Cooking Mama World Kitchen review

Please, sir, we don’t want any more

GamesRadar+ Verdict

Pros

  • +

    Mid-recipe minigames

  • +

    Share the pain in two-player mode

  • +

    Thankfully brief

Cons

  • -

    Inconsistent controls

  • -

    Repetitive activities

  • -

    Belongs on DS

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Part of the charm of the original Cooking Mama on DS was Mama herself, with her cheery advice that would turn to fire-eyed anger at the drop of a spoon. The cutesy presentation helped too, yet the game was fundamentally about cooking.

Now, however, food has taken a back seat to ‘personality’. The game’s shifted from a first-person view, meaning you now face your MySims-esque avatar as you control their movements while Mama buzzes around offering non-stop Engrish encouragement. This front-on view isn’t nearly as intuitive as before, and the blocky 3D is a graphical step backwards for the series.

The Let’s Cook mode gives you the chance to prepare a meal for one of Mama’s odd friends. It’s a pretty pointless addition though, as the process of assembling one of the 51 dishes (yes, just 51) remains the same, except on a ‘one mistake and you’re out’ system. The two-player activities fail to liven things up for the same reason – there just isn’t enough variety. There are more new tricks in the shape of mid-recipe minigames where you help Mama rectify your culinary mistakes by catching stray ingredients in her apron or grabbing a flying pizza base, but, as in the main game, unresponsive controls hinder your efforts.

Feb 25, 2009

More info

GenreSimulation
DescriptionEven with new features such as mid-recipe minigames, this latest Cooking Mama will not have you coming back for seconds.
Franchise nameCooking Mama
UK franchise nameCooking Mama
Platform"Wii"
US censor rating"Everyone"
UK censor rating"3+"
Release date1 January 1970 (US), 1 January 1970 (UK)
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