Cooking Mama: Cook Off

Last updated
Cooking Mama: Cook Off
Cooking Mama 2.jpg
Developer(s) Office Create
Publisher(s)
Composer(s) Masayoshi Ishi
Series Cooking Mama
Platform(s) Wii
Release
  • JP: February 8, 2007
  • NA: March 20, 2007
  • EU: May 11, 2007
  • AU: May 18, 2007
Genre(s) Simulation, minigames
Mode(s) Single-player, multiplayer

Cooking Mama: Cook Off [lower-alpha 1] is a video game for the Wii developed by Office Create and published by Taito in Japan, Majesco Entertainment in North America, and 505 Games in Europe and Australia. It is a spin off of the Nintendo DS game Cooking Mama . The game was released in Japan on February 8, 2007 and in North America on March 20, 2007. In Europe (other than in Germany), it was released on May 11, 2007, with an Australian release closely following on May 18, 2007. The Wii sequel to this game, Cooking Mama: World Kitchen was released in the US in November 2008. [1]

Contents

Gameplay

Cook Off is a cooking simulation, where dishes are prepared by completing a series of short minigames. Each minigame represents a step in the meal preparation process, with a complete dish requiring anywhere from two to more than a dozen such steps. Players use the Wii Remote to mimic real-life cooking movements such as rolling, slicing, chopping, and stirring. For example, during a minigame involving grinding up raw beef, the player might be instructed to move the Wii Remote in a circular motion as if grasping the handle of a meat grinder. Both the Wii Remote's motion sensing and positional/pointing capabilities may be utilized, depending on the minigame. [1]

Cook Off features 55 recipes using over 300 ingredients. Although the initial number of accessible recipes is relatively small, new recipes are unlocked as previous recipes are successfully completed. Available recipes are displayed in a cookbook, along with a small national flag next to each, indicating each recipe's country of origin. While Cook Off includes fewer total recipes than Cooking Mama, recipes have a greater average number of steps and/or ingredients.

The dishes come from 10 countries: France, the United States, the United Kingdom, Spain, Japan, Italy, China, Germany, India, and Russia.

Scoring

As with the previous title, the player's performance is rated based on how quickly and accurately he or she can perform the various tasks. The player is awarded a score after each minigame, with the score factoring in both successful completion and the amount of time remaining. After the dish is completed, a medal is awarded based upon the average performance in each of the minigames. Unlike the original Cooking Mama, the best total score is stored as a high score, so that players can continue to try and surpass their previous performance on a dish even after winning a gold medal.

If players complete an entire minigame without making a mistake, or otherwise perform a given sub-task perfectly, they may be awarded a small score bonus for their skill.

New modes

The primary new play mode (as compared to the original Cooking Mama) is the Friends and Food of the World mode. In this mode, players challenge fictitious friends from various foreign countries to make their favorite recipes. Each friend has different ethnic or national recipes which they specialize in; in total, the game includes recipes from 10 countries. As friends rarely make mistakes, players must be proficient at creating a given dish if they hope to win. Defeating the opponent rewards the player with a piece of cooking gear or utensil (often adorned in gold), while failure earns a consolation prize with which to decorate the kitchen.

The game also includes a new two-player mode, titled Friends and Food, in which players compete head-to-head preparing the same recipe. Both players play simultaneously (each with their own Wii Remote) using a split-screen view. After the dish is completed, the total scores of both players are compared and one is declared the winner.

Recipes

There are 55 recipes such as pan fried lobster, pierogie, cream puffs and sushi.

Reception

The game received "mixed" reviews according to video game review aggregator Metacritic. [2]

Prior to the title's release, early press generated a certain level of excitement, with Wired proclaiming Cooking Mama: Cook Off the "Best Game of CES 2007". [12] However, after playing the finished product, several reviews noted that the game was not nearly as responsive or intuitive as its predecessor. According to reviewers, a simple action with the Wii Remote can be difficult to perform successfully, leading to a frustrating experience. [8] While the game was reported to still be fun, the lack of tactile feedback and several nagging control issues detract from the overall enjoyment. [9]

In Japan, Famitsu gave it a score of one six, two eights, and one seven, for a total of 29 out of 40. [5] Elsewhere, in the May 2007 issue, Electronic Gaming Monthly 's three editors gave the game marks of 7/10, 7.5/10 and 8/10, earning it an overall score of 7.5 out of 10. [3] In 2009, Games Magazine gave it a favorable review, concluding that the game "should appeal to anyone". [1]

Notes

  1. ↑ Cooking Mama: Cooking with Everyone! (クッキングママ みんなといっしょにお料理大会!, Kukkingu Mama: Minna to Issho ni Oryōri Taikai!)

Related Research Articles

<i>Mario Party</i> Party video game series published by Nintendo

Mario Party is a party video game series featuring characters from the Mario franchise in which up to four local players or computer-controlled characters compete in a board game interspersed with minigames. The games are currently developed by NDcube and published by Nintendo, being previously developed by Hudson Soft. The series is known for its party game elements, including the often unpredictable multiplayer modes that allow play with up to four, and sometimes eight, human players or CPUs.

<i>Cooking Mama</i> (video game) 2006 video game

Cooking Mama is a cookery simulation-styled minigame compilation video game for the Nintendo DS, and it was later ported to iOS as Cooking Mama: Lets Cook! in 2015. It was developed by Office Create and published by Taito, Majesco Entertainment, and 505 Games. It was awarded IGN's "Best Of E3" award for 2006. It is the start of the Cooking Mama series, with 4 more main series titles on DS and Nintendo 3DS, two spin offs on Wii, and a spin off on 3DS. It also spins off into the Gardening Mama series. For later titles in the series, the publishers and Office Create joined together to form Cooking Mama Limited, which was made exclusively to develop the Cooking Mama series.

<i>Mario Party 8</i> 2007 video game

Mario Party 8 is a 2007 party video game developed by Hudson Soft and published by Nintendo for the Wii. It is the eighth main installment in the Mario Party series, as well as the first title in the series to be released for the Wii.

<i>WarioWare: Smooth Moves</i> 2006 video game

WarioWare: Smooth Moves is a party video game developed by Nintendo SPD and Intelligent Systems. The game was published by Nintendo for its Wii video game system in Japan in December 2006, and in Europe, North America, and Australia in January 2007. It is the fifth game in the WarioWare series of games, and the only game in the series to be physically released for the Wii. Like its predecessors, WarioWare: Smooth Moves is built around a collection of microgames that last about five seconds each, and which require that the player hold the Wii Remote in specific positions. The game offers the microgames to the player in rapid succession, by first instructing the player to hold the Wii Remote in a specific manner, and then showing them the microgame. The microgames are divided into several stages, each of which loosely connects the microgames with the help of a story. Additionally, this was the first spin-off Mario game to be released for the console.

<i>Wii Play</i> 2006 party video game published by Nintendo

Wii Play is a party video game developed and published by Nintendo for the Wii console. It was released as a launch game for the console in Japan, Europe, and Australia in December 2006, and was released in North America in February 2007. The game features nine minigames, including a Duck Hunt-esque shooting range, a fishing game, and a billiards game, each of which are designed to showcase the features of the Wii Remote controller.

<i>Big Brain Academy: Wii Degree</i> 2007 video game

Big Brain Academy: Wii Degree, known in PAL regions as Big Brain Academy for Wii, is a video game released for the Wii. A sequel to the game Big Brain Academy for the Nintendo DS, it too measures a player's brain's weight, but with new games and puzzles to solve. The game makes use of Miis and uses WiiConnect24 features, allowing competition amongst users' friends, whose codes are automatically imported from the Wii's internal address book.

<i>Cooking Mama 2: Dinner with Friends</i> 2007 video game

Cooking Mama 2: Dinner with Friends is the sequel to the Nintendo DS video game Cooking Mama and its Wii spin off, Cooking Mama: Cook Off. The game has twice as many minigames as the original, new recipes, and a new multiplayer "Cook Off" mode. The game includes voice clips similar to the ones used in Cooking Mama: Cook Off.

<i>Mario Party DS</i> 2007 video game

Mario Party DS is a 2007 party video game developed by Hudson Soft and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo DS. It is the second handheld game in the Mario Party series, as well as the last game in the series to be developed by Hudson Soft, as all subsequent titles have been developed by NDcube. The game was re-released on the Virtual Console for the Wii U in April 2016.

<i>Cooking Mama: World Kitchen</i> 2008 video game

Cooking Mama: World Kitchen is the second spin off game in the Cooking Mama franchise and it is the sequel to the 2007 Wii game Cooking Mama: Cook Off. The game was developed by Cooking Mama Limited. It was published by Taito in Japan, Majesco Entertainment in North America, and by 505 Games in PAL regions. The game was released exclusively on Wii in North America on November 18, 2008, in Japan on December 11, 2008, in Europe on February 6, 2009, and in Australia on June 4, 2009.

<i>Gardening Mama</i> 2009 video game

Gardening Mama is a gardening simulation-styled minigame compilation video game for the Nintendo DS, and it was later ported to iOS in 2010. It is a spin-off from the Cooking Mama series.

<i>Excitebots: Trick Racing</i> 2009 video game

Excitebots: Trick Racing, known in Japan as Excite Mou Machine, is a racing video game published by Nintendo for the Wii video game console. Developed by Monster Games, it is the fourth game in the Excite series and the sequel to Excite Truck (2006). Excitebots was released on April 20, 2009 in North America. Excitebots features animal-themed robot vehicles and short minigames during racing, such as pie throwing, bowling and soccer. The game could be bought packaged with or without the Wii Wheel, similar to Mario Kart Wii.

<i>SpongeBob vs. The Big One: Beach Party Cook-Off</i> 2009 video game

SpongeBob vs. The Big One: Beach Party Cook-Off is a 2009 SpongeBob SquarePants video game developed by The Fizz Factor and published by Play THQ. In the European Union, the game is known as SpongeBob SquarePants: Frantic Fry-Cook. It was announced on January 12, 2009 by THQ Inc. that the game was being developed and was going to release later that year. It is based on the episode SpongeBob SquarePants vs. The Big One. The game was released on March 3, 2009, the same day as the episode's DVD release.

<i>Cooking Mama 3: Shop & Chop</i> 2009 video game

Cooking Mama 3: Shop & Chop released as Cooking Mama 3 in Japan, Europe and Australia, is the sequel to the Nintendo DS video game Cooking Mama 2: Dinner with Friends and is the third installment in the Cooking Mama series. Developed by 505 Games, Majesco Entertainment, and Taito, Shop & Chop features five different game modes, including two new ones, over 80 different recipes, 200 unique mini-games, four-player multiplayer, and the classic gameplay.

<i>Food Network: Cook or Be Cooked</i> 2009 video game

Food Network: Cook or Be Cooked is a cooking simulation-styled minigame compilation developed by American studio Red Fly Studio and published by Namco Bandai Games. It was released exclusively in North America on November 3, 2009, and is the first video game to use the Food Network license.

<i>Wii Party</i> 2010 party video game published by Nintendo

Wii Party is a party video game developed by NDcube and published by Nintendo for the Wii video game console. The game heavily borrows game play elements from the Mario Party series, another Nintendo franchise. It is also the first game in the Wii series that Shigeru Miyamoto did not produce. The game was released in Japan on July 8, 2010, in North America on October 3, 2010, in Australia on October 7, 2010, and in Europe on October 8, 2010. Wii Party was revealed by Satoru Iwata in a Financial Results Briefing on May 7, 2010. It received mixed to positive reviews from critics and sold 9.35 million copies worldwide as of September 2021. A sequel, Wii Party U, was released for the Wii U on October 25, 2013.

<i>Babysitting Mama</i> 2010 video game

Babysitting Mama, known in Japan as Babysitter Mama is a babysitting simulation-styled minigame compilation video game released for the Wii. It is the third spin-off from the Cooking Mama series; the first two were Gardening Mama and Crafting Mama. It includes a stuffed toy human baby to play with and the player slips its Wii Remote inside. It includes 50 different baby mini games and activities, like playing, washing, etc.

<i>Family Party: 30 Great Games Obstacle Arcade</i> 2012 party video game

Family Party: 30 Great Games Obstacle ArcadeJPN is a party game released for the Wii U. It was developed by Art Co., Ltd and published by D3 Publisher. The game was released in November 2012 for the PAL region, and in December for North America and Japan. The game was panned by critics.

<i>Wii Party U</i> 2013 party video game published by Nintendo

Wii Party U is a party video game developed and published by Nintendo for the Wii U in 2013. It was announced in a January 2013 Nintendo Direct, and later detailed at E3 2013 and the October 2013 Nintendo Direct. It is the sequel to the 2010 Wii game Wii Party.

<i>Cooking Mama 5: Bon Appétit!</i> 2013 video game

Cooking Mama 5: Bon Appétit!, released in Japan as Cooking Mama 5 and in Europe and Australia as Cooking Mama: Bon Appétit!, is the sequel to the Nintendo 3DS video game Cooking Mama 4: Kitchen Magic and is the fifth installment to the Cooking Mama series, the second on the Nintendo 3DS. It was released in Japan on November 21, 2013. It then released in North America on September 16, 2014 and in Europe on March 6, 2015. It contains over 60 recipes and new household activities/games.

<i>Cooking Mama</i> Japanese video game series

Cooking Mama is a video game series and media franchise owned by Cooking Mama Limited. The series is a cookery simulation-styled minigame compilation of many video games and adventures for Nintendo gaming platforms. Generally, the gameplay revolves around performing different kitchen tasks, through the instructions of "Mama", to cook various meals. The series so far consists of five main games on Nintendo DS and Nintendo 3DS, two spin-offs on Wii and DS each, as well as a spin off on 3DS. It is also a spin-off to the Gardening Mama series. The original Cooking Mama video game was also ported to iOS. A sixth main series game, Cooking Mama: Cookstar, was released for the Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4 in 2021.

References

  1. 1 2 3 McDonald, Thomas L. (May 2009). "Eat Any Good Games Lately?". Games Magazine : 65–67.
  2. 1 2 "Cooking Mama: Cook Off for Wii Reviews". Metacritic . Retrieved July 7, 2011.
  3. 1 2 EGM staff (May 2007). "Cooking Mama: Cook Off". Electronic Gaming Monthly . p. 80.
  4. ↑ Bramwell, Tom (May 9, 2007). "Cooking Mama: Cook Off". Eurogamer . Retrieved February 7, 2016.
  5. 1 2 Blerk (January 31, 2007). "Famitsu scores, 31/01/07". Eurogamer. Retrieved February 6, 2016.
  6. ↑ Reeves, Ben (May 2007). "Cooking Mama: Cook Off". Game Informer . No. 169. Archived from the original on January 18, 2008. Retrieved February 7, 2016.
  7. ↑ Navarro, Alex (March 23, 2007). "Cooking Mama: Cook Off Review". GameSpot . Retrieved February 7, 2016.
  8. 1 2 McGarvey, Sterling (March 28, 2007). "GameSpy: Cooking Mama: Cook Off". GameSpy.
  9. 1 2 Bozon, Mark (March 20, 2007). "Cooking Mama: Cook Off Review". IGN . Retrieved February 6, 2016.
  10. ↑ Kolan, Patrick (May 17, 2007). "Cooking Mama: Cook Off AU Review". IGN. Retrieved February 7, 2016.
  11. ↑ "Cooking Mama: Cook Off". Nintendo Power . Vol. 216. June 2007. p. 104.
  12. ↑ Wired News staff (January 12, 2007). "CES: Winners and Losers". Wired . Archived from the original on January 24, 2007. Retrieved February 6, 2016.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.