A tasty RPG that will make you very hungry

Roleplaying games are often defined by excess. Storylines that span dozens of hours, side quests so big they could be their own game, massive worlds that require complex maps to explore, and casts so big you start forgetting character names. That’s part of what makes these games feel like epic adventures, but it can also make them intimidating, particularly if you have limited spare time. Dosa Divas, on the other hand, manages to capture much of that same feeling in a package that spans less than 10 hours. And it does it with a bold sense of style and a story that seamlessly flits between big themes and personal drama. There’s just one big drawback: This game will make you very hungry.

Dosa Divas takes place across a small collection of towns that have been overrun by a single corporation that has made cooking illegal, giving it a monopoly with its food-like nutrient paste. This is problematic not just from a financial perspective, but also a cultural one, as these places all have deep histories connected to food. What are the residents of a traditional fishing village to do when they can’t fish anymore? You play as a pair of sisters named Samara and Amani who join forces to take down the evil corporation, which just so happens to be run by their little sister Lina. So it’s a story about saving the world from capitalism, a story about the cultural importance of food, and also a story about how hard families can be. Also, there are sentient mech suits, including one that’s in your party through the whole game.

This all plays out like a fairly traditional turn-based RPG. You travel the world fighting enemies — they range from pesky lawyers to, uh, your own parents — leveling up and getting stronger along the way. There’s a timing element to battles reminiscent of Mario & Luigi where you have to hit a button at the right time to defend or attack, and Dosa Divas adds some interesting elements like cooking, which lets you both create healing items and feed hungry citizens by completing brief minigames. It’s a fun twist on the standard “item” in an RPG, and reminds me a bit of taking a break to cook in Final Fantasy XV. The game’s slick, stylized graphics also make the meals look particularly appetizing, so I wouldn’t recommend playing Dosa Divas on an empty stomach.

What’s remarkable about the game is that it crams all of this — interesting world, satisfying gameplay, rich story — into a comparatively small package by streamlining things in smart ways. You only learn a couple of abilities over the course of the game, for instance, but they’re all important for battle strategy. Similarly, while you can customize your characters somewhat each time you level up, you can only choose between improving their strength, health, and special abilities. This structure gives you a lot of the same satisfaction of playing an RPG without all of the busywork. And best of all: no grinding!

The story hides its depth in a similar way. On the surface, it’s an occasionally silly, frequently straightforward critique of capitalism. You hear growling stomachs to alert you there’s someone in need of a meal, and you can tear down corporate propaganda to improve your status in each town. But Dosa Divas is at its best when the story gets personal. Through flashbacks and candid conversations, you really come to learn the complex familial relationships that define Samara, Amani, and Lina, and just how integral food has been in their lives, beyond simply being a source of sustenance. No one is a pure villain or hero in this game. The boss battle with their parents is a particular highlight, as it feels like a real, raw argument between people who love each other but can’t always accept the ways others change and grow. It might hit a little close to home for some players. Aside from the mech suits, of course.

In many ways Dosa Divas is a careful balancing act. It’s a roleplaying game that shrinks down an epic quest, and a raw and personal story that isn’t afraid to get silly or tackle larger themes. The most impressive part of the game is that it manages to be all of those things without feeling bloated or unwieldy. It takes just as much time as it needs to — which is a good thing, because now I have lots of cooking to do.

_{Dosa Divas is available now on the PC, Switch, and PS5.}