Personal Trainer: Cooking

"Can't think of something to cook tonight? Try this."

There are no monsters, world map or hero in this game. Actually, Shaberu! DS Oryouri Navi is not even a game. It is an electronic cookbook, video tutorial and resident chef all rolled into one. Since its inception, the Nintendo DS has been home to many educational or instructional software.

Many noticeable 'games' has made it on the DS without a single drop of blood being spilled. Games like 'Brain Age' and others like it brought a new generation of people to the DS. And DS Oryouri is no different.

***** Gameplay / Control *****

Navigation in this software is very straight forward. One of the best features is that it is highly customisable. You can choose exactly which ingredient(s) you don't want on your meal. From beef to sugar, from vinegar to salmon, you choose what you eat. It is good for those who have a different eating habit (eg. vegetarian). Just keep it out of reach of children, they will try everything to get the veggie off the list!

You can also customise the number of dishes or the number of diners. There are many ways to choose a dish. The most straight forward way is to input the ingredient directly using the stylus and let the DS display the available dishes, or for the more adventurous, let the DS randomly pick a 3-course meal for you. You can even choose between a 2-course or a 3-course meal. Once you have finalised your dishes, it's time to prepare and cook it.

DS Oryouri provides you with a detailed step-by-step guide to make your dish. Pictures are included and a mechanical voice (you can even customise that!) reads out the instructions, which are displayed on top screen.

The best part is, once you get started, you don't need to touch the DS again. Very handy for those dishes that requires a hands-on approach, which is pretty much all of them. DS Oryouri allows you to issue commands like "Next", "Back" and "Repeat" by talking into the mic.

Besides all these cool recipes (some 200 of them), DS Oryouri contains a selection of videos that shows you how to perform certain tasks, from cutting onions to chopping tomatoes. It also contains an ingredient glossary of sort, providing useful information and suggestions on how to keep them fresh.

Another neat feature is the calendar function that keeps track of what you've cooked. Very neat feature if you forget what you ate last month.

All are very nice additions, indeed.

***** Graphics *****

Like any paperback cookbooks, DS Oryouri provides plenty of photos, from the ingredient to the finished product, each photo is crisp and clear, so you know exactly how it should turn out. Whether it turns out the way it is shown is all up to you. Besides the photos, there isn't much in terms of graphics. But then, that's all you need.

***** Sound *****

The first time you use DS Oryouri, you have the option to set how fast the mechanical voice should talk. This is mostly related to the step-by-step guide. Once you're in, you can turn the BGM on and off via the option menu. While this software is really more to with food than anything else, the BGM is quite soothing.

However, it is likely that you will turn it off to save some battery, and to concentrate on your masterpiece.

***** Replay *****

Are you going to cook all the recipes available all in one night? Yeah, I didn't think so. Enough said.

***** Rent or Buy *****

Are you kidding? Buy it, of course. With so many dishes to choose from, plus the option to download more recipes via Wi-Fi (only available in Japan), it will be a long time before you run out of a good dinner.

Only two things will stop you from buying it. One is the recipes available. Yes, there are 200+ of them, but they are all Japanese cuisine. You want pizza? Forget it. Shaberu! DS Oryouri Navi is only for those with a liking for Japanese food, which brings me to the second point.

It's in Japanese only. Speech, instructions, information, they are all in Japanese. While this poses no problem whatsoever for its intended audience (who? the Japanese, of course), it could be a problem for the rest of us. Otherwise, it's a perfect cookbook on the DS.

Only wish it has English instructions.

Good:

* Highly customisable
* Step-by-step detailed instructions
* Many neat features that you won't find in a paper cookbook

Bad:

* Japanese cuisine only
* Japanese language only

Score (out of 10)

Gameplay: 9
Graphics: 7
Sound: 7
Replay: 10

Overall: 8

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 02/08/07