The Cooking Mama: Cookstar drama just keeps getting spicier

News
By published

Spilling tea on the controversy surrounding the latest Cooking Mama game

(Image credit: Office Create)

The creator of the Cooking Mama franchise is threatening to sue the chef pants off the Cooking Mama: Cookstar publisher. Why? Because Office Create, the company behind the cooking sim series, says it cancelled the Nintendo Switch game due to quality concerns - but the publisher (Planet Entertainment LLC) went ahead and released it anyway.

According to an official statement from Office Create, Planet's build "failed to meet the standards that our customers expect and deserve." Despite this, the publisher released Cooking Mama: Cookstar "without addressing all of the rejections and without Office Create's approval." As Paul Hollywood would say, the build was underdone. And the cherry on top of the messed-up sundae? Office Create reports that the publisher has been promoting an upcoming, unlicensed European release of Cooking Mama: Cookstar on PS4. 

Cooking Mama: Cookstar has been marinating in controversy for quite some time - as Kotaku writes, it temporarily appeared on the Switch eShop in March before disappearing hours later. Physical copies were nearly impossible to find, and there was a rumor that Cookstar was using the Switch's processing power to mine cryptocurrency. Very spicy stuff. 

As of March 30, Office Create terminated its license with Planet due to its "intentional material breach of the contract" but Planet refuses to shut down the kitchen. In fact, it's reportedly still advertising and selling the "unauthorized" version of Cooking Mama: Cookstar. The mother company of Cooking Mama is "evaluating all legal action." You know what they say… if you can't take the heat, don't make an unauthorized version of a copyrighted game series.

Had enough cooking puns? Me too. Why not check out another great sim - Animal Crossing: New Horizons? 

Alyssa Mercante
Alyssa Mercante

Alyssa Mercante used to be a features writer at GamesRadar and is now a freelance writer and editor. Prior to entering the industry, she got her Masters's degree in Modern and Contemporary Literature at Newcastle University with a dissertation focusing on contemporary indie games. She spends most of her time playing competitive shooters and in-depth RPGs and was recently on a PAX Panel about the best bars in video games. In her spare time Alyssa rescues cats, practices her Italian, and plays soccer.