Eat the Rich is a multiplayer party game all about alliances, betrayals, and secret advantages. Developed by Maccima Games and published by Monstronauts, it was released on Steam into Early Access on September 10th.
Sounds like Food Poisoning to me
Who doesn’t love a good party game? What about a mediocre one? While it’s great when game developers have many ideas for their game, maybe putting all of them in at once isn’t the best idea. Let’s get into it!
Gameplay
Eat the Rich is a multiplayer party game in which you scramble through mini-games, betray your friends, and ruthlessly compete to be as rich as anyone could possibly ever be! Imagine a weird mix between Jackbox Party and Among Us. The main difference is that those games are actually fun to play. Eat the Rich tries to throw every idea possible at the wall, and unfortunately, not much actually sticks. It’s chaotic, a little rough around the edges (though that’s to be expected from an Early Access title), and sometimes just straight-up unfair. But hey, if you like your party games to be unpredictable and unfair, this messy energy might be appealing.
A Billion Cop-outs
As mentioned before, the main goal of the game is to earn money, which is quite simple: win mini-games or stab other people in the back. Following each mini-game, the players will have to discuss and figure out who the richest player may be. The goal is to vote out the richest person so that they can’t win. Makes sense.
However, players can buy and receive a lot of different items that give them a significant advantage. For example, you can erase all votes that are placed against you, steal other people’s votes, and…oh yeah, just straight up kill someone else. Yep. If you use the “Scapegoat” item, it lets you pick another player of your choice, and if you were to get voted out, they get canned instead. Could be a fun punch in the gut, if it wasn’t so incredibly common. You could do everything right, not be the richest, nobody voted for you, and you’re dead just like that. Not much you can do. This wouldn’t be so bad if the gameplay after being voted out was engaging, but it just isn’t (yet).
Minigames
The game currently only has a handful of different mini-games, often dividing players into teams of 2–3 people. The first game always seems to be what feels like a broken version of Overcooked, but with less coordination and a lot more punching people in the face. The kitchen is divided into two halves. The bottom players have to bring ingredients to the middle and shove the batter into the oven, while the top half handles the mixer and serves the cakes. Of course, you can steal ingredients and even whole cakes from other players off the center counter. Honestly, it’s ridiculously easy to win just by doing this. I even played one round where the bottom player did absolutely nothing, and we still won just by stealing cakes. Which, admittedly, was kinda fun.
Other mini-games include, but aren’t limited to, a Wordle-like game where you have to arrange some letters that are given to you into a valid word. Another game felt a bit like Deal or No Deal, but instead of cash, the cases have numbers inside of them that will boost or decrease the points of either you, your opponent, or everyone. The first team to reach 10 points takes the win.
The final mini-game is actually more of a collection of games. Players wander around and have to enter circus tents that are scattered across the map. Inside, you can play many different games, picked at random. These include a speed-typing challenge, a target-shooting game, a memory game, and a few others. Depending on how well you do, you get more tokens that you need to deposit into the center bank. It feels very quick and hectic, but as a final sprint to the finish line, it can be a nice way to end the round.
Interlude
After the first mini-game, everyone is gathered in a room where each player gets to hand out three “gifts”. These presents can be powerful items, but also Bonds or Curses. Bonds form an alliance between the player who gave the Bond and the player who received it. Both players will receive extra coins after each round until one of them is eliminated. A Curse will steal coins from the affected player every round until either they or the curse caster die. While you know which player you are bonded with, the game does not tell you who cursed you. It’s a great way to start questioning everyone. At least it would be, if this actually felt like it mattered in the grand scheme of things.
In between the other mini-games, the players that are left alive get to participate in a couple of, what I would call, “trust challenges”. In one of them, you are put on a stage with a small group of other players, you place a bet and must choose to conspire or to betray. Full conspiracy means everyone walks away with pennies and an advantage. If one person betrays, they will run off with the cash and take the advantage for themselves.
Another option is a betting game, in which the stakes get higher and higher every round. The key is to choose whether you actually want to pay, or if you would rather try to bluff your way out of it. However, if someone calls your bluff, and they are right, they win the pot. If someone calls a bluff, and they are wrong, the accused player wins.
You’re out, whats next?
If you are unfortunate enough to be voted out early, you become a Defector. While the remaining players are having fun playing mini-games, you can just walk around, collecting pennies by smashing boxes and, according to the Steam page, “visit circus tents and play a different set of circus games to earn your pennies”. Why is this in quotation marks? Because, at the time of playing this, it was just not the case. It appears that the game has since been updated and you are now able to actually play the circus tent minigames, which does make it slightly better.
Apart from punching boxes, in between mini-games you can try to bribe active players with items and advantages. Honestly though, I couldn’t blame anyone for just disconnecting and jumping into a new game rather than sitting there doing very little as the others get to play the games.
If you’re voted out toward the end of the game, there is no Defector mode for you. You’re just dead. You get to spend the last bit of the game spectating as a blob-like thing, completely unable to do anything but watch the game unfold without you.
TC Crewmates Opinions
“Eat the Rich is like being invited to a chaotic dinner party where everyone’s shouting, plotting, and stealing the silverware. It’s stuffed with mechanics, twists, and side-games, sometimes too stuffed, like it swallowed a board game store whole! The drama’s fun while you’re in the thick of it, but the second you’re out, you may as well go make a sandwich because there’s nothing left to chew on. The coin collecting was mundane. Brilliant ideas in places, however slightly overcooked.” — Jason
“Voting felt too chaotic, with players too easily able to avoid being voted for or scapegoating others. I feel like the best mini-game was the one where we took it in turns to reveal points that affected either team. The cooking one was too difficult to get organised and to know who was paired with whom, and the circus tents games seemed overly difficult. Overall, I think the pace needs to be slowed down and there should be clearer instructions.” — Paul
“Honestly, my biggest problem was that I genuinely didn’t know what was going on half the time. They did loads and explained none of it. I think their biggest issue is they’re trying to be too many games at once. ” — Alex
Graphics & Audio
Visually, Eat the Rich looks like a hastily put-together, cheap game show that is made from bricks and cardboard and held together with duct tape and dreams. That’s a good thing. It absolutely matches the chaotic party game theme they are going for, and it is simple enough to not be overwhelming. The characters have a decent, 2D chibi look, which you can customize with many different accessories that you can unlock as you play. However, that incredibly ugly smile is sadly a permanent fixture. It is certainly a choice.
The game is narrated by a very over-the-top voice actor, just like a real game show would be. The music, however, often has a weird haunted house vibe to it, which hammers down the betrayal and sinister energy of the games. Apart from that, the sound effects are pretty simple and fit the style of the game rather well. The game also includes an optional in-game voice chat, which is a solid feature, though whether it’s actually fun really depends on if you’ve got the right kind of people in your lobby.
Longevity
Overall, the TC Crew spent about an hour playing before we all got sick of it. I kept going for another hour by myself, and I seriously doubt that I’ll be picking the game up again. Maybe that will change depending on how the game progresses throughout Early Access, but that remains to be seen. That being said, if you genuinely enjoy this kind of chaoic, betrayal-heavy style, you might actually like this. Just be aware that there aren’t many mini-games in the roster as of yet.
Final Thoughts
All in all, Eat the Rich is a game that can be fun with friends, though we at TC would personally rather play other party-style games. While the initial premise and setting are nice, it currently suffers quite a bit from its terrible balance and overpowered items. Also, always starting off with the same mini-game gets dull rather quickly. One good thing is that the game is relatively affordable for £6.69. This makes it a bit more appealing compared to games like Jackbox Party. Though you really have to be into this type of chaotic style. Generally, I would recommend waiting a bit to see what else the game has in stock down the line.
Disclaimer: A code was received in order to write this review.
If you enjoyed this review, why not check out the preview of the game Jump Space that the TC Crew got to test.
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