We here at Gamezebo often say you don’t need to reinvent the wheel in order to create a fun, accessible and addictive casual game.
Sure, it’s exciting when a brand new experience pops up in our inbox, but it is possible to build upon an existing formula to create a compelling game that gets the whole community buzzing.
Such is the case with Teddy Tavern: A Culinary Adventure, a game that doesn’t pretend to be completely original – because it’s not – but it takes the “Diner Dash”-style food-serving game-play and adds a few new twists to keep it fresh.
We here at Gamezebo often say you don’t need to reinvent the wheel in order to create a fun, accessible and addictive casual game.
Sure, it’s exciting when a brand new experience pops up in our inbox, but it is possible to build upon an existing formula to create a compelling game that gets the whole community buzzing.
Such is the case with Teddy Tavern: A Culinary Adventure, a game that doesn’t pretend to be completely original – because it’s not – but it takes the “Diner Dash”-style food-serving game-play and adds a few new twists to keep it fresh.
Unhappy in his day job as a short-order cook at a fast food restaurant, Teddy decides to pursue his dream of becoming a master chef. But in order to enter the prestigious Culinary Master Competition, Teddy must cook a variety of food for some hungry bears.
Unlike “Diner Dash,” where customers don’t ask for specific meals, Teddy Tavern not only challenges you to serve the proper dish as requested by the bears – such as lasagna, hamburgers or sushi – but you must combine ingredients in order to successfully make the dish. Teddy runs right or left at the bottom of the screen and must click to combine items together, such as bread and lettuce to make a salad with breadcrumbs before firing it up to the customers. Players will see the recipe listed at the bottom of the screen, which looks like a drawing of lettuce leaves and long bread sticks, with a plus (“+”) sign in the middle. Even more of a challenge is when Sloth bears ask for a mystery (“?”) dish, which means you must combine two items on the screen that re not on the menu to make something new. In total, there are more than 25 recipes throughout the course of the game, including Japanese and Italian delicacies.
Dirty plates must also be cleaned so Teddy tosses up sponges to wipe up before another bear sits down for a snack.
Much like “Diner Dash,” money is collected by customers, and it’s your job to reach a certain goal by the end of the day. If you raise enough money, you can purchase upgrades such as a bear who plays guitar for your guests (so they’ll be more patient while they wait for you to prepare the food) or decorating the restaurant to attract more customers.
By the way, six different bears will show up in the game, each with a different appetite, patience level and tipping habit. For example, Panda bears are impatient customers (and slow eaters), while Sun bears are very impatient but tip big. Grizzly bears are fast eaters and have huge appetites.
The main Story mode follows bear as he travels through different culinary areas, while the Challenge mode, which is unlocked after finishing the Story mode, lets you pick any level you like.
One beef with this game – if you can pardon the pun – is that you must properly line up Teddy’s grill with the customer before shooting it up to them at the top of the screen. Problem is, but it’s easy to miss them if you accidentally line up Teddy’s body instead of the grill (believe me, this will happen). Also, if you’re a mere half-inch to the right or left, you’ll also miss, which can get frustrating.
But for the most part, Teddy Tavern is a blast to play. It may not win any awards for ingenuity, but it builds nicely on the “Diner Dash” recipe with the ability to create the dish before serving it. Be sure to download this cute and clever game today. Bon appetit!
