When I first started my channel, I had never thought of having a mascot. It wasn't anything I was against, but it certainly wasn't anything I was actively thinking about. I had made a couple friends when I was still on Mixer and they decided to put together a sort of fan-art, pictured above. This was the first time Dolphin-Chicken had a face that wasn't just my own face. Aside from being excited that they had put together this picture for me, it made me inspired to actually put a design to a character. So, shoutout to Panda and Tork! I love and miss you both and hope you are both doing well! Thank you for inspiring something that I never knew I would come to enjoy so much!

Announcement: 

We have reached 400 followers on Twitch! Because of this, we will be holding a charity stream! The date is not yet decided, but keep an eye on my socials for more details! The recipient will be BACA International (Bikers Against Child Abuse). This is a group that originated in Utah that helps support children who have been in a terrible situation. They help give them confidence, safety and comfort. They give them support and accompany them to court, etc to make sure that the children are safe. This is a organization that is near and dear to my heart, not only as a half way decent human being but also as a parent. 

There will be donation goals and rewards on stream! If you'd like to help me prepare, there are a few things that I need to get on my Amazon wishlist. TIA. If you have any suggestions, recommendations, comments, concerns, please join my discord server and let me know on the "Charity" channel! 

I appreciate all of you for all of the love I have received and can't wait to take the next step in our journey to helping others! Much love to ALL of you! 

So on to the actual blog post! Lmao! 

Something that I've been into lately is restaurant games. I've been searching for a game that gives me a sort of authentic restaurant owner experience. I still haven't found something that "scratches the itch" for me, but I have come across a few great games.

PlateUp!

PlateUp! is a neat restaurant game with a top down view that really challenges you against time. In PlateUp!, you can customize your restaurant by picking an available layout before starting your game and picking the main dish for the menu. Once you start, you can move around the different aspects of your restaurant, making it more efficient. Because who wants to walk all the way across the room to put the dishes from the sink to the rack? Just put the rack next to the sink. Same with the ingredients you need. You can put them by the counters so when you need to chop an onion, you don't have to move far. Once the game starts, you have a short bit of time to start prepping before the customers show up. The nice thing is that you do get an estimate of how many customers are going to be showing up. Once the time runs out, just finish taking care of the customers you have and your day ends. My biggest complaint on this game honestly is that you have to take care of every single customer. If you have a single customer that doesn't get their order as soon as they want it or they're waiting outside and decide to leave because it's taking too long, your restaurant gets shut down and you're sent back to the main hq. I understand the challenge, but it makes it incredibly hard (at least for casual players) to complete the timeline without additional people to help you work the restaurant, depending on the menu you choose. Though, one thing I absolutely love about this game is that in the hq, there is a pair of cats that you can have order food. You then make their order in the kitchen. I just think it's a neat aspect and a nice way to practice and figure out how to make whatever food you need for the day. While I feel that the game being sometimes boring, sometimes overwhelming, I still think it's a fun game to play with friends. While it can be nice to play by yourself, it is 100% better when playing with friends. If I had to rate it out of 10 I'd probably give it about a 6.5. 

Overcooked 2

This is another super cute game that is fun to play with friends! You can choose your character avatar from a wide range of characters. There are multiple maps and levels to play on. Some of the levels are more "basic" where you're just in a kitchen and can move around freely and make the meals. This is another top-down style game. I like the selection map because you can drive around a cute little bus to select what level you want to play. The biggest complaint that I have against this game is how it's almost impossible to play certain levels without having friends to play the game with. There are some maps where the terrain moves and switches or blocks off parts of the kitchen. While this can be a fun concept with multiple people, it makes playing by yourself extremely difficult for casual players. This makes the game kinda boring to me, honestly. I may play if I have friends to play with, but otherwise I just uninstall it. Maybe I'll keep it just for Kevin though. Compared to PlateUp!, I like that you don't have to serve every single person and that there is a money goal for each level instead. If I had to rate it out of 10, I'd give it a 5/10. Kevin is 10/10 best boy.

Bronzebeard's Tavern

Okay so this game is probably the closest that I have been able to find to what I'm wanting. This is such a fun game and is a great candidate for a community day. The characters are adorable and the customizable menu is so fun. Plus it's free? Yes please. You can customize your dwarf character with different hats, colors, etc. There are different types of customers that have different needs as far as food options, but the game does let you know ahead of time what customers to expect during the next level so that you can set the menu as needed. This is a third-person style game. This game is playable by a single person in the beginning, but as you progress it does get increasingly more difficult and more players are needed. Compared to PlateUp! and Overcooked 2, this game definitely gives more of the restaurant feel that I was looking for. If I had to rate it out of 10, this would be a 8/10.

My challenge for you: Look for something that you enjoy. If you can't find what you're looking for, keep looking. It's out there somewhere.