Coffee shops are wonderful. Acting as pitstops for society, these cafes allow people to come together in search of caffeinated glory. Like many, I’d love to have my own coffee shop, but the prospect is far out of reach. Lucky, there’s always Espresso Tycoon, a game that allows players to fulfill their barista fantasies [via PC Gamer].
Admittedly, Espresso Tycoon goes above and beyond latte art and cute aprons. The tycoon aspect of the game has you managing a whole chain of coffee shops rather than a quaint little studenty place.
However, the game does allow you to be more creative than your average business guru. The game lets you pick your own shop space, design a logo, buy equipment and even design your own drinks using a “3D coffee editor”.
Designing your beverages in Espresso Tycoon involves getting into some pretty nerdy coffee specifics. You can tailor things like water and milk ratios, making the whole experience that bit more realistic. Of course, you can also choose a fancy latte art design for your milk-based drinks, which makes the entire affair Instagram-able.
Speaking of which, Espresso Tycoon has its own in-game social media app. Beanstagram is a way to gauge your coffee chain’s popularity, with customers posting their coffee images and commenting on their experience.
Just like in real life, social media is vital in terms of marketing, so you’d best make sure your coffee is both pretty and tasty to satisfy potential online critics.
As fun as the creative side to coffee is, there’s more to running a cafe chain than frothy cappuccinos.
You’ll be in charge of a coffee-shop workforce consisting of baristas, cleaners, and security staff. Basically, being a barista boss means that you’ll be managing a whole bunch of people, as well as an empire of coffee houses.
Espresso Tycoon isn’t due out until 2022, but there is a demo coming this year. More details can be found on the game’s official website and Steam page.
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Featured Image Credit: DreamWay Games