Pizza Connection

Works flawlessly on Steam Deck! Switch to Proton Experimental if you get an initial crash. Also, it takes a minute to figure out the controls, as nothing is labeled, but I found everything to be intuitive: blend of trackpad and buttons. I’ll caveat that: “intuitive” IF you played this back in the 90’s. If you’re brand-new to Pizza Connection, you may find the lack of explanations throughout the game to be as frustrating as I did in the 90’s! Also, don’t forget to download the recipe book; it’s critical for replicating the pizzas with success. (You can, however, also create your own pizzas from scratch, via the second page of the recipes list in-game. Scores for your original recipes are usually garbage; that’s a feature of the game, not a bug, and not you doing anything wrong. Similarly, it may take a looong while before you get customers. Patience and advertising are both key, along with paying attention to how your menu and decor cater to your target market demographic.) I just completed one run-through on my Steam Deck without any problems (other than the dang mafia finding my restaurant), and had a blast, despite being forced to declare bankruptcy. :D Instantly transported me back to 1996, when this was my favorite childhood game. I must have spent hundreds of hours playing it with my sister. Amazingly in-depth and complex business simulation, with everything you could want: hiring, firing, cooking, decorating, inventory management, advertising, market research, loan sharks, mob bosses, real estate management, etc. A game can last as briefly as an hour, or stretch on for days or weeks if you get a worldwide pizza empire running effectively, as you can open multiple restaurants in multiple cities. A range of difficulty options are available, as are sandbox and mission modes. It takes a long while to learn the synergies among all of the systems and statistics. I’ve never been able to find a game quite like it, other than the sequels, though I am partial to this first iteration. Little me would have been dumbfounded had she known that adult me could play this on a handheld device in the future. In 2024, we don’t have flying cars, but we do have Pizza Connection on the Deck.