There is no question that Gordon Ramsay is one of the most well-known chefs in the world. He’s pretty much everywhere from television to books to memes to social media and beyond. He’s even dipped his culinary toes into mobile gaming. The first official foray came with Restaurant Dash: Gordon Ramsay and today marks another seminal moment in his career with the arrival of Outplay’s Gordon Ramsay’s Chef Blast – A Culinary Genius Game. Both the iOS and Android mobile versions are now available for everyone though I had the opportunity for an early look at the game.
Most mobile gamers are familiar with the “match 3” type of game. Simply stated, players are asked to swap marked blocks to create chains of 3+ that break to progress the game. Chef Blast follows that same pattern though with a small twist. Instead of matching 3 blocks of the same type, players only need to match 2. According to the dev team in our interview, this makes things “faster, blasty-er, and just plain more fun” and offer a more “fun and exciting tone” for the game. In this regard, I have to agree.
Some might say that only requiring players to match 2 identical blocks oversimplifies the game. Perhaps true in the game’s earliest phases, it quickly becomes apparent that developers have understood this and have created more complex gameplay than one might imagine. As the game progresses beyond level 20 or so, players will be required to apply strategic moves in order to complete a given level before running out of turns. There are, of course, ways to continue playing once the allotted number of turns are used up but these extra turns cost earned or purchased in-game currency. As expected, purchasing extra turns is costly and the number provided is very low, about 5 turns per purchase.
While the game is overall pretty much the same thing that we’ve all seen hundreds of times before when it comes to “match X” games, there is one very unexpected feature in particular that sets Gordon Ramsay’s Chef Blast head and shoulders above the competition. Every two weeks, players have the opportunity to earn a real-world Gordon Ramsay recipe. In my time playing, I earned three separate recipes including Beef Wellington, something that anyone who’s watched Hell’s Kitchen will be well acquainted with. My daughter and I can’t wait to try it out. The developers have even provided alternate versions of the recipe depending on what kitchen measurement system a cook may need. It’s also worth noting that some of the recipes that players can win are not published anywhere else in the world. This is a lovely and unexpected touch and the chance to try my hand at a Gordon Ramsay recipe earned the game an extra point for my score.
A second fun feature is the 200+ voice-over lines provided by Mr. Ramsay himself. When he expresses disappointment, he really expresses disappointment (and vice-versa, of course). Even some of Ramsay’s signature moves are included such as rubbing his face in frustration or beaming that 1000 watt smile. It’s all good fun and, despite what you might expect, does not get tiresome over the life of the game.
The team has plans for the future including the addition of new levels and multiplayer so the plan is to keep things rolling along for years to come.
All in all, Gordon Ramsay’s Chef Blast is a typical game for its type but made all the better by what it includes that you won’t find anywhere else. It’s available starting today on both Google Play and via the App Store. It’s free to play with optional in-app purchases so head on over and check it out before heading into your kitchen to see if you can match Gordon’s culinary genius.
