It’s the hottest summer on record, and Dee is itching for the chance to work at her Grandma’s ice cream shop, Scoops. But before Grandma will put her on the payroll, Dee has to prove she’s up to the task by slinging cones, milkshakes and other cold treats from a lowly ice cream truck. It’s all in a day’s work in the upcoming time management game Ice Cream Dee Lites from uClick and Cerebral Vortex Games.
It’s the hottest summer on record, and Dee is itching for the chance to work at her Grandma’s ice cream shop, Scoops. But before Grandma will put her on the payroll, Dee has to prove she’s up to the task by slinging cones, milkshakes and other cold treats from a lowly ice cream truck. It’s all in a day’s work in the upcoming time management game Ice Cream Dee Lites from uClick and Cerebral Vortex Games.
With 65 levels spread across four unique locations, Ice Cream Dee Lites is similar in layout to Sandlot’s Cake Mania except that instead of ovens, icing and cake toppers you’ll see ice cream machines, cone dispensers and various syrupy and sprinkly toppings that are used to create the frozen concoction that each customer requests.
Your job is to serve the customers that sidle up to the counter by clicking on the appropriate actions for Dee to take. The first step is to deliver the menu and wait for the customer to place their order, which appears inside a thought bubble. Dee must then create the appropriate ice cream cone by selecting the right cone (waffle, kiddie, chocolate with sprinkles), adding a scoop (or two or three) of ice cream, and finally, if requested, top it off with chocolate, vanilla or caramel syrup. The final step is to collect the cash. The faster you serve the customer the happier they’ll be and the more money they’ll leave behind.
The objective of each level is typically to collect a certain amount of cash before closing time, however occasionally you’ll have to meet other criteria like not losing any customers (they’ll eventually storm off if you take too long with an order).
In between levels, Dee’s hard-earned cash can be used to purchase a variety of upgrades for the shop. Upgrading existing machines not only makes them go faster but introduces additional flavors, like mint ice cream and blueberry syrup. You can also add new machines to expand the menu, such as frozen yogurt and milkshake machines, and dispensers for whipped cream and other popular toppings. Customers who are getting impatient can be soothed by purchasing an air conditioning unit, or giving out little bits of ice cream on tasting spoons (nothing appeases people faster than free samples). The ice box comes in handy for storing extra ice cream when you have nowhere else to put it down.
A colorful and cartoonish art style is what immediately sets Ice Cream Dee Lites apart from other similarly-themed titles. The customers you meet along the way seem all the more interesting thanks to helpful introductions that list personal traits, likes and dislikes that help to flesh out their personalities. We quickly learned to fear The Brat, for example, a spoiled little boy who lives up to his name by throwing a tantrum if he isn’t served immediately. The Sweet Little Girl, by contrast, is patient, cheerful, and a big fan of ponies and unicorns. Then there’s poor old Mr. Doghouse, a hen-pecked fellow driven to seek solace in ice cream by a nagging wife and a job that’s a hassle. This is just a small sample of the sixteen characters you’ll meet; others include cynical teenagers, pregnant women craving an ice cream fix, the lovey-dovey couple and Chunk Style, a big guy who loves his triple-scoops.
Offering two modes of play (Story and Endless) and far fewer calories than a trip to the Dairy Queen, Ice Cream Dee Lites will be launching later this month. Stay tuned to Gamezebo for our in-depth review.
