| Cook, Serve, Delicious! | |
| Developer: | Vertigo Gaming |
| Publisher: | Vertigo Gaming |
| Genre: | Simulation |
| Platforms: | Windows, OS X, Linux, iOS, Android |
| Modes: | Single-player, multiplayer |
| Engine: | GameMaker Studio |
| Director: | David Galindo |
| Artist: | Sarah Gross |
| Composer: | Jonathan Geer |
Cook, Serve, Delicious! is a restaurant simulation video game released in 2012, developed and published by Vertigo Gaming. The player controls the menu and running of a restaurant, with in game currency being awarded by correctly filling customer orders. Directed by David Galindo, it had art from Sara Gross and music from Jonathan Geer. The game was released on 5 October 2012, for PC, and for Steam after a period on Steam Greenlight from 8 October 2013. It was later ported to iOS and Android. Cook, Serve, Delicious! drew inspiration from Japan-only 1999 game Ore no Ryouri.
The game spawned three sequels: Cook, Serve, Delicious! 2 in 2017, Cook, Serve, Delicious! 3 in 2020 and Cook Serve Forever, which does not have a release date. A remastered version of the game is planned for 2024.
Cook, Serve, Delicious! centres on an old, worn down restaurant in need of repair. The tower building in which the restaurant is included has had its business drop, but management has tasked the player with changing that fortune. The player is given money, and a choice of twenty foods to place on the menu, but this can be increased by purchasing new equipment for the kitchen. Customers will ask for a variety of food and drink, as well as sauces, additions and toppings.[1]
A series of eight cooking stations are used to cook food simultaneously, known in-game as "prep stations". Prepping food requires navigating to the customer's order at the given prep station, and then following specific steps to complete it, given as keyboard button prompts. Orders can be customized by the customer such as different toppings on a hamburger. Some meals require cooking time, during which other orders can be completed. A completed meal is graded by how well it was cooked - missing steps or ingredients, adding wrong ingredients, or not cooking it properly can lead to lower grades and a lower income for the day. The day cycle includes rush hours at lunch and dinner, prompting more customers to come in during those times. Alongside cooking, chores to keep the restaurant sanitary, such as washing dishes, throwing out the garbage, and flushing the lavatory have to be completed, each following a similar approach to complete as cooking food.
Between days, the player can adjust their menu, buying new recipes, equipment or decorations with money earned. Recipe changes are necessary to keep customers coming, as serving too many fattening or boring foods at the same time will turn customers away, while serving the same foods day-in and day-out will cause them to become stale and less attractive to customers.[2] [3]
Cook, Serve Delicious! was designed and produced by Vertigo Gaming in October 2012. It was developed by David Galindo, with art from Sara Gross and music from Jonathan Geer. Among the inspirations for the game was the PlayStation game Ore no Ryouri, which was released exclusively in Japan in 1999. Galindo had obtained a demo for the game through a gaming magazine and was intrigued by the approach and rush of the title, and inspired him to create a fan-lead version in 2004, using hand-drawn graphics.[4] While the game was popular and he wanted to make a sequel, he lacked the funds to develop it. However, after releasing The Oil Blue, his first attempt at a full game, he had $10,000 to put towards the project.[4]
Work started on Cook, Serve Delicious! around March 2012, with plans to release in mid-2012 as to hit during the mid-year lull of major releases. As Galindo was not a programmer, he used GameMaker Studio 8.1, which at the time was in beta development for creating Microsoft Windows releases and later would be expanded to include Android and iOS support later; he wanted to get the game released for Windows first and then release other versions once the full GameMaker Studio version was out.[4] The game was released 5 October 2012 on PC, and then on iOS and Android on 16 December 2012, and 29 July 2013, respectively.[5] [6] [7] Downloadable content was released for the game, with the name: Cook, Serve, Delicious: Extra Crispy Edition, which added ten new foods, new music tracks, controller support and support for local cooperative gameplay.[8]
Mal Scott of The Stereogram was very positive about the game, commenting that despite the game being reasonably basic, it was "much, much more than the sum of its parts." Scott also commented that the game was difficult, dubbing it the "Dark Souls of cooking games".[9] Matt Porter of Hooked Gamers gave the game a 7.4 out of 10 rating, commenting that the game is 'surprisingly difficult at times', and that it 'has a lot of charm', but also called the game 'repetitive'.[10] Touch Arcade Jon Polson gave the iPad version four and a half stars, but did not think the simplified controls made the game better.[11] Lucy Ingram of 148Apps reviewed the app version and observed that the game took "the best elements of every restaurant simulation game" and was "one of the most enjoyable and addictive games [she] ever played." She also praised the game's soundtrack and gameplay, saying that "the ultra-smooth touch controls make Cook, Serve, Delicious a joy to play."[12]
Vertigo Gaming announced that a sequel to the game, entitled Cook, Serve, Delicious! 2 was to be released on 24 August 2017, and also for a release on MacOS, Linux, Xbox One and PlayStation 4. The game was delayed, and eventually released on 13 September 2017 for computers and 10 April 2019 for consoles. Cook, Serve, Delicious! 2 boasted over 180 food types, in comparison to the original's 30, with food being split into entrées, side dishes and drinks. It has also added improved graphics, as well as the ability to customize the restaurant's aesthetics.[13]
Cook, Serve, Delicious! 3 was announced in August 2019 with planned early access release in January 2020.[14] The game fully released for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch on October 14, 2020. The sequel is more story-driven than the previous games, taking place in an apocalyptic future, with the player a human chef aboard a food truck manned by robotic assistants, competing in a national food truck championship. Reflecting this, the game eliminates the chores of running the restaurant, while the player must be ready to serve numerous dishes when they arrive at each stop along the route.[15] Cook Serve Forever released in early access in May 2023, along with a demo that was launched in January 2023. Vertigo considered Cook Serve Forever their biggest cooking game to date yet.[16] [17] [18]
A remastered version of Cook, Serve, Delicious!, titled Cook, Serve, Delicious: Re-Mustard! was announced by Vertigo Games in July 2023 with plans for release in 2024. The remastered version, besides featuring improved graphics, will include additional story elements to tie with the sequels in the series, ten new recipes, and additional side quests. The title will also feature a Typing Mode for the computer versions of the game, where the ingredients to be added are associated with keys on the keyboard (such as "M" for mustard), though no such feature has yet been announced for consoles.[19]