Calico

Calico is a simulator of a cafeteria in a magical world filled with cats, where we take care of its interior and assortment, and meet new friends. Peachy Keen Games is responsible for the game and Whitehorn Digital is the publisher, known for Evan's Remains and Where The Bees Make Honey.

Mechanics

The action of the game is set in a small town in an alternative and magical universe inhabited by witches and wizards. We are entrusted with the management and care of the local cafeteria. But we have to start from scratch. In order to attract customers and get the reputation, we have to decorate the café rooms with many decorative elements (some of which we acquire over time). The furniture is designed for both human and animal guests.

Our heroine is roaming the world and encounters different kinds of creatures with whom she can befriend and adopt. We'll find cats, dogs, raccoons, and more. This allows us to give the recruited animals a name, but also to interact with them in a number of ways including stroking, playing with their favourite toy and pampering in a ton of different ways. The creatures we have recruited, in addition to making our time more pleasant, are a living decoration of the restaurant, which makes human guests more eager to come to the restaurant.

However, furnishings and making the time more pleasant will not make the place a fully-fledged cafe unless we take care of the right menu offering tasty desserts and sophisticated drinks. That's why there was no shortage of mini-games here, offering the preparation of delicious baked goods, which we can then put out behind a glass counter to make our guests see liquid saliva, as well as a large variety of drinks, in the form of coffee, tea and other. Some of them can be additionally personalized and changed, and so the top layer of pasta can be decorated with a frosted pattern created by us. But it's up to us what's on the menu.

But before we fully immerse ourselves in this world, we need to create a character. We decide on her skin and hair color, hairstyle and outfit. During the game we have the opportunity to change the look and try on new outfits, which we gain during the adventure.

Technical aspects

Calico is a three-dimensional game maintained in a pastel and fairytale convention. One of the inspiration for the game was anime Sailor Moon.