There is a coffee corner open only at night in Seattle. And it rains every night. One can order a variety of coffee, tea, and more. Chat with the barista. Chat with other customers. Or listen to their conversations.
That is the cozy environment that this game puts you in.
The sound of the rain and the soundtrack of Coffee Talk complete that coziness. I played this game for 6.6 hours and I have never felt the need to turn the volume down.
Spoiler Alert from this point on –
Coffee corner is described as a place where people share their stories. And it lives up to its promise. You will encounter love stories, family dramas, and more. The first customer, Freya, who wants to write a novel – is inspired by other customers’ stories…
As a player, you become the barista in this coffee corner. Not only do you prepare drinks, you also keep your customers company – should they need it.
There were a few things that I **personally** did not like much. Some of the customers were smoking indoors. When we know about the issues that stem from second-hand smoking (at least for humans!), it triggers me when I see that such behavior is being enabled in public places.
The second thing is that there were no plant-based milk options. Funnily enough, the game featured a vegan vampire in the game and messages about equality across all beings – YET there was no plant-based milk ** option ** on the menu. The game was released in 2020, which was a year when plant-based milks were already widely recognized. So, to say the least, I am disappointed with their choice of exclusion.
Anyhow, the world was portrayed as a place where humans co-exist with other beings, such as cats that can transform, aliens, vampires, and more.
There were nice, short thought-experiments too, here and there. For example, Neil was an alien who tried to mate with humans. But as an alien, they (Neil) had a big problem to solve first: overcoming miscommunication… Furthermore, Neil had difficulty understanding why people would use a condom if they have sex; shouldn’t the whole point be to reproduce? In the game, it was suggested that the pleasure was the reason why. If you are curious about why people have sex from the scientific point of view, here is an interesting scientific article (yes, using self-report), titled: Why Humans Have Sex.
Anyhow, moving on:
Humor was definitely part of the deal. For example, that vegan vampire was modelling for anti-aging cream advertisements, if my memory serves me right.
I also liked that you would start the evening/night with a newspaper and a cup of coffee by your side. It levelled up the coziness and became a comforting ritual.
Lastly, I did not see almost any gameplay, but I do not complain. I love reading books with many dialogues, and the feeling was almost the same, only enhanced by the additional visual and auditory experience.
In the end, I recommend this game; I only wish they had offered drinks with plant-based milk options on the menu and that indoor smoking in public places had not been portrayed as normal.