they can prove to be quite interesting. While in some cases a great deal of player choice or distinctive stories are enough to grab my attention, another path to success is going dark and weird to draw me in. The easiest example I can cite would be the somewhat notorious Doki Doki Literature Club that took what seemed to be a classic dating format and then slowly went off the rails. While Cooking Companions doesn’t quite reach that level, it very much has its own distinctive vibe, and absolutely has some creepy surprises in store.

It starts out pretty simple, with a group of friends who have decided to take a break in a remote cabin in the woods. After getting a simple introduction to each of your friends, and a chance to begin sizing up who you may want to flirt with, everyone goes off to do their own thing and you’ll be left to look around in the cabin to search for ingredients to help make a meal for the night. Somewhere around that time is when you’ll encounter the Chompettes for the first time, signaling that something really weird is going on and at that point, for the right crowd, the hook will likely be set.

It doesn’t take long for things to start getting more grim and challenging. Between extreme weather, flooding in the area, and problems with your food supplies starting to be scarce, tensions quickly begin to rise. That doesn’t mean that you won’t be able to keep trying to build a relationship with someone, but you’ll likely begin to be more focused on much more weighty problems as things continue to get more grim. This all absolutely makes for an experience that won’t be suited to everyone, but if you enjoy buckling up for a wild ride and seeing the different ways things can go south, this can be a good time.