Venba Is a Short Yet (Bitter)Sweet Narrative Take About Culture, Cooking and Togetherness

When I first caught a glimpse of the trailer for Venba at the end of 2020, the game's reflection of South Indian culture, colorful graphics and cool, Tamil-inspired soundtrack instantly caught my attention.

And today, July 31, the game is officially out. Ahead of the big launch, the team behind the game was kind enough to send me a review key for Venba on the Nintendo Switch, and though my experience with the title wasn't a long one, it's something that'll stick with me for a very long time.

The Tale of Venba

Venba is a fascinating narrative game that's mostly hands-off, unfolding as a tale about people, the clash that can exist between the need to fit in and the desire to hold on to family traditions and the magical ways in which culture and food can bring people together.

The story begins with the titular Venba and her husband, Paavalan, who move from India to Canada in the late '80s seeking a better future for themselves. Both are struggling to find work, considering a move back home, but when Venba gets pregnant, the two decide to stay, eager to create the best possible life for their new child.

(Venba via Visai Games)

 

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Food and Family

Food—and South Indian cooking, in particular—is truly the heart of Venba's narrative. The game starts with a discussion between Venba and her husband, and even though she's suffering from a mystery illness (soon revealed to be morning sickness), she believes it's her duty as a wife to provide for the family and gets to cooking steamed cakes called idlis.

Here, the core gameplay is revealed. With the exception of scrolling through the story and making a few dialogue choices that seem to minimally impact the story, the meat of the actual play unfolds entirely through the process of cooking minigames. Unfortunately, the cookbook that Venba's mother prepared for her before moving to Canada got damaged along the way, which means a bit of testing before getting things exactly right.

The recipe for idlis, for example, involves stacking steamer trays on top of each other, filled with batter, to result in perfectly steamed cakes. The recipe mentions cloths, but not how they're used in the recipe with each layer in order to prevent the batter from dripping through. It took me a couple of tries to both know how to utilize the cloths and to stagger the trays appropriately to get them perfectly cooked. Though this gameplay was quite simple, it was also satisfying to figure out, as were its other assorted recipes. Whether I worked them out through trial and error, deciphering based on recipe clues or simply following the on-screen prompts, I never tired of the cooking in Venba.

(Venba via Visai Games)

And then there was the fact that every last dish looked so delicious. All of the meals, from dosas to biriyani and so much more made me crave all of the luscious textures and beautiful seasonings of South Indian food. From the sizzling sound design (and vibrant lo-fi soundtrack, inspired by Tamil culture and film) to the colorful and stylistic visuals, the sights and sounds all worked together to draw me into both the story and its incredible meals. If I could pay extra for smell and taste as well, I'd do so in a heartbeat. Even more, the food is a marvelous representation of connection, both within the family unit itself and to their loved ones back in India.

(Venba via Visai Games)

 

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Growing Up in a New Land

While the recipes make up the majority of the game you actually "play," Venba is really a story about family. Each new chapter (and its included recipes) represents a significant jump in time, told primarily from Venba's point of view as the family strives to do their best for their young son, Kavin.

However, it quickly becomes clear that while Venba and Paavalan want to instill Kavin with a sense of his cultural identity, Kavin would rather just fit in with the other Canadian kids at school. It's a struggle to get him to speak their native language, Tamil, at home, and he'd rather celebrate special occasions with pizza than a traditional dish called puttu, until they change his mind by telling him its preparation involves a rocket ship-shaped vessel. Despite the effort that Venba puts into making his daily lunches, he tends to bring them home uneaten, embarrassed that his meals look so different from his classmates'.

(Venba via Visai Games)

While many immigrants' tales are told from the perspective of the kids growing up and feeling like the odd ones out, Venba is a parents' tale, which I really appreciated. When you take on the role of Venba and thoughtfully work out every dish, only to have Kavin reject them, it stings. While I could definitely see Kavin's side of the story, it was easier to side with Venba and see Kavin as somewhat ungrateful in rejecting his food, which in some ways also felt like an outright rejection of his culture.

And while I don't want to say too much about the story ends, I feel it comes full circle in a beautiful way, resulting in a tale about recognizing sacrifice, finding understanding in identity and the importance of being true to yourself.

(Venba via Visai Games)

 

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Bottom Line

Venba can easily be completed in under two hours, but just because it's short doesn't make it any less poignant and affecting. Its brisk nature feels like a reflection on time and loss, and how if we don't appreciate things while we have them, they can disappear before we know it.

This game was clearly made with great love and care, for both the culture and its characters, and while you shouldn't expect anything super lengthy or involved, I think it's fully worth the experience. Even still, I would happily play hours and hours more of its cooking minigames if the game were to have them, not just because they're fun, but also because they've taught me about so many kinds of great food I'm missing out on, and they've even inspired me to try my hand at cooking one or two of them myself.  It's sure to leave your stomach rumbling (and maybe even your eyes tearing up), and I've never played anything quite like it.

 

Venba is available now on Steam, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation consoles and Xbox Series and One for $14.99.

 

Love cozy, story-based games? Click HERE to read our review of Coffee Talk 2: Hibiscus & Butterly.