Unlike simulation games, otherwise known as weirdly palatable works of art that stretch across multiple dimensions and careers, sushi, on the other hand, is something of a different flavor—a cuisine that doesn’t necessarily sizzle on the tongues of those who lack the stomach for such delicacies. To make it absolutely clear — I, too, am one of those people who fall into the latter demographic; I simply lack the desire to indulge in fishy products, much less embark on a culinary journey to understand the ins and outs of the trade. That was, of course, untilRolling Hillscame knocking and invited me to see through the mind of another perspective—a robot, of all things, who had an oddly satisfying sense of humor and a never-before-seen passion for the practice of dicing sushi. That, to me, felt like something I could roll with — if only for the giggles.
Rolling Hillsis a culinary and business management simulation game, and so, naturally, the game revolves around one thing, in particular:sushi,and the process of creating it for the sake of boosting its popularity. This, at least, is where you begin your quest: aboard a fairly run-down storefront, and shackled to the hopes of turning a small sushi shack into a bustling empire that bears all of the hallmark qualities of a culinary giant. There’s hearty cooking (can you believe it?), good conversation, and a treasure trove of available upgrades and recipes to unlock. At the core of all of these ingredients is a genuinely interesting concept, and one that, despite being a little niche, has the potential to make even the most close-minded chefs broaden their horizons.
Of course, I’m getting ahead of myself here, so allow me torollit back to the beginning. Let’s get cooking!
Rolling With the Best
If you’ve a vague recollection of the events that took place in, I don’t know,Job Simulator,then a lot of the ingredients inRolling Hills may justcome across as somewhat familiar to you. Unlike the VR-based entrée, however, Humble Games’ latest appetizer instead focuses on a single menu—a dining experience that comprises a set list of cooking, managing, and experimenting with copious amounts of natural flavors and cooking techniques. As a sushi-loving bot in this flavorful world, your goal—and it comes as no major surprise here—is to develop the roots of a humble kitchen into something of a fantastical nature, and more importantly, a bastion of pride for your clientele.
As with any business management sim that requires you tobuildfrom the grassy roots up,Rolling Hillsbegins with the absolute basics—a small sushi spot, a recipe or two in your bite-sized repertoire of menus, and a select number of ingredients to work with. In a similar fashion as most, if not all games of its kind, you earn money from serving customers these small dishes and completing odd jobs around the quaint and beautiful world, with which you can use to pour into new recipes, ingredients, and upgrades for your diner. It’s an incredibly simple, laid-back venture, and one that, in all honesty, doesn’t require a master chef to rustle up. The question is, how does it compare with the likes of its rivals?
Rising to the Occasion
I could quite easily sit here and describe the likes ofRolling Hillswith dishes likeStardew Valleyor—and it almost pains me to bethatguy—Animal Crossing: New Horizons— and for good reason, too. The fact is, whilst a large portion of the game does indeed revolve around cooking and satisfying all of those nifty taste buds, italsofeatures a great deal of conversational value, and it’s even stitched into the day-to-day duties that you undertake as a sushi chef, weirdly enough. That’s right — youalsohave the rather excessive task of befriending the folks in the community, too—a feat which involves having to exchange pleasantries over a cup of coffee and fulfill numerous deeds and goals to earn their favor, also. In other words, there’s a significant amount to see and do in the idyllic hills of the sushi-centric sim — and that’s great, truly.
What makesRolling Hillsall the more appealing to the naked eye is its accessibility; it doesn’t require a sturdy hand and an undying sense of control over the culinary process to unleash its inner charm. Aside from the fact that youdo,as expected of a cooking sim, have to mix and match dishes to satisfy the general public, there isn’t atremendousamount to fret about; on the contrary, there are really only so many things that you simplymustdo in order to reap the benefits of your labor, thus making the overall journey something of a relaxing tiptoe through the motions, and not, for example, a button-mashing romp with little to zero room for maneuverability or respite. It’s “cozy” — there, I said it.
Once a Chef
There is a downside to all of this: theactualcooking, or should I say, the lack of cooking. As it turns out, you don’t really do anyrealcooking inRolling Hills,besides, perhaps, locate new recipes from a catalog and use your in-game currencies to upgrade them for additional rewards and what have you. To this end, you don’treallyhave a whole lot to doduringyour shift as a sushi chef; in fact, you load up your recipes on a conveyor belt, and simply fulfill the needs of your patrons in exchange for cash. Once you’vecompleteda shift, you’re pretty much left to fork your accrued funds into new pieces of furniture, and general boosters for your recipes and restaurant space. And that’s about it — hence the “cozy” part.
The good news here is that, while the game as a whole does come across as a little slow and repetitive at times, it doesn’t ever particularly strike you as being overly daunting or even the slightest bit monotonous. Don’t get me wrong, it can take a fair amount of time to knuckle in on all of those nifty upgrades, but thankfully, there are several avenues of play to explore between shifts down at the restaurant, which means, if you areable to break away from the usual routine, thenyou’ll rarely find yourself wedged between a rock and a hard place and relying on the same old motions.
From a performance point of view, Rolling Hillsdoes manage to maintain a satisfying level of consistency in its frames, and is therefore an easy one to roll with, so to speak. What’s more, as there are little to zero game-breaking issues to mar the experience, it’s certainly an easy-peeler, I’ll say that much.
Verdict
From its quirky and eccentric art style to its generous collection of recipes and upgrades,Rolling Hillsdelivers a truly memorable and downright delicious treat that’s bound to linger on the tongue long after dessert has been served. Aside from it adopting a family-friendly visual flair that latches onto some stunning locations and bubbling personalities, it also features a captivating sense of communal harmony—a formulation of serenity that, quite frankly, we don’t often see in sandbox and business management simulators. And, to be honest, there are merely two or three things that makeRolling Hillsthe real delight that it is; it offers a great deal more, too, but I can’t help but find myself morally obligated to keep a lot of its flavors stowed away in a cookbook of some sort — if only to remove the possibility of spoiling the surprises.
Needless to say that, if youarea bit of a culinary wizard in the art of sushi and cultural relics and what have you, then you might as well board the wagon that isRolling Hills’stomach-lining delicacy and taste it for yourself. In addition to it being genuinely exciting to romp through, it’s also a pleasure to sweep clean and enjoy in short bursts, too, as it hosts a wide array of requests to participate in, as well as a fairly wide variety of recipes to get experimental with. Is thereenoughto keep you coming back for seconds? In ways, yes — and it’s mainly due to the fact that, from a creative standpoint, there are several managerial avenues to explore and products to embellish with your own form of flair. So, yeah — I’d say it’s worth taking a big ol’ bite out of.
