Diner Dash 2 Review

The insanely popular flagship of the task-management genre receives a facelift in its successor, Diner Dash 2. Instead of collapsing under the weight of the original's awesomeness, this younger sibling is packed with just as much fast-paced waitressing fun, but with some much-needed improvements. Diner Dash 2 both sets itself apart from and preserves the feel of the original with a similar theme, graphics and gameplay. This game is just as entertaining and addicting to play and provides hours of fun, until your clicking finger can't take anymore.

Easy Controls and Basic Gameplay

Just like other games in the genre, Diner Dash 2 relies exclusively on the mouse to control game action. You must serve customers as quickly as possible so their mood remains happy. If they become angry, they will leave the restaurant in a huff, costing you money. There are several different customer types, each of which have different patience levels and tip differently, such as the Cell Phone Addicts, who are very impatient, tip poorly and irritate the other customers with their chatting.

Each customer is a certain color, which allows you to earn score multipliers and bonuses if you are able to seat them in a chair that is the same color. You can also earn score multipliers by chaining your actions. So if you take 3 orders in a row without doing another action, the score for taking an order is multiplied by 3. It is possible to reach the regular Goal without chaining, but almost impossible to reach Expert Goal without doing it.

Help Your Restaurant Owning Friends

Diner Dash 2 sports over 40 levels at 4 different locations. You are Flo, the entrepreneurial restaurant owner, who must help her friends make enough money at their restaurants to pay their rent. Their landlord, Mr Big, is charging them ridiculous amounts of money for their rent in the hope of driving them out of business, so he can open his mega food court. Each location is a different restaurant threatened by Mr Big, so there is a change of scenery every 10 levels. While you make money at each restaurant, you can make improvements to it to attract more customers. You can choose from three options for each improvement, so there is some variety. The third option is only unlocked after you get an Expert Goal for the previous level, making getting the Expert Goal rewarding and worthwhile.

Equipment Upgrades To Keep Customers Happy

As you go along you also obtain new equipment to keep your customers happy, such as a drink machine or dessert rack. These help you get higher scores, which combats some of the growing difficulty of play. The difficulty increases exponentially each level, making Diner Dash 2 a constant challenge. Even those tired of Story Mode have an option, called Endless Shift, in which the level never ends. You have to please as many customers as you can for as long as possible, until too many people get angry and leave. This variety keeps Diner Dash 2 from getting boring or repetitive.

Uninspiring Graphics

On the other hand, Diner Dash 2 has its faults. The graphics are 2D, flat and rather boring. Instead of feeling vintage, the look of the game just feels dated. This doesn't affect the quality of the game too much, but can be distracting.

And the upgrades you earn during play are only aesthetic, meaning they are only for looks and don't actually assist you in gameplay. You do get auto upgrades, but it is a little disappointing to see that you can't decide whether to make Flo run faster, or have your chef cook faster, or whatever you would like. While these drawback don't detract significantly from the quality of the game they do keep it from being the best game it could be.

Conclusion - One of the Stronger Members of the Dinner Dash Series

Diner Dash 2 uses all the great elements of the original but also strikes out in a new direction. The typical fast pace of the game makes it challenging, and the large number of levels combined with the Endless Shift option adds variety and hours of entertainment to the game. The great diversity of customer types keeps it from getting repetitive without making the game confusing or too difficult to play, while Expert Goal is a great challenge for task-management pros. All in all, Diner Dash 2 is fast, addicting, and a fun play for just about anyone.