Having already released two DLC modes, the developers wanted to introduce something new and exciting. The hope with Shelter is it’s so different from the DLC before it that it’ll provide more fun for players. Like in all prior DLC, there will be a free play mode, but Big Cheese Studio allowed itself more creativity when developing the world of Shelter. The end goal is planned to be an engaging story in an apocalyptic wasteland, mixing a post-apocalyptic setting and advanced cooking mechanics.

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New Ingredients, New Kitchen

In Cooking Simulator: Shelter, the protagonist has journeyed across a vast wasteland after a nuclear apocalypse has rendered much of the area damaged. Due to the radiation from the bombs, many of the flora and fauna have been affected, growing into strange new shapes and colors. When players jump into the game after its introductory cutscene, they can access a hunting range from their shed, and plants are grown in an underground farm. Other products can be delivered by caravan.

Junde said they wanted the kitchen in the DLC to look less well-prepped and put together compared to its predecessors. The decision to go with an open grill and kebab style was developed based on Turkish cooking. There is still an oven and other traditional cooking methods, but the new grill will work in addition to the stovetop from previous iterations. While the kitchen and ingredients look a little different, the player is sure to be able to pick up the new styles in no time at all.

Building a Family

First revealed in Shelter’s teaser, the protagonist of the DLC will be searching the land for their lost family when they stumble on an abandoned shelter with a functioning kitchen. Junde said the player will have to help local survivors by feeding them in order to get access to a radio tower that will allow them to contact their family. By fulfilling orders, the player will hopefully get help from the other survivors to restore the radio tower.

This is certainly a departure from the past two DLC expansions, and it seems the developers wouldn’t have it any other way. While stuck in a real kitchen, bakery, and pizzeria kept them confined in what they could do, Shelter is providing the Cooking Simulator team with a variety of new creative opportunities. With a developer that’s alreadt nailing the basics of cooking games, it will be interesting to see what a little freedom of creativity is able to bring to the game.

Cooking Simulator: Shelter is currently in development.

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