Team 17, the acclaimed developer group that brought us the Worms Series, is the mastermind behind this state-of-the-art title as well. Team 17 is still in keeping with the gamer’s needs and manages to adapt 100% once more.
As soon as the game commences, you and the rest of your chef team seem to be in extremely deep water, attempting to repel the attack of the infamous Spaghetti Monster, which demands all kinds of food recipes in a short time. Unfortunately, this is not the only issue. Your team is unqualified to overcome this obstacle and your efforts seem futile. The Onion King intervenes in the nick of time to provide a safe escape through a time portal, while paying a tribute to Illidan by saying: “You are not prepared”! It is obvious that you need to master your chef skills first and then try to compete with the giant monster again.
The level mechanics are easy to understand. Every stage rewards up to three stars. The stars are awarded based on your effectiveness. As you proceed, every stage asks for a specific number of stars (similar to the Mario Games System). That means that you can’t avoid the most challenging stages all the time, because the Spaghetti monster, aka the Final Boss, requires a particular sum of stars, too.
Overcooked is a cartoon styled, fast paced, neurotic and challenging game, yet simple in its core. Every single second matters. You cannot rest and you can definitely not stay idle. Every customer relies on your cooking skills, rapidness and flexibility, in a crusade which eventually leads you back to the monster, with a chance to put yourself in the pantheon of Humanity’s most acknowledged Heroes. Tomato, onion and mushroom soups, burgers, pizzas, and many other recipes are part of your delicious arsenal against the mighty Spaghetti monster. Master the recipes, deal with ordinary customers in various locations in your average stages and then combine them to please the absolute evil in the end.
The campaign mode is quite difficult to master and beat, yet the feeling you get by playing is sheer satisfaction, accompanied by the hardcore gamer’s muscled thumb. The local co-op mode is immaculate, as it redefines the meaning of teamwork and competitiveness in both the campaign and the versus mode. The only demerit of the game worth mentioning is its responsiveness in certain points. Sometimes, you will find yourself pressing the “X” button to either pick up or drop an item and the game will not respond. This doesn’t happen frequently and doesn’t overshadow the game’s control system, still it is irritating. Its visuals can be excused, because they serve a greater purpose; brains over looks. Its strong points lie within its mechanics and gameplay.
As far as the strategy you need to apply to make progress, remember this; you just need to minimize the impact of your mistakes in order to gain all three stars that every stage rewards. Practice makes perfect. Some stages are quite frustrating, but you will become an established Overcooked chef sooner or later.
You will definitely have fun and stay over-hooked, that’s a three star promise.
Gentlemen, start your ovens!
P.S. Try the Festive Edition, it is absolute bedlam!