Overcooked 2 Review

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Poster for Overcooked 2.

Introduction  

Just as the saying goes: “Too many cooks spoil the broth “. Who would think that creating a cooking game for a party of 4 bring about so much chaos in terms of swearing and screaming! Overcooked 2 is a 2v2 Versus / Local Co-Op 1-4 players  party game where you try to manage the chaos in your kitchen while serving dishes on time.

Imagine trying to serve a plate of French fries, your friend trying to find an extinguisher to put out the fire, your friend fell into a trap: this chaos and catastrophe perfectly sums up a simple level in Overcooked.  

Lens 78: The Lens of Story  

Cut-scene from Overcooked 2 Co-Op Mode

You and your friends become cooks to save the Onion Kingdom through venturing different maps to cook and serve food to save the day! Throughout the game, you get to experience different rounds depending on the progress of the storyline and face different scenarios and obstacles which you will need to overcome.

The story was well-thoughted as it really makes you feel like a cook, doing your best to save the day by trying to manage the challenge with your friends in order not to burn something or overcook something which you need to serve. But honestly, it feels like a series of rounds and levels patched together with a thin layer of plot which had little to no significance to whatever you are doing in the game itself.

Honestly, the game did not need a story as I did not really watch the cutscenes and wanted to skip them in order to play the main game. What could have been done better is that the game could have added elements or decision trees during the rounds which affects the future levels and the story which you are going through.

Lens 38: The Lens of Challenge

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Cooks trying to put out the fire in their kitchen!

Levels do not get progressively difficult. However, there is an interesting twist to this: you get to experience a huge variety of different kinds of maps with different challenging obstacles. For example, you would have to make sure you do not go too fast on the icy levels where you might slip and fall or navigating through the platforms in the space levels. It gets exciting the first few times you play it as you get to enjoy different levels with your friends. However, as you play it again and again, you might find it a bit too repetitive.

Despite this, in the co-op 2v2 mode, your opponent become your biggest challenge. Your opponent can steal your food or sabotage your ingredients as you try to gain more points by serving dishes on time. There is a huge element of sabotage and conflict, which is the driving factor for many party games. As a result, the challenge gets increased significantly, due to the element of opponent and conflict.

Lens 45: The Lens of Competition vs. Collaboration

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Well, the story mode is an 8 as cooperation is key in order to passing the level. You and your 3 other friends will need to help each other to cook, wash the dishes, and put out any fire hazard which someone might have caused. If not, you would need to replay the level until you pass the level. Of course, you can troll your friends by holding onto the dish, but you might get hurled with vulgarities.

For the Versus mode, it is a 5 out of 10 as you feel competitive and want to sabotage the other team to gain an advantage. However, you still need to work with your partner to get the dishes served in time and make sure you get enough points to win that round.

Referring to The Elemental Tetrad

The Aesthetics: It is lively and joyful most of the time and the music selected really suits the map in which the players are in. After all, you would not want to have moody scenes 24/7 when playing a party game. Not only that, visual feedback through music and visuals is good as it would occasionally warn you when you are about to miss an order or reach the end of the time limit.

The Story: Not Significant, would rather not have a story and just play the story mode without the cutscenes itself, which might be annoying at times.

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Easy to Learn controls based on the Xbox version of Overcooked 2

The Mechanics: They are simple enough as you just need to walk, pick up items and ensure that your kitchen is in order. Perfect for a party game as you can pick up the game easily and play it with a couple of friends who might not have great gaming skills.

Overall, I would give this a 9. It would be a 10 out of 10 if only the story was more interactive and decision trees would affect the story and endings.