by Angie Pollock

Created on: July 22, 2008   Last Updated: February 25, 2009

Inspired from the popular television show, the downloadable game "Hell's Kitchen" places you under the scrutiny of Chef Gordon Ramsay. Working under pressure while having Chef Ramsay bellow out his opinions can almost be more than a player can take.

So you like playing (or working) under pressure? Hell's Kitchen will be an addictive pleasure to escape the pressures of the real world. The responsibilities are not just bound in the kitchen as you will find your player is also responsible for the dining area and the dining guests.

Are you ready? The doors of Hell's Kitchen are opening right now. The customers arrive, seat the customers, take their orders, send the orders to the kitchen, switch to the kitchen and prepare the meals under a timed environment and don't forget Chef Ramsay will be watching over your every move. Send the orders out to the dining area and serve the dinner guests then clear the tables. As Chef Ramsay would say "I'm impressed".

In the kitchen your player will prepare the ingredients, place the ingredients into the pots and pans, wait for the timer to end, plate the food and send the order back out to the waiter. Your player moves back and forth between the kitchen and dining area. While meals are being prepared and cooked up, move into the dining area and wait on more customers. If orders are not completed quickly, it begins to go up in flames. In fact, there are many things that begin to go up in flames if you don't stay quick on your toes.

The game utilizes thirty-five different recipes to unlock that come from the actual reality show. At the beginning of each level, a new recipe and picture will be provided that you could also utilize in your own kitchen. Each level represents a new day in Hell's Kitchen.

You, the player, are judged on a score of 1 to 5 with 5 being the best. That day can be repeated to try for a higher score if you want to make Chef Ramsay proud of you. During the game play, Chef Ramsay is always there to tell you what he thinks, good or bad. You will feel as if he is standing right next to you, breathing down your neck and giving his commands or praising you with "job well done".

The game play is smooth with the graphics to be some of the best seen in online games. The rich colors are amazing and even the facial features of Chef Ramsay are astounding. There isn't any distracting music and the voice of Ramsay with his English accent saying "get a move on then" keeps the game exciting. Ludia has done a phenomenal job putting together a game based on a reality show that will become a favorite whether you are a fan of "Hell's Kitchen" or not.

There is a one hour demo available to try out the game. I purchased the full download after playing the demo. The only disappointmentss were I finished the complete game within two hours with high scores on each level and there wasn't as much variety in the play as I had hoped there would be in the higher levels. It is a challenging game and worth the purchase price. Now, can you handle the heat of Hell's Kitchen?

HELL'S KITCHEN by Ludia Rating 5/5

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