Cooking Mama: Sweet Shop Review for the New 3DS XL

There are potential spoilers in this review

Cooking Mama a cooking simulation game developed by Office Create and published by Rising Star Games, has gathered quite a following from its initial debut in 2006 where it was awarded “best of E3.” Cooking Mama: Sweet Shop focuses on making various desserts from around the world.

Then gameplay centers around the touchscreen where a player performs various motions with the stylus to complete various tasks within a certain time. There are several tasks within each recipe. These tasks can range from cutting and kneading to setting the temperature on the oven. Some recipes even allow you to decorate the finished product. I felt that there was enough variety within these tasks, but I found some variability in the response times of the same motions. For example, the circular motion for topping the cream puffs seemed unresponsive and made it difficult to complete the task while stirring seemed to be perfectly functional.

You can also take, decorate, and save photos of your finished sweets. The player is in charge of a sweet shop which they can customize through decorations and wall and floor textures. You can also purchase decorations for the kitchen, including colorful sets of kitchen equipment. There is even the option to buy Mama different costumes.

Within the sweet shop you can choose wall and floor patterns, decorations, and the tables your sweets are displayed on. Customers will come into the shop and you must acknowledge each one when they want to check out. This dynamic often leads to a bit of waiting while the customers walk back and forth and sometimes in circles until they settle on something.

You advance through the game by completing recipes and earning new ones as a result. This also sometimes unlocks new items for purchase in the shop, too. There doesn’t seem to be any sort of achievements beyond earning a gold, silver, or bronze medal at the end of each completed recipe. I felt like there was a good variety of sweets without being repetitive.

Overall, if you love Cooking Mama, cooking simulators, or dessert this is a game you may find Cooking Mama: Sweet Shop to be quite enjoyable.

Rate: 8.5/10

Here is the Cooking Mama: Sweet Shop Launch Trailer:

Alyssa Amezcua

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Most of my childhood was dedicated to raising my Pokémon, but nowadays I find myself taking time off to enjoy indie games and RPGs. I have always been fascinated by how easily videogames immerse us into their own worlds and stories, and I hope to be a part of this one day. Until then, I would like to serve my gamer community in helping you to navigate between the great and the overhyped.

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