New York goals content report

It's been six days now since the New York update which brought with it a new set of goals. Many players have already completed this fresh quest, so let's review these goals and all the goodies unlocked through them.

First of all, a comment on the structure of the goals. The order of the steps was changed somewhat from the norm, giving for an alternative experience. For example, the goal that requires the purchase of wallpapers and floor tiles didn't make an appearance until quite late on, as opposed to its usual position as the opening step.

And in a cruel twist the game's developers included two steps which necessitated requesting items from neighbours. Both Vendor Hats and City Maps were called for at certain intervals, meaning progress was hindered for many. It is in situations like this when only sending out part requests to a select few reliable neighbours is of huge benefit, as it gives you a chance of still collecting any extra materials asked for.

 New York

 09/09/15 Goals
 09/09/15 Update

Despite this complication, progress was swift for many, myself included. I think the reason for this may be the lower numbers of batches required for each of the recipes on the second appliance. Compare the 20 Pepperoni Pretzels needed in the final step to the 30 Pizza Days asked for in the concluding step of the Back to School goals last month, and you can see just why that would be the case.

Anyway, with the goals done, let's have some reaction to the stuff unearthed in the process. The Hot Dog Stand was the first of the appliances, and was actually available to buy right from the start. It's recipes weren't though - they only unlocked as you battled through the steps. Here they are in all their glory:

Hot Dog Stand recipes

It's hot dog city! I'm pleased to see that I'm not the only person who has noticed the increasing number of hot dog dishes in the game. It's the fact that we've had two hot dog based cookers in as many months which has made it clear, with the BBQ Stove in July's Independence Day goals also having three forms of hot dog.

Some quick research suggests that in addition to these six hot dog goal recipes there are seven other hot dog recipes in the game. That makes for 13 all together which is more than enough! Storm8 have done hot dogs to death now so hopefully there won't be any more variations any time soon!

Let's now get some recipe ratings for these short foods:

Classic Hot Dog
Profit	XP gain	Portions	Profit per plate	Availability	Rating
6	3	3	8	5	4.7

Chili Cheese Dog
Profit	XP gain	Portions	Profit per plate	Availability	Rating
2	3	2	7	5	3.0

NYC Hot Dog
Profit	XP gain	Portions	Profit per plate	Availability	Rating
2	3	2	8	5	3.1

The abundance of oranges across these three gives a good indicator of where they stand in the grand scheme of things. None of them score favourably, with the only plus point really being the profit of the Classic Hot Dog. However don't get too excited - there are still lots of candidates ahead of it in this department, and it only provides a little more than half of the profit the duration leader does.

So let's shimmy along here, and scrutinise the Hot Dog Vendor. I have previously asked for more kitchen staff in the Suggestions Box, so I can have no complaints here. This bloke fits the bill with his chef hat and green apron. Having him clutch a hot dog and bottle of sauce makes him seem more active, as if he's actually going something. Definitely a good item, and one which has already found a home in the kitchen section of my restaurant.

The next floor decoration you'll gain access to is the Empire State. Based on the Empire State Building, any anticipation for this model of a New York icon was dissipated by its size. Measuring at 1x1, this piece does nothing to reflect the biggest attraction of the Empire State Building - it's height! The real thing is currently the 25th tallest building anywhere in the world, so to see it reduced to something so diminutive is really sad.

To add to the trouble, is it just me or does this sculpture not look remotely like the Empire State Building? I've never been to New York, but as far as I can tell the Empire State Building has a redbrick style and small individual windows; not the long glossy efforts shown here. I'm sorry to say that this is one of the biggest let downs from a decoration I have seen in a long time.

That doesn't bode well for the Lady Liberty then! This Statue of Liberty imitation is also just 1x1 in size and thus loses its appeal as a gigantic sculpture. On a more amusing note, when you rotate this decoration it is reflected (as per usual). But this means that the hand holding up the torch is different each way! So there's only one direction you can display the Lady Liberty that is factually correct!

Time for the second appliance involved in the goals. The Pretzel Stand adds to a growing collection of pretzel based dishes (but not as many as there are hot dogs!)

Pretzel Stand recipes

Straight to the recipe ratings:

Salted Pretzel
Profit	XP gain	Portions	Profit per plate	Availability	Rating
2	3	2	7	5	3.0

Cinnamon Pretzel
Profit	XP gain	Portions	Profit per plate	Availability	Rating
3	4	2	10	5	3.9

Pepperoni Pretzel
Profit	XP gain	Portions	Profit per plate	Availability	Rating
3	2	2	10	5	3.3

Again it's not worth discussing at length. All three dishes are mediocre. And the gamemakers' lazy attribute is on show once again, with all three of these foods having a previous goal recipe with identical statistics. So I won't waste my breath with any further analysis.

Instead we turn to the final goal prize, the Central Picnic. Weighing in at 4x4, at least this decoration is bigger! But there's much more to it than just the large size. There are four bots included, and they're all well designed. One is having a comfy snooze while another is drinking juice and listening to music. The remaining two are both pigging out on the picnic. The girl in particular is wolfing those hot dogs down - she's got one in each hand! When you add in the gingham cloth, fruit basket and green surroundings, this is a quality item. It can be utilised in dozens of scenarios - essentially anything which is based outdoors and has a leafy backdrop will be a good fit for the Central Picnic.

And that brings a satisfactory close to this report. The Central Picnic makes up for some real disappointments elsewhere - specifically the two 1x1 monuments which if put together better could have made this a great goal set. As it is we'll just have to imagine that our diners are the size of New York itself and the bots are giants!