Venba

Impulse GamerEdward Gosling

The food we grow up with makes a much bigger impact on our lives than we may realise. As much as I love a pizza or a Chinese to cheer me up, really, nothing

TheSixthAxisAran Suddi

9/10

Venba is a small game with big heart that really captures a lot of the experiences that immigrants and their children go through. It tells a simple story, but layers it in complex and engaging themes. The cooking sections could have been a bit more involved, but, but Venba is a game with a great look, great soundtrack, and provides an experience that people should play to understand a world and perspective that is unfamiliar to them.

Hardcore Gamer Kyle LeClair

Through a exploration of Southern Indian cuisine and the preparation of it that's been given a slight puzzler twist, Venba manages to serve up a captivating story about culture, motherhood, immigrant life and more, spiced up with likeable characters and great dialogue, and topped off with eye-catching visuals and an ear-pleasing soundtrack. It's a short feast, but a filling one, so it would be wise to give it a shot. Would it help if we said that it might remind you of a rocket somehow?

TechRaptorTanushri Shah

9/10

Venba is a tale about an Indian immigrant family in Canada that does most of its storytelling through cooking and leaves you wanting seconds.

Playstation UniverseChristian Harrison

8.5/10

While slightly too short for its own good, Venba is an exciting cooking narrative game exploring Tamil food. It tells an important, yet heart-wrenching story of a family as they struggle to fit in a new country.

Press StartBrodie Gibbons

8/10

Venba is a sweet, short-lived episode that presents the place held by food and cooking within our lives and cultures as near-on divine. It explores familiar relationships, as well as the ones we keep, for better or worse, with food itself, and left me with plenty to ponder as the credits rolled.

KeenGamerLaura Speller

8/10

Venba may not be the longest game out there, but this charming narrative cooking game sure is a treat. Venba will tag you along on a family's journey as they struggle with life in a new country, but at the heart of it all is the cooking.

GameLusterShaz Mohsin

8/10

Venba tells a beautifully intimate and reflective narrative about the nuanced experience of being a first generation immigrant. Its vibrant art-style and rhythmic Carnatic music come together to celebrate the cuisine of Tamils.

Xbox AchievementsRichard Walker

80/100

A spicy blend of story and delicious South Indian cooking, Venba is a unique indie tale that deserves to be savoured. As developer Visai's debut game, this is stellar stuff.

WayTooManyGamesHeidi Hawes

7.5/10

I first saw Visai Games’ Venba during Nintendo’s Indie World Showcase in late 2022. As someone who loves to cook, part of what grabbed my attention was the cooking simulation element of the game. However, that’s a very small part of what piqued my interest. What really got me eager to try it was its look into Indian culture. I’ve been saying for a very long time that there’s a noticeable lack of cultural diversity in video games, especially when it comes to certain areas of the worl...

GameGrinViolet Plata

7/10

Though I genuinely loved my time with Venba, I could not swallow the steep asking price for the short, one-hour experience that you will have. It's a great, tear-jerking story that immigrants will resonate with, but there isn't enough here to justify the entry fee.

VGChartzLee Mehr

5.5/10

Visai Games' narrative-cooking debut is a special case of over-relying on flavorful spices – music, art design, etc. – to compensate for paltry servings.Reviewer's Note: Given how intertwined the story and gameplay are, to make certain insights I will have to [...]