Coffee is a delicious drink brewed from roasted coffee beans. Whether it be espresso shots, black coffee, something simple with milk and sugar, or a fancy mixed drink, coffee is an important part of many people's daily routine. There are plenty of video games where coffee makes an appearance, sometimes as healing items, other times as decorations.
There are other games where coffee is not just the main focus, but players can brew various recipes themselves from scratch. Whether it be purely making drinks for people, managing a café, or chatting with customers over drinks, games about making coffee are a relaxing way to spend a day, especially if played with a hot drink in hand.
6 Beans: The Coffee Shop Simulator
Beans: The Coffee Shop Simulator is a casual indie management game where players must use strategy to run a coffee shop and grow their franchise. This 2D simulation game follows Ruby through their tale of betrayal, redemption, murder, and the business of making coffee. There are six bosses to compete against to finish the game and acquire the Coffeebottom Estate inheritance.
Players must find out what customers want and adapt as new challenges arise, like hosting local bands. People can customize and build their brand, decorate with unique furniture pieces, and open new stores in strategic places to make the most money possible. Players can research and make over 200 drink and food recipes, invest in new appliances, and even host events. Staff can be hired and trained, from baristas to hipsters to mechs.
5 Calico
Calico is an indie community simulation RPG where players must rebuild and run a cat café. In this cute and casual game, people can add furniture, decorations, pastries, and even animals to their building. The character is customizable and new clothing can be unlocked over time and aren't confined to only exploring the shop. Players can bake desserts and drinks, learn about villagers, and interact with animals.
Animals can be befriended, named, added to a player’s party, or sent to rest in the cat café. If added to the party, the creatures will follow the player and listen to commands. If sent to the café, they will relax and play with customers. Magic potions allow people to take the game to the extreme, such as making an animal big enough to ride.
4 Coffee Talk
Coffee Talk is an atmospheric conversation-based game with anime-inspired pixel art and jazzy, lo-fi music. Players make coffee drinks while talking to the people of an alternative fantasy-inspired Seattle. The game features characters with modern human problems that people can relate to but is told from the point-of-view of non-humans like a mermaid or alien.
Players must listen to the people's problems and help them by serving drinks, from someone trying to relate to other people to a romantic tale. How the story progresses is based on how café customers are served, not on dialog choices.
3 Espresso Tycoon
Espresso Tycoon is a casual life simulation sandbox game where players run a coffee shop business. They can make drinks and snacks, decorate their café, create a coffee brand, manage employees, and take care of customers. There are multiple missions to complete. The 3D coffee editor helps with this because it allows players to combine ingredients to create new recipes, order supplies for delicious drinks, and collect rating points.
Strategy is important if people want to build their coffee empires, such as putting extra thought into decorations, hiring and managing employees, and the food supply chain. Players can analyze budgets, advertise, and do market research to bring customers in and make their preferred orders.
2 Barista Simulator
Barista Simulator is a relaxing simulation sandbox game where players are a barista who makes drinks and manages the coffee shop. Players feel what it’s like making coffee through the realistic graphics of this game. There are a wide variety of coffees to make, like black coffee, lattes, cappuccinos, espresso, and even green and black teas.
Players can make their own special blend of coffees and create new varieties to upgrade coffee machines and unlock new recipes. Customers will want different types of drinks and some will require upgraded machines to make. Upgrades are available for the shop items and management system.
1 Coffee Shop Tycoon
Coffee Shop Tycoon is a casual strategy simulation game. Players must not only make coffee and manage their shop but beat the competition to make their café the best franchise in town. Every decision can bring in or lose money, like hiring, training, and unlocking specializations for the staff or taking out loans and purchasing stocks from other companies. Players can create marketing campaigns to build their reputations, research rewards, and services.
Players can grind, roast, and brew their own beans as well as create their own crazy recipes and seasonal drinks. There are over 1000 beans from around the world with unique real-tasting notes and flavors. The shop and coffee bag are customizable with unlockable logos and perks and multiple locations and furniture offer tons of opportunities to personalize the company.