Looking for a new horror sim, well so am I! For my review this time it comes from Meat Grinder, a hot dog simulator, that looks a like it has some fun horror to it. The game is created by Panic Panda, and has launched on Steam with a nice price tag of £7.15.
All meat is locally sourced!
Gameplay
Players take the role of a no named character who is waiting to start their new role as owner of a run-down hot dog eatery. On arrival, we find out that this isn’t going to be as easy as our character thought, as the price for meat is too expensive. Well, guess it’s time to just back up again and head for the bus. Or so you would think if it wasn’t for the kind and helpful suggestion of an elderly man. Who shows you that some delicious, yet questionable meat is just laying nearby… in a graveyard. What ever choice on how you source your meat there is still the matter of severing customers.
So in the daytime you will serve customers hot dogs and put on what sauces they desire. Over the course of the game and after accumulating enough money, you can unlock more items to further satisfy your customers. Unlock drinks, and fries all while later on being able to make your own sauces. There isn’t any real consequence in Meat Grinder, except losing out being paid if you get an order wrong. Besides that, stock must be purchased from the black book in your office, so make sure to keep funds at hand.
Graphics & Audio
Meat Grinder has a nostalgic, low resolution pixel style, in a similar vein but slightly better than others if similar style. Despite how small the map is and how few characters there are, it feels like the Devs made an effort to make everything look unique. The character designs are better than most games of this calibre; usually opting for copy and paste customers with different colour palettes, Meat Grinder actually has a decent amount of customers that all have their own unique designs. I also like the layout of the town. Even though the map is small, it feels like a well-thought-out, colourful little town, and I quite liked exploring it. While there’s little voice acting, I do enjoy the cheesy music insider the restaurant. It feels hilariously corny and out of theme for the game, in the best way.
Longevity
Meat Grinder is short with it only taking 4 and half hours for me to finish the story. You can continue to wrap up any achievements you haven’t already earned. Luckily there is a guide for finding some ingredients to make new sauces. Two out of the 17 achievements will take a little extra time due to them being clean the restaurant 80 times and serve 100 customers.
Final Thoughts
At its heart Meat Grinder is just a simple simulator with just a pinch of darkness to it. But the story wasn’t too bad, although it is really just at the beginning and end. I had fun serving the customers, but wish there were more upgrades or something to actually work towards. Or maybe some hidden lore/secrets to uncover, the room is there. All in all though it’s a fun game, so I’m giving it the Thumb Culture Silver Award.
Disclaimer: A code was received in order to write this review.
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