Pokémon Café Mix

Right now, however, it has not reached that point of player exploitation where I'd recommend deleting it off your phone entirely. Pokémon Café Mix is currently in that sweet spot where it's mostly harmless with only a few bits of frustration. The puzzle formula is entertaining enough to bring me back two or three times a day to try and get past those roadblocks, but really, I'm firing the app up far more often than that just to get a look at those delectable Pokémon dishes.

A decent start. The microtransactions aren’t massively intrusive, the energy system isn’t too debilitating and the stages aren’t Candy Crush Saga-style efforts where it’ll take you 70 goes to get lucky enough to eventually clear them. These are all qualified by the word “yet”, though, and that’s the thing to bear in mind as this game evolves on a fortnightly basis. It’s yet to be established whether this is the sort of mobile game that lulls you in with a false sense of security and then, later down the line, hits you with ridiculously difficult stages that will almost certainly need power-ups to clear (we see you, Dr. Mario World). For now, though, we’re happy.

In short, Pokémon Café Mix is not bad; on the contrary, it is fun, colorful and with a good presentation. However, it is just a simple aperitif, which can become nauseating if served continuously.

Pokémon Cafe Mix has a great aesthetic to it. Still, the imprecise nature of its physics leads to equal parts fun and frustration.

Unless you're extremely against the principle of free-to-play games, Pokémon Café Mix is a delightful little puzzle game with some neat ideas and an adorable visual presentation. It's a gentle game for tough times.

It is this moment of realisation that led me to my current opinion of Pokémon Café Mix. Forcing an adult player into the position detailed above is one thing. But when the game is rated as E for everyone the design choice begins to feel rather unethical. Even after restarting the game and forcing Munchlax into café servitude I found my enjoyment of the game had evaporated. Whilst you may find that the initial stages of the game fill you with joy and happiness. Much like that double espresso shot, the dizzying highs will soon be followed by the inevitable crash. My advice; grab a copy of Tetris and sip some water instead.

Pokémon Café Mix is an easy-going and relaxed puzzle game, with plenty of nostalgic elements of my childhood playing Pokémon games. It's all very cute, with Pokémon themed menu items that look wonderfully appetising, and the swirling puzzling is ideal for introducing this world to younger family members.

As a gamer who loves mobile gaming, not a lot of games keep my interest. I really enjoy Pokémon Cafe Mix because, for the most part, I love Pokemon. I have been a fan of the franchise since its inception in the 90s. Also, I have a love-hate relationship with puzzle games, from not wanting to think but to also strengthen that main muscle we use every day. Cafe Mix creates this relaxing atmosphere that allows me to think out of the box, even if the object of the game is just swirling icons around. It’s great to see the little monsters I have grown up with, in another capacity other than battling. And what better way to experience that, in making food, something that brings everyone together.

Pokémon Café Mix could be a really nice and constant game to play to have a relaxing break. However, it follows the concept of free games so that you're meeting dead ends quite soon. The game's a nice try and looks good. It's free, so you can just take a look yourself.