Chapter 153: The Ridiculous Villain

Once "Overcooked" was fully downloaded and installed, Su Chen and Han Jiangxue had just about finished filling their stomachs. Su Chen hadn’t even touched his chopsticks during the meal; Han Jiangxue had eaten nearly three portions worth of food by herself. It was fortunate that Su Chen had eaten a little something before she arrived and had picked up some snacks on his way out; otherwise, he figured he would likely have gone hungry tonight, and without those snacks, Han Jiangxue would have been left hungry as well.

After they had eaten and drunk their fill, they chatted and rested for a while before sitting down together at the computer desk. As he opened "Overcooked," Han Jiangxue specifically used her phone to search for a game guide. For some reason, however, the player reviews and guides she found were all quite general, much like a simple game synopsis.

" 'Overcooked' is a multiplayer cooperative role-playing cooking game that supports up to four players on the same screen."
" 'Overcooked' allows you to gather three or five friends, or your significant other, during your leisure time to experience the hustle and bustle of a kitchen, prepare exquisite dishes, and satisfy the hungry customers who come to dine."
" 'Overcooked' can deepen friendships and strengthen bonds between couples. Overall, it is a casual game with a very cartoonish and cute art style..."

Han Jiangxue read these reviews aloud. Although she didn’t find a specific walkthrough for "Overcooked," reading through so many player comments had certainly piqued her anticipation.

In truth, the mechanics of "Overcooked" are quite simple; the main goal of the game is just to cook. Players only need to follow recipes, prepare the ingredients, and then place them into pots or pans to boil, fry, deep-fry, or sauté them. Afterward, they must serve the dishes in the order requested by the customers to earn profit and, once the customers have finished eating, wash the dirty plates and bowls. Then, it’s back to the next round of cooking...

It all sounds rather straightforward. But here is the catch! The customers’ orders keep piling up, and every single order has a time limit! Furthermore, the time limit is determined by the complexity of the dish being prepared. As a result, what starts as a simple single-core, single-threaded game turns into a multi-core, multi-threaded one—and the threads only continue to multiply. For instance, one customer might want cream of mushroom soup, another might want a colorful vegetable salad, and yet another might want a Peking duck wrap. When all these orders pile up at once, players naturally descend into a state of panic.

Of course, even at this point, it is only at an average difficulty level, and the gameplay is quite common. But the true, infuriating nature of "Overcooked" was far from over! Amidst the gameplay described above, "Overcooked" had uniquely identified a more interesting mode to integrate: the so-called multiplayer online game!

Although people often say that many hands make light work and that two people working together won't get tired, in a game like this, two people’s minds can never be perfectly synchronized, especially when the pressure is on. It is highly likely that two players will have completely different ideas about the order in which to process the dish requests. Consequently, you end up with a situation where one person says "left" and the other says "right," or one person tries to catch the dog while the other chases the chicken.

Where there is disagreement, chaos inevitably follows. And once that chaos erupts, the once-orderly establishment collapses in an instant, and the situation spirals completely out of control! However, Han Jiangxue and Su Chen were unaware of this at the moment.

"...Hey? It seems this game supports controllers?" Su Chen remarked, looking at the game interface, and turned to Han Jiangxue.

Upon hearing this, Han Jiangxue immediately asked with excitement, "Controllers? Do you mean the kind of Subor console controllers that plugged into the TV with those old game cards? I’m really good at those! When I was a kid, I could beat 'Snow Bros' all by myself!"

"Su Chen, Su Chen, let’s play with the controllers!" As she spoke, Han Jiangxue wrapped her arms around Su Chen’s arm and shook it incessantly. Her natural, gifted assets pressed against his arm every so often during this back-and-forth motion, leaving Su Chen feeling quite overwhelmed. No... any man would find this impossible to resist!

"Alright, alright... I’ll go get the controllers for you." Su Chen, feeling rather helpless, steadied himself and pulled a pair of controllers from his suitcase. "It’s a good thing I’m in the habit of bringing gear whenever I travel, otherwise no amount of begging would help."

Su Chen handed the controllers to Han Jiangxue. The two adjusted their seats, and before long, they were ready. At this moment, a radiant smile bloomed on Han Jiangxue’s face. This was her first time playing a game with Su Chen... oh wait, this was her first time playing a game with any boy! *Hehe*, how should she perform?

Her little head was suddenly filled with wild fantasies. Should she act demure and submissive, helping Su Chen out as a sidekick, and then watch him lose himself in a series of "You're so amazing" compliments? Or should she take the lead as the little chef, handling the washing, cutting, and frying all at once, showing off her culinary prowess to leave Su Chen impressed? *Hee hee hee*... oh my~

It really was a difficult choice to make.

Just as Han Jiangxue was pondering this, she felt Su Chen nudge her with his elbow. "What are you thinking about? Why are you so happy? It’s your turn to pick a character."

"...Huh? Oh, oh, oh, oh." Han Jiangxue snapped back to reality and looked at the screen. She saw that Su Chen had already selected his character: a raccoon master sitting in a wheelchair, a determined spirit despite his disability—an absurd image of someone refusing to give up on their culinary dreams even with broken legs. It was quite abstract.

*Click, click.*

Han Jiangxue flicked the joystick, scrolling through the character roster, and settled on her own choice: a cute little girl with twin tails. "Hey, my character is much cuter. Your raccoon is ugly and disabled; it doesn't look like it could cook anything good."

Having chosen her character, Han Jiangxue looked at Su Chen with satisfaction. "I’m ready! Let’s start!"

"Mm." Su Chen nodded lightly, and the game screen appeared. The first thing they saw was the opening cinematic for "Overcooked." Although the visuals were made of pixel blocks, they were remarkably rich and colorful.

*Whoosh—Boom!*

Fireballs descended from the sky, leaving the city in a state of chaotic, flaming ruin. A massive monster made of spaghetti and meatballs, taller than the buildings, brandished a knife and fork as it rampaged through the city. The Onion King stood atop the tallest skyscraper, looking at the spaghetti monster with a grave expression: "Wae-wae-woo-woo-ay-oh-way (The spaghetti monster is too powerful)! Ee-oh-way-way-woo-oh-ay (Hurry and try to hold it off)!"

The absurd opening animation had Su Chen and Han Jiangxue laughing uncontrollably!

"Hahahaha! What kind of goofy villain is this?" Han Jiangxue roared with laughter.

Su Chen couldn't help but chuckle as well. "In the history of game villains, this spaghetti monster is quite an explosive presence."