History Main / CookingMechanics

* In ''VideoGame/MonsterHunter'', the PlayerCharacter can harvest raw meat from herbivores, usually Aptanoths, Apceros', or Kelbis, and cook said meat on a barbecue spit. The meat's quality and effects are affected by how long the player cooks it. For example, cooking for a short time results with rare steak (moderate stamina increase), cooking for a little longer results with well-done steak (maximum stamina recovery and reduced natural stamina decrease), and cooking for too long results with burnt meat (small stamina increase).

* ''Videogame/FinalFantasyXV'': Coming off from XIV, this game features a wide array of beautifully rendered foods you can cook and enjoy, including prime ribs, Chinese dumplings, skewers, soup, fried eggs, and chicken with rice. There's even a sidequest which doubles as a massive ProductPlacement for [[UsefulNotes/RamenAsDehydratedNoodles Nissin Cup Noodles]].

* ''Videogame/BloodstainedRitualOfTheNight'' allows Miriam to cook various foods from the items she gathers while exploring Gebel's castle. Most of the foods act as healing items, but they also provide a one-time boost to her stats the first time a particular food is consumed.

* The ''Fallout'' series includes cooking in the crafting system starting with ''VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas''. You can harvest various types of meat and plants and combine them into healing and PowerUpFood, as well as removing radiation (and in ''76'', disease) from them. In Hardcore mode, you need to stay fed and hydrated to survive.

* ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'' has cooking as your main source of health (as enemies no longer drop hearts). Ingredients are mixed together to make dishes, some of them quite elaborate. ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTearsOfTheKingdom'' retains this feature and also adds a cookbook you can reference.

* ''Franchise/TheElderScrolls'': Throughout the series as a whole are bread, butter, cheese, ale, carrots, stew, and various kinds of meat. In ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIIIMorrowind Morrowind]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIVOblivion Oblivion]]'', food (of all kinds) is a type of [[AlchemyIsMagic alchemical ingredient]], which can be eaten raw or used to make potions; they have various effects, mostly restoring stamina. In ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsVSkyrim Skyrim]]'', food is different from alchemical ingredients and can have a plethora of effects, from [[HyperactiveMetabolism Health Food]] to "poor man's" potions with various other effects, depending on the item in question. There is also several mods available that adds in additional recipes for the player to cook, and to make any attempt of cooking adding a bit to Alchemy experience.

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* In ''VideoGame/{{Overcooked}},'' this is the point of the game. You must chop ingredients, assemble dishes, and cook them quickly within a time limit.

* ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'' has cooking as your main source of health (as enemies no longer drop hearts). Ingredients are mixed together to make dishes, some of them quite elaborate.

* ''VideoGame/AnimalCrossingNewHorizons'' brought cooking into the game in the 2.0 update. Recipes are obtained from balloons, bottles and villagers, much like [=DIY=] recipes. You can grow carrots, potatoes, wheat, tomatoes, pumpkins and sugarcane along with your fruit and cook with them, as well fruit from trees,turnips,young spring bamboo, and certain fish. Some were pleased the often annoying sea bass was one. Cooked meals can be eaten for energy like fruit and will give several points at once, or used for display. Fortunately they don’t spoil.

This trope is about games where the player can transform food items into other edible items. Basically, GameGourmet meeting ItemCrafting.

If we have food diversity without cooking, then we just have GameGourmet.