Game Details
Price
  • $29.99–$39.99
Available on
Genre
More details
See more game reviews

Fast Food Panic (Wii, Nintendo DS, Nintendo DSi)

common sense media says

Pace might be too fast for some in this cooking game.

parents & educators say
See 2 reviews | Review it

What parents need to know

Parents need to know that this lightning-paced time management game features the cooking and eating of unhealthy foods. Not all of the menu items are bad, though. But even with the less objectionable foods, the game encourages rapidly wolfing them down. Parents should also be aware that even though a girl is featured on both the front and back covers of the box, the chef that players control in the game is male. The female waitress is shown to be inept at times.

Educational value: Not applicable.
Positive messages: Despite its title, a lot of the cuisine in the game is not "fast food" as we know it. There's sushi, pasta, and curry in addition to burgers and pizzas. So the negative message doesn't come, as expected from the food, but from the gender stereotyping. The chef is a determined, action-hero-looking male, while the server he orders around to clean tables, chase rats, etc., is female and always looks to be on the verge of panic. You can look at it as a good thing that, as the cook, you run from the kitchen to help the waitress, or you can look at it as a bad thing that the girl can't handle these menial tasks on her own.
Positive role models: As mentioned above, the waitress is hard-working, but easily panicked and quick to call for help with simple jobs like busing a table. There are also some customers who are referred to as "big eaters" -- obese people who come in and order several items at once. One mini-game is an eating contest which requires the player/character to gorge on as much food as possible within a time limit.
Ease of play: The game has three difficulty levels, which is good, because the pace is quite demanding, and even playing on "normal" can be challenging.
Violence: Rats run through the restaurant every so often, and you must call for a waitress to chase them out before customers see them. Not violent, but kind of icky.
Sex: Not applicable.
Language: Not applicable.
Consumerism: Not applicable.
Drinking, drugs, & smoking: Not applicable.
Our ratings and reviews are informed by child development guidelines. Learn more.

More on Fast Food Panic

What to talk about

Talk to your kids
  • Families can talk about good eating habits. Which foods in the game are better than others? Is fast food always bad? Can it be okay if it's a "sometimes food?" Why is the fast pace at which characters eat a bad thing?
  • Parents can also discuss gender roles with their children. In the game, the chef is male and the waitress is female. Is this an accurate representation of real life? If so, why do you think that it?

What's the story?

What's the story?
An upstart chef starts a new restaurant in FAST FOOD PANIC and must struggle to keep up with his many customers. He must prepare multiple dishes at once, while keeping an eye out for new customers to greet, dirty tables to have cleaned, and rats that could upset the clientel. Along the way, he often has to leave the kitchen to clear a table, wipe up spills, or make a delivery. He needs to be especially careful when preparing meals for visiting food critics (and ignore the fact that critics don't actually review fast food restaurants). Outside of the story mode, there are also a bunch of fun food-themed mini-games that include tasks like spinning pizza dough and using pigs to root out truffles.

Is it any good?

Is it any good?
 
Fast Food Panic does a nice job of combining the step-by-step food-prep of Cooking Mama and the time management element of games like Diner Dash, but, perhaps because it tries to be two things at once, it feels a little thin on both levels. There isn't a huge number of recipes, but the game moves as such a fast clip that that's probably not a bad thing. And the story mode is relatively short. The nice selection of mini-games available to play outside of the career mode makes up for that, though, and several of those mini-games are arguably more fun than some of the main gameplay. As a complete package, Fast Food Panic is worth a try for cooking-game fans.

Game themes & details

Game Details
Available on: Nintendo Wii, Nintendo DS, Nintendo DSi
Not available online
Genre: Time management
Developer: Southpeak Interactive
Released on: January 11, 2010
Price: 29.99–$39.99
ESRB Rating: E for (No Descriptors)
Screenshots
This review was written by Christopher Healy
 
 

Review It

 

Review Fast Food Panic

Hang on! You need to be a member to post your review.
A safe community is important to us. Please observe our guidelines.
 

Most useful reviews by all members

Sarah W
parent of 10 year old
10
 
Great for teenagers instead
A little difficult for the younger kids especially when it comes to higher levels. Eventually they might give up and it will be a waste. But this will definitely give tweens and teens an adrenaline rush!
Flag as inappropriate 
was this review useful?
helped me decide (5) | had useful details (4) | read my mind (3)
LIMO2009
kid, 10 years old
16
 
Flag as inappropriate 
was this review useful?
helped me decide (2) | had useful details (5) | read my mind (3)

More reviews ...

An independent voice for families
Age-appropriate reviews
Advice on the big issues
 

vote now

Will you play Fast Food Panic?

Game on
Press pause
Game over

Already played it? What do you think?

I recommend it
It's a pass
 

Great alternatives handpicked by our editors

SImilar cooking/restaurant games
Browse more games
About our rating system
ON: Content is appropriate for kids this age.
PAUSE: Know your child, some content may not be right for some kids
OFF: Not age appropriate for kids this age
Our child development rating guidelines