Welcome to Primrose Lake 2

A lovely new entry in the ongoing series of Primrose Lake. I love this type of time management games in which you fulfill orders, and this one improves quite a lot compared to earlier entries. It takes around 8h to complete, can be played on easy and has no missable achievements.
Approximate amount of time to 100%: 8 hours
Estimated achievement difficulty: 2/10
Minimum number of playthroughs needed: 1
Is there a good guide available: You don't need a guide
Multiplayer achievements: No
Missable achievements: No
Grinding Achievements: Yes, a few ones feel a bit grindy because you have to replay a few levels multiple times
DLC-Only achievements: No
Speedrun achievements: No
Time-gated achievements: No
RNG-achievements: No
Does difficulty affect achievements: No, you can play on the easiest difficulty and still unlock everything
Unobtainable/glitched achievements: No
Yay a new game in the Primerose Lake series and it improves on quite a few things. Let's first start with a very small negative point: There is no recap, just like in all GameHouse games, but I forgot most of the plotlines of the first one, only remembered a part of the main event. And it will not tell you anything about the first game, just moves on from there. I hope they will consider a short recap in future titles, even if it is just a few screens with texts or an option in the main menu where you can read a text that will tell you the things you need to know from the first game. However, it isn't that important, as most of the fun in this type of game comes from fulfilling the customers' orders.
In this title, they show you 4 levels at the bottom instead of 5 and while that is such a small change, it felt better to me. I normally try to only take a break from the game when having finished a full screen, so if I only want to play for a little while, I would play 5 levels, in this case, it is 4, and that made this stupid little OCD kinda thing so much easier. Another thing I enjoyed is that the levels felt shorter. They didn't drag on that long, so you would quickly see how the story goes further. It is a small difference per level but it made quite an impact and felt so much better paced this way. I hope both things will become a regular thing in the future GameHouse/SQRT3 games.
None of the achievements are missable. A few might feel grindy because you need to do an action X amount of times, and especially if there were only a few levels of that type, then you have to replay a level multiple times to unlock it. It wasn't bad at all and with a completion time of around 8 hours, it is very doable and a lot of fun to complete Welcome to Primrose Lake 2.
The story ends without giving all the answers, but I know there are more Primrose entries in the make and I can't wait to see where the story will take us.
Please see my curator page for more games that are well worth your time

"Welcome back to Primrose Lake!"
Welcome to Primrose Lake 2 is a time management game developed by SQRT3 and Next Game and published by GameHouse. It is the sequel to the first game, Welcome to Primrose Lake. Since you play as multiple characters in this game, I'll just go with a basic story synopsis. After the events of the first game (which should be obvious that there will probably be spoilers for those who haven't played the first game), Jessica Carlyle is investigating the mysterious deaths that have surrounded various members of her family, wanting to prevent more. Meanwhile, Jenny Carlyle (no relation to Jessica, so just pure coincidence lol) is settling into her life at the local cafe after having left her fiance at the altar. However, the past eventually comes back to haunt her as well as Jessica (but in a different way, of course). Also, Persimmon, a rich heiress, has arrived for the official opening of the Primrose Lake Resort and Spa. There are definitely going to be plenty of shenanigans, but I'll stop here to avoid spoilers. ^^
With the gameplay, you can choose from among the usual three difficulty levels. (For review purposes, I chose to play on normal mode.) There are a total of 64 story levels in 5 locations as well as a few puzzle challenge levels. In most of the story levels, you have to serve customers who have a maximum of five hearts, and depending on how quickly you do so, you can earn up to 3 stars per level, which is converted to diamonds. In addition, there may be an extra task, which can earn you a diamond, and there is almost always the easter egg (in the form of a raccoon) that can also earn you a diamond. (Only the early tutorial levels don't have the raccoon or the extra task.) Diamonds are used to purchase items for the Carlyle study (purely for cosmetic purposes). Some mini-games are present in these levels as well, and there's a tutorial that explains how to complete them. As I mentioned earlier, there are a few puzzle challenge levels. They're separate from the usual story levels and can range from assembling gears in particular positions to unlock shackles to connecting pipes in order to make moonshine. Of course, there are lots of Steam achievements/in-game trophies, and they count towards a user's global total.
Now that I've gone over the story and gameplay, I'll move onto my thoughts. It has been quite a long time since I played the first game, and I was hoping for this game to make its way onto Steam. Even though it took quite a long while, I'm happy that it's finally here and that I got the chance to play it. However, I was a bit concerned that I'd need to refresh my memory on the story. Fortunately, it's not really necessary to have played the first game (although it certainly doesn't hurt). I enjoyed how the story starts off, with Jessica doing her investigation bit while Jenny is trying to live a normal, quiet life. I admit that I'm more of a Jessica fan since I like a good mystery, and Jenny has that whole love triangle situation going on. I know I'm jumping around a bit, but yes, Jenny gets caught up in a sort of love triangle when her fiance comes, intending to "rescue" Jenny, while a couple of locals want to win her over. There are quite a few stories to be told, but other than the ones surrounding Jessica and Jenny, there's the introduction of Persimmon. She definitely comes off as a young, snobby lady, all about the latest trends and such. It's obvious that Primrose Lake isn't anything like the big city, and Persimmon is trying to deal with the situation even though she clearly doesn't like it. However, the story that really caught my interest was a mysterious character (and I have a hypothesis on who this person is) who is keeping one of the Carlyle's relatives hostage. I enjoyed how that story unfolded, and as the story leaves off on another cliffhanger, we'll just have to wait for Welcome to Primrose Lake 3. (Hopefully, it won't take too long to make its way onto Steam. XD)
In regards to the gameplay, I didn't encounter any technical problems. On normal mode, the levels are pretty doable to complete to earn the maximum score although you might be scrambling a bit if you want to maximize customers' hearts in later levels. All of the achievements are obtainable although a few do require a bit of grinding. For me, the achievements that I needed to grind include the levels for the general store and boat rental shop. Also, I had to grind to get the achievement for losing 20 customers since I tend to be really good at not losing customers. However, as I mentioned, they are all obtainable. If there is something that I'd nitpick, it's with regards to the puzzle challenge levels. Although most of them are doable and self-explanatory, I found the pipe-connecting one to be a bit annoying. That's because the game doesn't explain that all the pipes need to be connected in such a way that there are no gaps. I had to look up a youtube video before I finally figured this out. :o
With the art, the style is the same that is characteristic of all of the time management games developed by SQRT3. It has that slightly cartoony style but never feels over-the-top. The sprites and backgrounds are drawn and colored well, and the art is pleasing to the eyes.
Regarding the music, the tracks are the same as in the previous game with the exception of the resort and spa track since that is a new location. The tracks feel fun and laidback, making you feel like you're really in the countryside, just enjoying nature and taking the time to relax.
Overall, would I recommend Welcome to Primrose Lake 2? If you enjoy time management games and are especially a fan of the ones published by GameHouse, then you totally should check out this game. I had lots of fun playing for the story and the gameplay, and I can't wait for the next installment in the series. For the asking price, it might be a bit on the steep side since it took me about 7 hours to complete the game earn all of the achievements. However, it's worth buying at some point, especially if you're a time management fan.
Finally, I want to give a major thank you to GameHouse for the review copy. I had lots of fun getting the chance to try out this game and give my thoughts, and I can't wait for the next installment (no matter how long it takes). ^^
For more detailed, fully complete, high quality reviews like this, please follow The Introverted Gamer, prioritizing heart and soul always. ^^

I absolutely love all of the Primrose games as I've played them on the iPad. Amazing graphics, amazing story. Disappointing that all 5 aren't on here, though.