Hungry Hearts Diner: A Tale of Star-Crossed Souls

Hungry Hearts Diner appears to be a simple, relaxing game and it is -- although there's a deeper aspect to it not apparent at first glance.  For an incremental game, there's more to it than just tapping and waiting for timers and upgrading things. It's something that was present in the app developer's (GAGEX) previous games (Showa Candy Shop and Oden Cart), albeit in very small doses, which is a very realistic, very human story.

It's almost a visual novel, really. Distilled and stripped down, it tells the story of Granny's shop and its oddball patrons who, like the game, are more than they seem. From the carefree woman who is burdened with regrets, to the precocious child harboring a deep and suprisingly adult worry, and even Granny herself -- the characters can remind one that people are exceedingly complicated, and "good" and "bad" are on a spectrum rather just simply black and white.  The game is a bit short, but at least it ends long before it wears out its welcome.