Play Cooking Mama 2 - Dinner With Friends Online

Cooking Mama 2 - Dinner With Friends came out for the Nintendo DS in 2007, developed by Cooking Mama Limited. It was part of that wave of DS games that really used the touch screen for something other than menus; you held it like a cookbook and poked and swiped your way through recipes. It felt perfectly suited to the handheld, a little kitchen you could take anywhere.

You play as a home cook guided by Mama, a cheerful instructor who gives you step by step tasks. The main goal is to prepare complete meals, from appetizers to desserts, for various friends and occasions. Signature mechanics involve using the stylus for everything: you tap to chop vegetables, swirl the screen to stir a batter, and blow into the microphone to cool down a hot dish. The game moves at a brisk pace, and while it's not punishingly difficult, letting a dish burn or messing up an order will earn you a lower score and a frown from Mama. It feels satisfying to successfully follow a recipe from start to finish using just the DS's unique features.