Godlike Burger PC Review

Godlike Burger is a stealth action-cooking simulator hybrid developed by Liquid Pig and published by Daedalic Entertainment. Players take the role of a space chef, traveling from planet to planet on his diner ship the "Good Burger". He serves the best burger ever, tasting like nothing else in the galaxy. That’s because it isn’t made from simple beef or other domestic animals but from the patrons themselves. Secret sauces on each burger cause the consumer to succumb to various impulses, and that is where one can make the killing blow.
 

 

Godlike Burger features several gameplay phases that work in tandem. Once opening up shop for the day, various alien patrons will warp in, check the restaurant’s menu, and make specific burger orders. Players must assemble the burgers correctly and quickly and then serve them to the right customer. These customers are very particular and do not like missing or additional accouterments. Players will jam in whatever ingredients are in their inventory, making it essential only to grab what’s in the ordered recipe. Additionally, no one wants to eat cold food, making it necessary to get orders out or reheat chilled burgers.

At times, equipment in Good Burger can break down, including stoves, the cash register, or the preparation counter itself. Nearly every problem can be solved by kicking a device repeatedly. Additionally, players can kick aliens to get them to relocate or move out of the way, though this can upset them and cause dissatisfaction. 

Once an order is called, the patron will pay (there is no option to otherwise rob or loot), sit at a free seat, and dine on their food. But, shortly after digestion, whichever special sauces will soon overwhelm them. This may include a desire to smoke outside, rush to the bathroom, play arcade games, or even dance. Segregated aliens can then be murdered with a few slashes of the player’s carving knife. This will soak one in blood, making it imperative to wash up or risk being detected by others. One can also utilize traps placed around the ship for cleaner kills, like exploding signs or a hidden gun.

The trick comes in balancing these two goals. Some aliens should be left alive to spread word of mouth, become repeat paying customers, or be away from a murder scene. The more famous the shop becomes, the more patrons will come, leading to higher revenue. However, this can also mean additional witnesses who, after seeing a crime, will call the space police. These officers are not concerned about the arrest and will beat and rob players of everything they have saved, putting them back at square one.

After closing up shop, there are additional activities that players can make in the evening. This includes buying new and more diverse condiments, setting up stronger traps around Good Burger, brewing additional mind-altering sauces, and simply paying bills or bribing local police. After learning about different planets, players will also choose to switch locations to build a new reputation or further avoid the authorities.

Godlike Burger will also show off various comic segments between each day of service. This is meant to help explain the story and lore, though, with no actual text, it is up to players to figure out what each picture is trying to convey. In many of them, it tends to show how deranged the player chef is, with only a few glimpses of his actual motivation. Due to this, it feels as if players are the villain rather than someone with an intended goal. 

Godlike Burger’s controls are relatively compact. The standard WASD are used to move, F to interact, C picks up items, X leaves them, space bar to attack, and the tab brings up various information menus. It seems odd that the mouse has no use at all, which could have been a valuable means of targeting objects. It becomes evident that Godlike Burger was intended for console and/or controller play and that keyboards are an afterthought.

Good Burger itself is rather massive for a staff of just one person. The dining area, kitchen, and other facilities are a bit too spread out to swiftly take on the role of manager, chef, server, janitor, security guard, and murderer all at the same time. This is especially compounded that the influx of customers can be never-ending, with possibly dozens of aliens waiting for an order or getting upset and leaving without ever paying. The layout was intended for either multiplayer or NPC assistants, but neither included features.

Godlike Burger suffers from poor structuring and balance. Worlds are gated by milestones like reputation or money but do not represent stages or expected difficulties. Players may wind up flying to a new planet only to find that the inhabitants have wild demands, inconsistent daily costumers, or a dwindling cash reserve, making it impossible to operate. More often, it feels like an element of survival was injected late in development. This constant friction becomes between whether the game wants to be a sandbox or have static progression.

The music of Godlike Burger stands out to be considerably odd. Many instrument choices and beats sound very alien and bizarre, which is thematically appropriate. But in practice, this becomes incredibly unpleasant. Nearly every track is a short 30-second melody put on repeated loop, lacking any hooks, breaks, or bridges. It does add to the feeling of insanity and homicide. However, it is unclear if it is intentional or due to a lack of creativity.

Godlike Burger has some fantastic concepts but isn’t executed quite well. These issues aren’t big enough to ruin the game's entirety but make it feel like balance patches should be deployed soon. Definite improvements could include full open sandbox mode, better controls, and some multiplayer. There is a demo for the game on Steam, and those who do enjoy it should not be reluctant to purchase the full game.

Kurtis Seid, NoobFeed
Twitter