Pokémon Café Mix Brews Up Beautiful, Challenging Puzzles

New free-to-play Switch and mobile game Pokémon Café Mix is a challenging puzzle game with great design.

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Category : Pokemon

Pokémon frequently branches out from its original game formula, which has led to titles where players master their photography skills, solve crimes and even just practice dental hygiene. In Pokémon Café Mix, a new free-to-play puzzle game for Nintendo Switch and mobile devices, players can help Pokémon run a café business using mechanics that are similar to match games like LINE: Disney Tsum Tsum.

Unlike more common swap-two puzzle games, Pokémon Café Mix tasks players with connecting together strings of Pokémon to create combos. The fewer moves they make to fill an order, the higher the score and the more golden acorns (the game’s primary currency) players will earn from grateful Pokémon.

Pokémon Café Mix will appeal to more than just puzzle game fans. Here’s a breakdown of what the title has to offer.

Design

Pokémon Café Mix is a 2D puzzle game, so while it won’t feature eye-popping graphics, the overall style is appealing and presents Pokémon in a novel and adorable way. Additionally, since this is a Pokémon café, the food is imaginatively and deliciously drawn.

Each menu item references a specific Pokémon, which also allows players to puzzle out which character each menu item represents. Some of the food items are drawn so effectively — like the Eevee pancakes — that players may wish they were real. It’s hard not to be smitten with the design in this game.

Unfortunately, the audio design is not as strong. The music is calm and slightly upbeat, as one would expect in a café, but it lacks variety and can get stale after a while. Pokémon also don’t have unique sounds when clicked on, which is disappointing, but not a deal-breaker.

Gameplay

In Pokémon Café Mix, players can use their finger or a stylus to connect Pokémon icons together and create combos. They can select a main Pokémon “chef” each round, whose special ability will power up with each combo and then help clear the board even faster once activated. Unfortunately, it can sometimes be hard to see exactly where the Pokémon string is going, especially when players have combos over 20. Additionally, players who are clumsy or have large hands may accidentally tap the wrong Pokémon icon or prematurely activate a special.

As the story progresses, new Pokémon will appear and once they’ve been served enough times, will ask to join the player’s staff. In addition to bringing new skills to the table, they will also have added benefits to creating certain dishes. For example, Charmander has an easier time making drinks, while Minccino is better at sweets. As the Pokémon serve customers, they’ll also receive friendship bonuses that upgrade their abilities and combo time. Players can use these to improve their favorite Pokémon in the café.

In addition to new Pokémon showing up, Leah, the player’s human staff member, will periodically add new additions to the café — including new menu items and challenges. For instance, once the honey pot is added, players will be able to serve Combee Waffles. However, the item also makes “honey blocks” appear puzzles, which act as obstacles to completing orders. It’s a unique way of linking new recipes to gameplay that feels natural.

Unfortunately, as more things are added to the café, the more convoluted and difficult the puzzles become. This will often lead to players failing orders and having to redo them. That’s where lifelines come in.

Pokémon Café Mix offers power-ups that can be selected before a round or unlocked during. They range from clearing vertical or horizontal lines, clearing “gimmicks” or changing Pokémon icons. Even if players do lose, they’ll have the option of spending 900 Golden Acorns to continue the level.

However, if players lose five orders in quick succession, they can’t continue playing until they regenerate a “heart.” While hearts can be replenished by using acorns, it’s likely the game developers included this feature to entice players to consult the in-app purchases, which are standard affair for puzzle games: Increasingly ludicrous amounts of in-game currency and power-ups in exchange for real money. It’s not necessary to make purchases in order to play or succeed at Pokémon Café Mix.

Closing Time

Pokémon Café Mix presents itself as a charming distraction but hides a more complex and challenging game underneath the surface. Players on both end of the casual and hardcore spectrum will find something for them here. Casual players will enjoy the pick-up-and-go, noncommittal gameplay and cute characters, while hardcore gamers can find enjoyment from challenging themselves by playing harder levels with no power-ups.

Pokémon Café Mix is available on mobile devices and Nintendo Switch.

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