Monster Meals Preview

I got the chance to check out Monster Meals, a cooking management simulator developed by Giant Warrior Studio and published by GoGo Games Interactive. Since I started writing for GameGrin, I discovered that I really like running virtual businesses, especially restaurants (which does not reflect upon my real-life cooking ability), which made me eager to see what this game has to offer. So let's see what's on the menu, which apparently includes tempura scorpions and raw lizards. So tasty…?

The game started with a quick and cute (in-progress) introductory cutscene where a group of small monsters realise they don’t have to eat garbage to survive, but instead convert their small camper van into a food truck and make money serving up some delicious dishes from not-so-appetising places. However, your ingredients aren’t exactly given to you. Nope, you’ll have to hunt the various exotic animals in the immediate area such as rats, cockroaches, scorpions, vultures, and more. This can range from simply bashing the creature over the head, throwing your weapon to snipe them out of the air, to even fishing in the sewers. That's what you call sustainable!

Of course, you’ll need to keep your customers happy by making their orders on time or else… uh… you might need to get a replacement table. Or a new team member. Eventually, you’ll turn a lowly food truck into a double-decker caravan/mobile kitchen and serve monsters incredibly weird dishes.

Okay, first off, it feels like I’m playing a 2D single-player version of Overcooked. It’s delightfully cute and charming, but that hides its chaotic nature as you dash around trying to juggle several tasks at once, making sure nothing burns down and you don’t get eaten while earning enough cash to get three stars for the level.

There is local co-op multiplayer so you can take over the culinary world with a friend, but you will need a controller to play it. It definitely does ease the burden of dealing with the monsters, at the likely cost of your vocal chords and relationship should things go pear-shaped anyway.

Between your possibly deadly days of serving customers, you will be at home base where you can use the money you earn to buy cosmetic items (hats, clothes, weapons), change your appearance, drop in or out of co-op, and choose the next level. Also, it just so happens to be infested with giant spiders and rats occasionally. What a nice place!

From what I played, Monster Meals is shaping up to be quite a good journey through the monstrous culinary world. While it doesn't have all the bells and whistles of the aforementioned Overcooked games, it still seems like a good time. If you’re interested, look forward to playing the full release in January 2025.