own the great man, so it's nice to have him finally return.
The trim on Phoebe's Bike is a lurid shade of pink, but I guess you can look past that and see a cute item. The inclusion of stabilisers is adorable, although it does lead to some concern about Phoebe's age. I had always thought of Phoebe as being an adult - after all she's always in and around the restaurant kitchen - but this bike seems to indicate she's a kid!
There's a few other additions can be bought prior to working on the goals. These are the Half Lemon chair, Lemon Wreath and Zester Lamps wall decorations, Lemon Grove wallpaper and Lemon Blossoms floor tile. They've all got their plus points, but it's the Zester Lamps that stand out to me. On paper it's a terrible idea, but there's something quite charming about this one. I may even try and integrate them into my kitchen section.
I think the Sour Oven was also up for grabs without the need to finish the opening goal, but I won't offer up any analysis on the credentials of its contents until the goals content report.
So it's been a fruitful couple of weeks in Restaurant Story, and now that I'm back I can start planning my next expansion (all that Roast Chicken over the last two weeks has been handy!) and prep for the big Summer redesign! And there could be some major RS2 news on the way soon relating to Android availability - stay tuned for that!
Now is probably a good time to admit that I won't be around next Wednesday for the usual update post. This time my excuse is actually half decent - I'll be a little preoccupied with my graduation from university! Who knows, I might be living it large in London before long! So just keep calm and wait for a post on Thursday!
ReplyDeleteWow, nice information for moreLemons