BurgerTime Party!

Messing with a classic can often be a recipe for disaster, but if it's done right, it can also inject a whole new layer of flavor to a tasty nostalgic treat. That's just what happens here with BurgerTime Party!, a remake of the original '80s arcade hit, BurgerTime. The game manages to perfectly recreate the formula that made the original so much fun, and yet update it in ways that adds multiple layers to the experience. Right from the start, the game leans hard into its nostalgic flair and wacky premise with a visual style pulled straight from a Max Fleischer cartoon from the 1930s. Peter Pepper and his Food Foes bounce around the stages with vibrant personalities. The game also adds a few new tricks to the familiar stages, such as crumbling platforms, ladders and floors made out of slick ice, and other tweaks that may never have been part of the original game but feel like they always have.

BurgerTime Party!, as the title would suggest, finds a few new ways to bring more players into the mix as well. In the Main Mode, up to four players can team up to take on the challenge of each stage. Chefs share a pool of lives and can revive each other if knocked out, making teamwork a key part of raking in high scores. Battle Mode, on the other hand, is a competitive mode that gives players a chance to be the bad guy, choosing either to play as a chef or as one of the notorious Food Foes. Special abilities for both sides of the fight keep the game balanced, and it's a blast to feed your inner villain by foiling a friend's best burgers with your culinary cunning. No matter how you choose to play, though, BurgerTime Party! is a satisfying serving of old school arcade fun with a heaping helping of the works that's more than enough to feed your gaming hunger.