After learning their favorite order, it’s logged in your townsfolk journal, which you can later reference to earn more money when they come to visit. The more you play, the more you’ll discover about each character. Blossom wants daisy-shaped tables for her engagement shoot with Sunny, Lumi wants to see an arctic fox while sipping coffee, and Poppy loves your aunt’s croissants so much he wants you to try your best to recreate them. Of course, if you want that cash, it’s in your favor to pay attention to each customer’s preferences and regularly ask them for new tasks. Most of the game is spent running around the island to solve each quest and finding fun distractions along the way. Customers can even buy items without you being present.
Overall, it’s a lax job that is self-operating once you set things up how you like. While cute, the physics could use some tweaking. You are magically tinified to run around the kitchen to grab ingredients for each recipe and toss them into a giant bowl, transforming it into a treat adorned with a signature cat face. The most you’ll need to do inside the cafe is whip up new cat-themed pastries and drinks for your display case and occasionally redecorate by adding more furniture options for both humans and animals.Įach cafe item is created by way of a mini-game. There’s no need to pour drinks or bus tables, which may be a good thing if you already sling coffee for a living. This title is more focused on self-paced exploration and customization than it is an actual cafe simulator. Those looking for a game heavily influenced by a barista’s day-in-the-life won’t find it here. Of course, you don’t have much to work with at first, but by helping your neighbors and unlocking new areas, you’ll be rewarded generously with items, recipes, and future customers. You’ll need three key things to be successful furniture, food and drinks, and cuddly animals. Calico invites you to express yourself through limitless features and clothing choices-not forcing anyone, including NPCs, into a binary.Īfter settling in, you meet the mayor, who gives you the rundown of your main objective of the game restore and revitalize the island’s only cafe.
Before playing, you’ll have a chance to customize your character to your liking. You play as your very own magical person who is preparing for their move to take over your retired aunt’s old cat cafe in Heart Village, a quiet town nestled in a forest of pink cherry blossom trees.
Imagine your favorite sim game now sprinkle in some magic, cute animals to befriend, and a cat cafe to customize at your discretion, and you have the trifecta of sims. For only $11.99, this game makes for a great addition to any cat cafe lover’s library or games, but really it’s perfect for anyone looking for a dose of escapism.Ĭalico is a stress-free community sim that’s both adorable and relaxing. Visiting virtual cafes, like these Animal Crossing cafes, has never been easier! But if you ever thought the cat cafe theme has been missing from previous simulation games, INDIE developer Peachy Keen Games sought to change that with their fitting title, Calico.Īs the resident coffee-adjacent video game reviewer here at Sprudge, Calico was a no-brainer for me. I’ve personally opted for more digital experiences since there are seemingly more video games with cafe settings and DIY options. Remember when cat cafes were a thing? While I’ve never seen one in person, they sound delightful in theory (minus the hair and smells)! Since going to cafes safely is still touch and go, these types of experiences may be best-saved post-vaccination.