Cooking Mama: Cookstar is better than most other games in the series; it has more content and recipes, it has more unlocks, and it has solid gameplay with more than one method of control. He even has a co-op.
While it plays more or less exactly what you'd expect if you've played one of these games before, there's a lot more to like here than you might initially expect.
Cooking Mama: Cookstar Review – Just Like Mama Used To Make
Let's see what it takes to be the next Cookstar
Creating such a familiar feeling is an impressive feat considering how the game was the first in the series not to be developed by the series' original studio, Office Create. Cookstar was handled by the folks at Planet Entertainment and 1st Playable Productions, who handled the beloved IP pretty well.
The gameplay is as simple as it's always been, with Mama's straightforward controls and helpful instructions, but it's all done in a competent and charming enough way that I want to keep playing and playing.
Breaking down the various steps of both complicated and simple recipes from around the world into little WarioWare-style mini-games is always a winning formula, and it's one that Cookstar continues to use with success. You'll be whipping up lamb gyros and pork gyoza in no time, and completing recipes earns you more recipes to work with, of which there are 80 in total.
That's in addition to customization options for Mama as well as tons of cosmetic stuff to unlock for free.
There's a newly added vegetarian mode for those abstaining from the meat lifestyle, which was a long-requested addition to the series, so it's worth a golf shot too. There's also a co-op mode called "Potluck" with its own set of mini-games, which, while not that deep, are quite fun.
The eponymous Cookstar itself is a new theme and mode added to the game. You see, you are trying to become the next "Cookstar" by cooking awesome dishes and then sharing photos online, which you can also share on Twitter IRL thanks to social media integration on Nintendo Switch.
Don't be put off by the angle of the internet: it's more or less just an additional aesthetic that changes depending on how well each dish is cooked, which you're always rated on with the system traditional three star.
I'd be lying if I said I wasn't having fun applying little stickers and filters to my photos and laughing at the idea of ​​a rainbow grilled cheese sandwich being served at a fancy restaurant.
Don't forget that food can also be art.
The game was also supposed to incorporate blockchain technology for a number of reasons, such as varying character animations and preventing hacking. This aspect of the game was handled by Planet Digital Partners, which appears to be another branch of Planet Entertainment. Luckily, that doesn't bother me.
Cooking Mama: Cookstar looks like a brighter, more content-heavy version of the series installments made for the Nintendo Wii. It has the same 3D graphics style which is competent and attractive, but nothing out of the ordinary, and both feature motion controls.
The motion controls aren't the best I've seen for a Switch title. but they work really well, and you'll find yourself doing a lot of different moves and actions in order to cook the perfect dish. You'll tilt the controller to grease a pan with butter, cut vegetables like you would in real life, and even make more gentle and subtle movements in order to rip the leaves off a head of lettuce.
It can be quite amusing if temperamental at times.
Unfortunately, dual control modes come with a major caveat: you can only play the game with motion controls in TV mode, and if you're playing in handheld mode, you must use traditional non-motion controls. You can pair Joy-Cons to the game in handheld mode, but that doesn't really fix the problem.
It's a shame you can't use it whenever you want either; being able to switch between control methods at any time would have made the game both more accessible and more fun.
Cooking Mama: Cookstar Review – The Bottom Line
Apparently this game had an "Air Fryer consultant". To be honest, it shows.
Benefits
- Fun and easy to pick up and play
- Lots of single player content
- Decent cooperation
- Vegetarian products
The inconvenients
- Exciting control options are limited
- Not much different from previous titles
- Music is good but nothing special
Cooking Mama: Cookstar is a pretty fun but familiar addition to the series that's been handled well. There's not much here that shakes up the formula. While it's fun and there's a bit for everyone, there's nothing that puts it above the average game.
More than anything else, I wish the release of this game wasn't so mysterious that people who want to play it can.
Cooking Mama Cookstar is now physically available for Nintendo Switch, with digital release at an unspecified future date.
