Info about Cuisineer:

Official game description:
Upon receiving a startling letter from her parents, the independent adventurer Pom swiftly returns home to Paell, only to find her parents gone and their beloved restaurant abandoned. Now left with mounting debts and a village in dire need of some fine cooking, Pom will have to delve into the deepest dungeons for the scarcest spices, rarest meats, and the most valuable vegetables she can find to keep her parents’ dream alive.
Dive into dungeons and cook up a storm as Pom, an adventurer-turned-restaurateur! Cuisineer‘s food-focused action challenges you to build your dinner the hard way: by dungeon-diving for materials and ingredients. Wield your cooking utensils against giant chickens, artillery shrimps, fire-breathing peppers, and other pesky perils, sipping boba tea along the way. Work with local artisans to customize your kitchen, and tailor your dining hall to the needs of loyal patrons eager to experience the rare recipes you’ve cooked up.
**With the latest update,** Cuisineer plates its enticing gameplay with fresh ingredients like new weapons, year-round festivals, a wardrobe feature, and more tasty inclusions that are sure to spice things up.
**A Smorgasbord of Dungeons**
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Explore procedurally generated biomes such as the Green Ruins, Frozen Fjord, and Konpeito Swamps that change their size, shape, and resources every time you visit.
**Craft Your Own Delicious Culinary Experience**
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Cook over 100 different recipes from around the world, from crunchy Popiah rolls to rich Kaya jam, from double-fried crispy chicken with zesty lemon, to sweet treats piled high with berries. Get the right dishes to the right customers, and customize your kitchen and dining hall with the help of local artisans.
**Master the Flavors of Fighting**
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Knock out monsters and rivals with Salty, Sour, Sweet, Bitter, Umami, Frosty and Toasty powers that unleash flame, poison, chain lightning, and other fantastic effects. You can also fight with unique utensils and gourmet gear, like Spatula, Smackerel, Swordfish, and the newly added Konpeito Fist weapons!
**Take Quests to Go**
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From Naicha the Bubble Tea seller to Alder the big friendly carpenter, Paell is full of sweet and spicy townsfolk to befriend. While you’re dungeon diving, be on the lookout for items the townsfolk need. You’ll be rewarded with gold, new items, and even more recipes to take your cooking and adventuring to new heights.

Release date: 9 Nov, 2023

Categories: Dungeon Crawler, Management Simulation, Real-time Combat, Roguelike, Resource Management, Base Building, Crafting, Single-player Story


- Hardware Profile: No data
Feature extractions:
- Community Price: No data
- Playtime Metrics: No data
- Time-to-fun: No data
- Player Archetypes: No data


Below are summaries of things people say about the game per category.
Each point is assigned a weight that represents how often it is mentioned across all reviews.
What players like:
- Engaging & Relaxing Gameplay (weight 0.96): The game offers a highly enjoyable and addictive experience, allowing players to relax and lose track of time. Its simple yet engaging gameplay loop and balanced difficulty contribute to its broad appeal and replayability.
- Charming Visuals & Characters (weight 0.62): Reviewers consistently praise the game's adorable and high-quality art style, character designs, and overall graphics. The visuals are described as beautiful, inviting, and a significant draw for players.
- Fluid & Accessible Combat (weight 0.51): The combat system is widely enjoyed for being fluid, satisfying, and easy to learn, yet offering enough challenge and strategic depth. Its flexible difficulty options cater to both casual and more engaged players.
- Unique Genre Blend (weight 0.48): The game's core concept of blending dungeon crawling with restaurant management is highly praised as unique, well-executed, and engaging. This alternating gameplay loop prevents monotony and provides a satisfying progression.
- Engaging Restaurant Management (weight 0.39): The restaurant management aspect is a core highlight, offering a fun, relaxing, and engaging experience. Players enjoy the progression through upgrades, extensive customization options, and the dynamic interactions within the town hub.
- Rewarding Dungeon Exploration (weight 0.24): Players find the dungeon exploration aspect enjoyable, citing the challenging yet fair difficulty, varied environments, and the clear goal of gathering ingredients. The untimed nature allows for relaxed progression.
- Solid Roguelike Mechanics (weight 0.17): The game's roguelike elements are noted as well-fleshed out and adding depth to the dungeon runs. This aspect contributes to replayability and offers a more engaging action experience.
- Unique Weapon Designs (weight 0.1): Reviewers appreciate the game's creative and humorous weapon designs, particularly their kitchen-themed nature. The variety and interesting quirks of weapons add to the combat experience.
- Pleasant Soundtrack (weight 0.08): The game's music and sound design are consistently praised for being wonderful, relaxing, and catchy. The audio enhances the overall atmosphere without becoming repetitive.
- Strong Early Game Hook (weight 0.08): The game makes a strong initial impression with its charming presentation and engaging early gameplay. Many reviewers found themselves immediately hooked, highlighting its promising premise and fresh feel.

Common complaints:
- Repetitive Dungeons, Poor Rewards (weight 0.92): Dungeons are criticized for being repetitive in layout, enemy types, and overall design, lacking variety and becoming boring quickly. Exploration is unrewarding, with bosses offering minimal loot and little incentive to fully clear or re-enter dungeons.
- Unbalanced, Frustrating Combat (weight 0.88): Combat is frequently described as clunky, unbalanced, and frustrating, even on lower difficulties. Enemies are often 'damage sponges' with high HP, aggressive behavior, and unavoidable attacks, making fights feel tedious and unrewarding.
- Excessive Grind & Repetition (weight 0.74): The core gameplay loop, including resource gathering, upgrades, and quests, is described as overly grindy, tedious, and repetitive, leading to player boredom and a feeling of the game being 'work.' This issue is consistent throughout the game, especially in the mid-to-late stages.
- Unpolished & Underdeveloped (weight 0.69): Many reviewers found the game to be incomplete, undercooked, and lacking polish across various systems. Despite good ideas, the execution falls short, leading to a feeling of unfulfilled potential and a perception of being overpriced for its current state.
- Shallow Story & NPCs (weight 0.67): The game's narrative is described as bland, unengaging, and lacking depth, with no strong connection to characters or meaningful progression. NPCs are criticized for being generic, having repetitive dialogue, and offering only basic fetch quests without any social system or relationship building.
- Shallow Restaurant Management (weight 0.61): The restaurant simulation is widely criticized for being overly simplistic, repetitive, and lacking depth. Players have limited control over menu, pricing, or staff, and tasks often boil down to monotonous clicking and waiting, making it feel like a chore rather than engaging management.
- Limited Character Progression (weight 0.39): Players feel a lack of meaningful progression for their character, as weapon and armor upgrades provide negligible stat increases (often just +1 damage) for high material and money costs. This makes upgrades feel unrewarding, useless, and a waste of time.
- Unrewarding, Inconvenient Quests (weight 0.3): Quests are often described as repetitive fetch tasks that primarily reward only recipes, lacking variety or significant impact on progression. The quest system is inconvenient due to hard-to-find quest givers, no tracking, and problematic item transfer from storage.
- Limited Inventory & Storage (weight 0.27): Players frequently encounter issues with extremely limited backpack space and low item stack limits, forcing constant inventory management, frequent returns to base, and frustrating item discarding during dungeon runs. Upgrading storage is also expensive.

Gameplay feedback:
- Roguelike Dungeon Crawling (weight 0.87): The game features procedurally generated dungeons where players fight monsters to gather ingredients and materials. While some find the combat simple or repetitive, others note its Hades-inspired mechanics, including dash attacks, varied weapons, and status effects.
- Basic Restaurant Management (weight 0.76): The restaurant system is described as simple, involving basic clicks for cooking and cashiering. While it includes upgrades and decoration, customer interaction is largely automated, with manual serving only required for "noble" customers later in the game.
- Variable Combat Difficulty (weight 0.69): Combat difficulty is a mixed bag, with some finding it hardcore, especially early on, while others find dungeons easy to clear. The game offers multiple difficulty settings, allowing players to reduce damage taken, which helps mitigate the challenge of tanky enemies and numerous traps.
- Costly, Minor Upgrades (weight 0.36): Almost everything in the game is upgradable, from weapons to restaurant facilities. However, weapon upgrades provide minimal damage increases (+1 per level) and are often expensive and time-gated, requiring significant materials and in-game days to complete.
- Recipes via Fetch Quests (weight 0.21): New recipes are primarily unlocked by completing side quests given by townspeople. These quests largely involve collecting specific ingredients or cooked dishes, or occasionally defeating bosses, with little to no individual story development.
- Explore, Cook, Upgrade Loop (weight 0.15): The central gameplay loop involves exploring dungeons to gather ingredients and materials, returning to the restaurant to cook and sell dishes for income, and then using that money and materials to upgrade equipment and the restaurant. This cycle repeats for progression.
- Basic Calendar System (weight 0.14): The game includes a calendar system displaying NPC birthdays and holidays, with NPCs appearing on specific days. While gifts are sent on birthdays, there are no deeper social mechanics like befriending or gifting, and character interactions are generally shallow.
- Repetitive Grind (weight 0.13): Many players found the game to become repetitive and grindy, especially early on, making it difficult to finish the main story. This sentiment applies to both dungeon crawling and the overall gameplay loop, with a perceived lack of guidance or changes in playfeel.
- Boba Potion System (weight 0.12): The game features a boba shop where players can unlock and upgrade one-time-use potions (bubble teas) by bringing prepared dishes. While these serve as healing or recovery items, some found potion upgrades expensive and the system only truly useful with min-maxing.
- Debt Repayment Narrative (weight 0.11): The game's main story revolves around the protagonist inheriting a restaurant burdened with significant debt left by their parents. The primary objective and progression involve repaying this debt, which also unlocks new areas and content.

Performance notes:
- Excessive Loading Screens (weight 0.14): The game suffers from noticeably long loading times, particularly when transitioning between maps or entering new areas through doors. The initial game load-up is also reported as slow, disrupting the flow of gameplay.
- Poor Game Performance (weight 0.11): Players frequently experience significant frame drops, stuttering, and lag, especially during combat with many enemies or after extended play sessions. This suggests optimization issues and potential memory leaks, impacting gameplay fluidity across various hardware, including the Steam Deck.
- Critical Game-Breaking Bugs (weight 0.02): Players reported the presence of specific glitches that can abruptly end a game run, indicating severe bugs that significantly disrupt the gameplay experience. This points to critical issues needing attention.
- More Graphics Options (weight 0.02): There is a desire for more granular graphics settings, allowing players to lower visual quality to potentially improve performance on less powerful hardware. This suggests a need for better customization options.
- Small UI Text on Deck (weight 0.02): On the Steam Deck, some in-game text appears too small, making it difficult to read. This is a specific UI/UX issue affecting readability on handheld devices.

Recommendations:
- Appealing Cute Art Style (weight 0.63): The game's cute art style and aesthetic are consistently praised by reviewers, often cited as a primary reason for interest or enjoyment. Some even suggest it's worth experiencing for the visuals alone.
- General Disappointment/Not Recommended (weight 0.52): A significant number of reviewers expressed general disappointment or found the game not to their liking, leading to a non-recommendation. This sentiment often stems from a feeling that the game did not meet expectations or provide sufficient value for the price, even if specific reasons vary.
- Needs Future Improvements (weight 0.19): Many reviewers feel the game is currently incomplete or unpolished, expressing hope for future updates to address existing issues, improve balance, and add content. Some state they will only return to the game if significant improvements are made.
- Mixed Genre Appeal (weight 0.18): The game appeals to players who enjoy a blend of dungeon crawling, roguelite elements, and restaurant/shop management simulation, often with a cozy or cute aesthetic. However, it may not satisfy those seeking deep mechanics in either the combat or management aspects.
- Purchase on Sale (weight 0.17): Many reviewers strongly recommend purchasing the game only when it is heavily discounted, as they feel the full price does not justify the content or experience. Some warn that even on sale, the grind might become apparent after the refund window.
- Similar to Other Games (weight 0.08): Reviewers frequently compare the game to titles like Recettear, Moonlighter, Dave the Diver, Stardew Valley, and Travellers Rest, suggesting it shares gameplay loops or genre elements. However, some warn that it may not meet expectations if compared to the depth or content volume of these other games.
- Adjust Difficulty Down (weight 0.05): Reviewers strongly advise new players or those seeking a more relaxed experience to immediately lower the game's difficulty setting. They suggest that the default or higher difficulties can be frustrating or detrimental to enjoyment.
- Excessive Grinding (weight 0.03): Reviewers frequently criticize the game for being excessively grindy, suggesting that the amount of repetitive tasks required detracts significantly from the overall enjoyment. Some feel the grind is not rewarding enough compared to other games.

Other player notes:
- Limited Content & Monotony (weight 0.16): The game offers limited engaging content, leading to monotony and a feeling of short playtime despite potential for longer sessions. Side quests are repetitive and lack depth, primarily involving ingredient delivery without enriching the world or characters.
- Mods Enhance QoL (weight 0.13): Mods are highly recommended and significantly improve the game's quality of life by addressing issues like inventory stack sizes, drop rates, player speed, and automating repetitive tasks such as customer payment and dish retrieval, making the experience smoother.
- Desired Content Additions (weight 0.13): Players desire more varied content, including new dungeons (possibly seasonal with unique rewards), more maps, and deeper gameplay systems like food planting/harvesting. There's also a strong wish for more customization options for the restaurant layout and more functional NPCs to improve the village.
- Shop Management & Culinary Theme (weight 0.08): The game is frequently compared to shop management titles like Recettear and Moonlighter. Its unique culinary theme, especially the inclusion of South and Southeast Asian foods with appetizing descriptions, is a highlight for players.
- Mixed Price Perception (weight 0.08): Player opinions on the game's price are mixed; some find it high for an indie title, while others consider it fair, especially when purchased on sale. Specific price points in different currencies were mentioned.
- Promising Potential (weight 0.07): The game is recognized for its strong potential and room for growth, with players eagerly anticipating future updates. However, some note that the developers' experience might be limited, hinting at areas for improvement in the game's current state.
- Relaxing Atmosphere (weight 0.04): The game provides a light and relaxing atmosphere, complemented by its background music. Many players find it a meditative experience, good for unwinding and disconnecting from the real world despite any existing flaws.
- Dialogue & Story Issues (weight 0.04): Some players noted that the game's dialogue felt like a machine translation, impacting readability and immersion. The story was also described as somewhat child-oriented, potentially lacking depth for some audiences.
- Hyperbolic Negative Feedback (weight 0.01): This feedback uses highly emotional and hyperbolic language without providing specific details or constructive criticism, suggesting it may be non-constructive or part of review bombing.

Emotions:
- Disappointment (weight 0.21): Players are consistently disappointed by the game's overall lack of depth, content, and progression across its core systems, including shallow restaurant management, repetitive dungeons, and unrewarding upgrades. Many feel the game fails to live up to its promising concept, resulting in a repetitive and unengaging experience that feels unfinished or overpriced.
- Frustration (weight 0.2): Players are primarily frustrated by the game's excessive and unrewarding grind, particularly for resources and upgrades, coupled with a severe death penalty that punishes progress. Other significant causes include small inventory sizes, poorly balanced and clunky combat, confusing or absent tutorials, and tedious, repetitive restaurant management tasks.
- Satisfaction (weight 0.2): Players express satisfaction with the game's charming art style, cozy atmosphere, and the enjoyable blend of dungeon crawling and restaurant management. They appreciate the engaging core gameplay loop, the ability to customize the restaurant, and the overall relaxing experience, often highlighting the well-integrated mechanics and appealing character designs.
- Enjoyment (weight 0.07): Players find enjoyment in the game's cute art style, cozy atmosphere, and the overall fun balance between dungeon combat and restaurant management. The addictive gameplay loop, engaging boss fights, and appealing characters contribute to a positive and entertaining experience, especially when played in short bursts.
- Joy (weight 0.07): Players experience joy from the game's adorable art style, vibrant visuals, and charming characters, which create a delightful atmosphere. The unique blend of fun dungeon crawling and relaxing restaurant management, combined with an addictive gameplay loop, contributes to a highly enjoyable and immersive experience where players often lose track of time.
- Boredom (weight 0.05): Boredom primarily stems from the game's pervasive repetitiveness across both its dungeon crawling and restaurant management aspects, which lack sufficient depth and progression to remain engaging. Players find the gameplay loop, especially in the late game, becomes tedious and monotonous, with unrewarding grind and a slow tempo.
- Excitement (weight 0.03): Players feel excitement due to the game's unique premise, combining rogue-like dungeon crawling with restaurant management, which often exceeds initial expectations. The engaging combat, variety of equipment, and addictive gameplay loop, along with anticipation for future updates, contribute to a thrilling experience.
- Appreciation (weight 0.02): Players appreciate the game's charming art style, appealing visuals, and well-designed food graphics, which enhance the overall aesthetic experience. The creative concept and attention to detail in character design and world-building are also frequently noted.
- Anger (weight 0.01): Anger arises from perceived poor game design choices, particularly the severe death penalty in what is expected to be a casual game, and the unrewarding, forced grind. Players are frustrated by unbalanced combat, ineffective upgrades, and the overall feeling that the game is incomplete or poorly thought out.
- Relaxation (weight 0.01): Players find the game relaxing due to its cozy atmosphere and the ability to engage in mind-numbing, low-stress restaurant management. The overall comfy gameplay provides a good way to unwind and disconnect.
- Annoyance (weight 0.01): Annoyance is primarily caused by repetitive grind, frustrating inventory management, and minor quality-of-life issues such as slow customer service mechanics and an annoying UI. Specific gameplay elements like traps and unrewarding weapon upgrades also contribute to irritation.
- Amusement (weight 0.01): Players are amused by the game's unique concept, humorous observations, and the quirky NPC interactions, particularly those related to the debt mechanic. The unexpected humor found within the gameplay also contributes to this emotion.
- Love (weight 0.01): Players express love for the game's adorable characters, charming art style, and engaging combat. The overall positive experience, particularly the quality of its roguelike dungeon crawling elements, fosters a strong affection for the game.
- Admiration (weight 0.01): Admiration is directed towards the game's exceptional aesthetic, including its charming art style, appealing visuals, and particularly the attractive presentation of food, furniture, and weapons. The cute world and character designs also contribute to this appreciation.
- Desire (weight 0.01): Players express a desire for more depth and variety in the game, specifically wishing for more involved restaurant management mechanics, additional content like challenging maps and recipes, and improvements to UI, customization, and weapon variety. A speed-up system for restaurant tasks is also frequently requested.
- Confusion (weight 0.01): Confusion arises from unclear instructions, unintuitive game mechanics such as upgrades and ingredient sourcing, and a general lack of guidance, particularly during the initial game experience. Minor technical issues like a missing mouse icon also contribute to player bewilderment.
- Hope (weight 0.01): Players express hope for the game's future, specifically for continued content updates, more customization options, and improvements that address current issues. This indicates a belief in the game's potential to become even better.
- Calmness (weight 0.01): Players feel calmness due to the game's relaxed pace in both management and combat, combined with its simple, cozy gameplay and overall soothing atmosphere.
- Mild annoyance (weight 0): Mild annoyance is caused by the repetitive grind for resources, shallow NPC interactions, and minor aesthetic issues like the protagonist's small size. Specific sound effects, such as customer eating sounds, also contribute to this slight irritation.
- Mild frustration (weight 0): Mild frustration stems from minor quality-of-life issues such as long loading times, the grindy nature of food gathering, and the absence of an ingredient selling merchant. Some players also note difficulty with one-handed play and illogical calendar events.}