Build factories to make food in Automachef this summer
Product 'em up
Cooking is a puzzle of chemistry and engineering process, really, the correct application of thermal and kinetic energy to the correct combination of materials in the correct order. Fry 'em ups like Overcooked and Cook, Serve, Delicious channel that into chaotic time-management and now Automachef is coming on an industrial scale, having us construct production lines to create meals en masse. Think more along the lines of Infinifactory puzzling than Overcooked chaos. Have a peek in a new trailer coming alongside the announcement that Team17 have picked it up to publish.
Yeah, I might be up for that.
However. Automachef does seem to lack the joy and fascination of real food production lines, using generic processes rather than bespoke machinery. One of my favourite YouTube rabbit holes is industrial food processing with machinery designed for specific foods.
I like the path these crêpes take, their circular shape reflected in the design of the machine, then the elegant flip:
The magical river of fat which creates donuts!
Pasta extrusion!
Machines to fold tortellini!
Machines to fold gyoza!
A spinning tunnel of crisps!
Yes, I lean very much towards jerky videos with weird soundtracks from manufacturers rather the polished documentary style of TV shows like How It's Made. It's a special YouTube rabbit hole. Don't even get me started on industrial grinders...
I guess my particular interests in automated food assembly are a level below the general-purpose foodfactories of Automachef. That's fine. Sure I'd adore a game about designing machines to create specific foods (oh god would I!) but that's not what Automachef is and that's okay. Really, it is.
Automachef is coming to Steam and the Humble Store this summer, made by Hermes Interactive and published by Team17.