It’s time to get cooking! This video game is all about virtual cooking on a handheld Nintendo DS system. It takes full advantage of the DS’s touch screen and microphone. In the game, you are the apprentice to a chef called Mama. She guides you through preparing 76 different dishes. You start off with 15 available recipes and unlock more as you progress through the game. You use the stylus on the touch screen to chop, slice, stir, roll, knead, grate, and otherwise prepare the ingredients for the recipe. Each dish has several steps. Then she judges you on the quality of your preparation work. The goal is to cook “just like mama”. The game also allows for ungraded practice sessions. Many of the dishes are Japanese foods as the game is originally Japanese although there are also recipes that American audiences will certainly recognize. The dishes range from pizza and fried chicken to instant ramen and sushi to curry. The movements required to play this game involve a good deal of hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills so this might be a good game for kids that need a bit of practice with those. There is no real plot to the game beyond cooking so some users may get bored with just cooking mini-games available. The game is rated E for Everyone and is definitely family friendly. ( )

Cooking Mama is an Nintendo Wii game that teaches the gamer how to use various cooking techniques to complete recipes from “Mama’s” cooking book. The recipe book is organized ethnically, by country of origin. Each recipe has the option to practice prior to making the whole recipe. Each step of the recipe is given one of three possible ratings, “Try Harder,” “Good,” “Very Good: Better Than Mama.” A number of points is assigned according to each rating which are totaled at the end of each recipe. Depending on the final score at the completion of a recipe, new recipes can be unlocked. The narrator is a young girl who gives commentary before, during and after each recipe. Music also plays throughout the play of game. The sound effects during cooking are realistic, such as the cracking of an egg or sauteing vegetables. The game is rated E for everyone, but the game may be challenging for children under 6 years of age because of the occasionally complex directions. Cooking Mama would be a good addition to a program on cooking or as an addition to a cooking themed display in an school or public library. This purchase is recommended for purchase in a public library. (Ages 6 ) ( )