Venba

 A mother's love transcends everything 

Game no: 512
Genre: Other (Narrative, point and click)  
Platform: PC
Release Date: 2023

I heard about this game and I had to try it. In this game you play as Venba, a high school teacher from India who migrated to Cana da for a better life. There she and her husband Pavalaan try to build a future for themselves but it turns out that is not easy being someone foreign in a country that doesn't seem to know what you are about. Things change when they have a son Kavin (Kevin as his friends call) and the meld of cultures (from east to west) Venba tries to install upon her son

So this game is part narrative story, part cooking simulator. You just need a mouse to play this game and there are dialogue options to choose from which will not effect the main story but there are different responses when you click the branching text. What make this game great in my book is the cooking. Halfway through the story (which is separated in chapters) you'll have to cook a traditional Tamil dish. The dishes ranges from an easy Putu, Maruku and complex such as Mutton Briyani and chicken soup. You'll have a cookbook that was left by your mom but the pages and text are missing due to wear and tear and it is up to you to figure out the recipe based on your past memories and logic I guess.

The game is forgiving in the cooking. IF you mess it up you can start over again. So this game is a lot of trial and error. The sound effects of the cooking is divine and makes you want to actually try the food (which we actually did today... we ate some Briyani) The other thing that makes this game great is the story. The story is heartwarming and sad at the same time. It shows that no matter how much you try to run away from you roots, it will always be a part of you.

In the end this game a short and sweet adventure. You can finish it off in one sitting since its only around 2 hours and once you are done there is nothing else to do unless you want to play it again. This is one of a game of the year contender for me. It short and sweet and hits all the right points. In the end I give this game an S-Rank.