Cooking Academy Review

By Andrew Nesvadba, on July 20, 2010

Publisher: Fugazo, Inc.
Genre: Family
Released: 15 Jul, 2010
Size: 36.4 MB
Price: $1.99

PROS

Lots of recipes to master.
Intuitive food preparation mini-games.
Simple semi-realistic cartoonish style.

CONS

Finishing the game can be laborious due to the lengthy unlocking process.
Generic smattering of recipes.

VERDICT

Cooking Academy doesn't break out of the mold for the Cooking Mama style of games, but it still provides a decent selection of recipes for genre fans to enjoy.

Full Review
App Store Info

While it's not an immensely cloned style, the Cooking Mama school of gameplay with its mix of mini-games that aim to teach (at least in a rough sense) players how to cook has attracted its imitators. Cooking Academy by Fugazo takes a stab at improving on the formula for the App Store and takes players through a strict course of lessons to add to their culinary expertise.

To progress through Cooking Academy you'll have to complete a series of courses, along with a final exam. Each food item is broken up in a selection of mini-games to simulate the different preparation stages, with each one utilizing a variety of the iPhone's capabilities. You'll have to slice, chop, roll, fold, mix, flip and grate food via a selection of intuitive controls. One minor beef I've personally had with these games is the selection of 'cooking' phases that use a rhythm game style that feels wholly unrealistic and Cooking Academy is no different in this regard.

Visually, Cooking Academy plays for the middle-ground and uses a semi-realistic cartoonish style to depict the food. Unfortunately this does tend to work against the player in some mini-games as players have to quickly judge 'what an item is' based off a generic image.

To be fair, no one is going to learn how to be a chef through games like this, but in a way it's a celebration of food and Cooking Academy hopes to instill some rigor in to the otherwise relaxed atmosphere used in other cooking games. It's a standard effort, but this also deserves a standard final score: 'C'.

Screenshots