Battle Chef Brigade

Battle Chef Brigade successfully mixes genres to create something wholly engaging. The charming art direction and characters, creative combat, and clever puzzle mechanics help put Battle Chef Brigade squarely in its own genre. Despite a few storytelling stumbles and some minimal repetition, the sunny disposition of Trinket Studios' puzzle/platformer/beat ‘em up ultimately shines through.

If you're getting a sense that I'm waffling here between love and meh, you're reading me right. I love the premise of this game, which folds together so many of my favorite things: platformers, mobile-style brain-suck puzzles, sexy orcs and overly complicated meals. And I love so, so much of its execution, especially the gorgeous art and music.

Beast-hunting will test your reflexes while cooking them up will tease your brain, and Battle Chef Brigade's upbeat attitude and stylish looks will have you smiling the whole way through.

Battle Chef Brigade is a nice treat, but the intensity of the cooking may make you want to pull out your hair

It might not fully satisfy match-3 fans, then, but this is still a delectable puzzler wrapped in an engaging fantasy story, served with a side of so-so platforming. It's with great skill that Trinket Studios has managed to make that unusual combination work at all, even if I'm left longing for a more developed follow-up that makes the most of every one of its inspired ingredients.

Still, there's something whimsical and endearing that drives Battle Chef Brigade forward. Across seven-to-ten hours, Mina and her cooking companions grow on you. Charming characters and a unique blend of gameplay systems create for an alluring little game that's simple fun throughout.

Battle Chef Brigade delivered exactly what I wanted out of it: an engaging, but light game between visual novel segments with eccentric fantasy chefs. It's a delightful way to while away subway rides when, at home, mountains of heavy-lift AAA games are piling up.

Battle Chef Brigade Deluxe is a neat package which provides numerous options that will keep you coming back for seconds and perhaps even thirds and more. It's charming look and feel and well-developed plot combined with great two-pronged gameplay make it truly unique and provide a great incentive to progress further.

Battle Chef Brigade is the first game of its kind, a rarity in this day and age. Everything about it is fresh and original, from its story to the handrawn graphics, to the brilliant voice acting. The combination of fast-paced action, RPG-style gear collecting and puzzle elements wrapped into a game about cooking is something that sounds absurd but works incredibly well.Like a well-made dish, each element of Battle Chef Brigade's gameplay is perfectly prepared. You could separate out each of the three main components of this game and have the foundation for something intriguing on its own, but it's the combination of them that forms something truly memorable. Whether you think you'd like this or not, we recommend at least giving it a look. Battle Chef Brigade is a must-play for all Switch owners.

In the end, Battle Chef Brigade's gambit when it comes to its unorthodox blend of ingredients pays off well, resulting in truly stellar duels that reward combat skills, proper planning and strategy, with success not only delivering dishes to make one salivate, but also truly fun gameplay on all fronts.