I can’t even keep up with all these cooking simulators. First it was career simulators, and they’re still going strong, but now people are making sims for everything. This is exactly the type of thing that makes the elderly nervous about the coming techno apocalypse, but I like to think a lot of these games are giving people experiences they wouldn’t usually have. Or at least training them for future real life success.
I just finished Bling The Tarts yesterday, the sim/RPG about a hard-nosed New Yorker who pursues a new career in creating delicious tarts for bakeries and eventually founds his own tart decoration empire. Now I’m moving onto Anchor Winch Repair Game. That’s what it’s called, no joke. You pick a city, and you basically just get down to the business of fixing a anchor winch. Melbourne is on there, which has been an odd trend recently. You wouldn’t think international game industries would take much notice of anywhere except Sydney, but there’s Melbourne anchor winch repair and servicing, all set up and ready to go.
Honestly, I just loaded up the game out of curiosity, and I guess it does what it says on the tin. People need anchor winches, and you fit them. Occasionally there will be a button prompt that encourages you to ask your boss if you can move onto something else, like fitting outboard motors or maybe some snapper racks, and he always says no. You can max out your experience and do everything perfectly, and he always just says that you’re good at anchor winches and you need to stick to just that. I mean, it’s not called Melbourne Outboard Motor Servicing Game, so I shouldn’t be THAT disappointed… but why even give the prompt?
Now I’m just simulating the experience of being stuck in a dead end with an inflexible boss. Where’s my escapism?17
-K