We start this thorough going over with the two new appliances and the recipes they contain. Kudos to Storm8 for the Gas Stove - it's a cooker which actually looks realistic which is something of a rarity in the game. It's not overworked and that's the way I like it! The Mystery Machine is much less inconspicuous with its question mark on top, but at least it's got a cool name!
The real mystery lies in the recipes within. We begin the interrogation with the Gas Stove's offerings.
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| Gas Stove recipes |
For reasons unknown, the second and third dish swap places in the cookbook after the third is unlocked. They are shown in order of unlock above. This happens on both the new appliances and is rather annoying as it is very easy to be caught out and mistakenly tap the wrong food. This bug is something which has presented itself before, albeit not for a long time.
A second error which was soon fixed was the naming of the 1 hour dish. Originally the Clueschetta was called 'Bruschetta', but this title has of course already been taken by a recipe on the Basic Oven! The players were quickly on the case and the gamemakers swiftly edited the name. Interestingly this isn't actually the first time a food has had its name changed after release due to a clash. The Marinated Chicken aboard the Basic Grill was originally called 'Roast Chicken', but we obviously have a dish of that name on the Basic Oven. You'd have thought the game's developers wouldn't make the same mistake twice, or maybe you would!
Anyway, over to the recipe ratings...
| Clueschetta | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Profit | XP gain | Portions | Profit per plate | Availability | Rating |
| 5 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 5.1 |
| Skillet Cake | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Profit | XP gain | Portions | Profit per plate | Availability | Rating |
| 2 | 3 | 6 | 3 | 5 | 3.4 |
| Roasted Pork Chops | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Profit | XP gain | Portions | Profit per plate | Availability | Rating |
| 3 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 5 | 3.5 |
Like with last month's goal dishes, the profit per plate scores are down on the typical blues and purples, and it's again a lower number of coins per plate to blame. All three foods yield just two coins per plate which means players whose counters are well stocked will find their income suffering in the long term.
The Clueschetta at least tries to make up elsewhere with some reasonable stats. It offers nearly double the portions of any other goal recipe of 1 hour length, although is still only average when measured against the entirety of the duration. In fact all three dishes outclass other goal offerings when it comes to portions, with the Skillet Cake the most notable since it actually charts at number five out of 33 recipes of 3 hour length.
Next we take a look at the Mystery Machine's goodies.
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| Mystery Machine recipes |
The ratings stack up as follows:
| Fingerprint Cookie | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Profit | XP gain | Portions | Profit per plate | Availability | Rating |
| 3 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 3.6 |
| Secret Souffle | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Profit | XP gain | Portions | Profit per plate | Availability | Rating |
| 3 | 2 | 6 | 4 | 5 | 3.5 |
| Mystery Meat | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Profit | XP gain | Portions | Profit per plate | Availability | Rating |
| 4 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 5 | 4.1 |
Generally we've got another three low scoring efforts, with the 2 coins per plate pattern continuing. The number of substandard coins per plate releases lately is alarming and certainly makes these recipes a serious turn off.
On the bright side the portions afforded by these recipes are again exemplary relative to what the goals usually serve up. This is progress since we've had so many poor portion returns from goal foods over the years and it had reached a point where even veteran players were having problems keeping their counters stocked. Whether this change of tact is a result of my Suggestions Box entry last month or (more likely!) a response to many complaints on the Storm8 Form, it's certainly satisfying.
Time to turn our attention to the remainder of the additions which the goals uncover. The Caution Tape Divider is pretty cool. Two silver poles with black and yellow tape stretched between them, this divider can be used for much more than just separating different sections of your restaurant. When I next do a big makeover (which will hopefully be soon!) these dividers are going to be part of the transition décor as a caution to the customers not to enter areas of my place under construction!
Mystery crimes party
The Floor Safe is 2x2 and like the divider benefits from its flexibility. It doesn't have to be used in a crime scene but instead can be utilised as a standard facility in your diner. I almost want to create an office in my restaurant where the owner can hang out with his safe full of cash, but will instead try to incorporate it in my kitchen once it gets kitted out with the Classic Bundle stuff.
The final goal prize is the Dinner Party. This is a 4x4 scene which includes so many components. There are six bots depicted with the table covered in food and drinks, plus there's a hat stand and two pots of colourful flowers as well. I do like this item, and once more it's not really specific to a mystery crime party theme. The only give-away is the detective costume being adorned by one of the crew - otherwise this decoration is usable in scores of situations.
Overall I'm quite satisfied by this goals update. The theme itself isn't all that strong, and perhaps that's reflected in the fact that the prizes aren't actually that heavily linked to it. But what we have got is pretty good, and with better portion numbers on the recipes everyone is happier about the stocking of their counters. The dodgy coins per plate is clearly a downer, but in the main Storm8 have managed to continue their ever increasing run of successful goal updates.
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