Pyre vs Overcooked 2
When comparing Pyre vs Overcooked 2, the Slant community recommends Pyre for most people. In the question“What are the best couch/local co-op games for PS4?” Pyre is ranked 24th while Overcooked 2 is ranked 28th. The most important reason people chose Pyre is:
Pyre is a mix of a fantasy visual novel with sports gameplay that links back to the plot. The story tells the tale of the game's many exiles, characters who were sent to Pyre's version of purgatory. These exiles can only return home by conquering the Rites alongside you, the game's 3v3 sport. As the story progresses, you grow close to the characters while learning about their backstories and motivation. Once they achieve their freedom, it will be time to say goodbye. There's a sense of accomplishment from growing attached to each of your team members while helping them return back home.
Specs
Ranked in these QuestionsQuestion Ranking
Pros
Pro Memorable story that blends with gameplay
Pyre is a mix of a fantasy visual novel with sports gameplay that links back to the plot. The story tells the tale of the game's many exiles, characters who were sent to Pyre's version of purgatory. These exiles can only return home by conquering the Rites alongside you, the game's 3v3 sport. As the story progresses, you grow close to the characters while learning about their backstories and motivation. Once they achieve their freedom, it will be time to say goodbye. There's a sense of accomplishment from growing attached to each of your team members while helping them return back home.
Pro Compelling characters
The characters you meet across the game who join your team as exiles all have their own backgrounds, quirks and motivations, making them feel real and full of life. Jodariel, the imposing, horned blonde woman featured in many of Pyre's promotional material, is a fan-favorite with an intriguing yet tragic backstory that belies her appearance. Every character throughout the story is just as compelling and memorable, making you want to help them through the Rites and for them to return back home.
Pro Excellent music
Pyre's music is a breath of fresh air filled with rustic, down-to-earth tunes. With warm acoustic guitar melodies for story scenes and high-energy, rock-influenced tracks for the Rites, the soundtrack features a blend of different sounds that all come together nicely.
Pro Detailed artwork
Pyre's art is beautiful and well-crafted, with bright colors, great attention to detail, and character designs that reflect the exiles' roles on the playing field. Characters like Volfred Sandalwood have smart designs, with Volfred in particular designed as a commanding man who carries importance, with his bulk mirroring his role as a defensive player in the Rites.
Pro Simple to pick up and learn
Whether you played the first Overcooked or not, Overcooked 2 is easy to figure out right from the get-go. The recipes for each dish are familiar even if you're not much of a chef, so you can remember which raw ingredients you need as you make your way around the kitchen and work with your co-op partner(s). Once you play a few rounds, you should have a good handle on things, helping you focus on getting everything done as quickly as possible from there on out.
Pro Hilariously fun couch and online co-op for up to four players
Playing Overcooked 2 with friends is the best. There's so much going on at once in the kitchen, with barriers moving in your way, hazards popping up like cars in the middle of the road separating the two halves of your area, and ingredients, dishes, and half-prepared dishes to move from one place to another. Working together and communicating with your friends through couch co-op or online play is a constant stream of laughter and excited shouting as you mess up, learn, and hopefully get things done. If you don't have anyone to play with, then you can hop online for matchmaking instead.
Pro Fast and frantic cooking action
Overcooked 2 is really fast-paced and keeps you on your toes. You play as a chef in a crazy kitchen with a ton of things going on all at once, with you mixing, preparing, and cooking in between the chaos of moving platforms and environmental obstacles. There's a time limit constantly ticking down at the bottom of the screen; finishing your tasks on time or ahead of schedule earns you a better score in the end. Tossing ingredients to your teammates across the kitchen, or across the moving platforms or obstacles like bodies of water, is a fresh new addition in this game that wasn't in the first Overcooked, making things even faster this time around. It's such a manic yet well-done mix of many different genres and ideas that all come together in the best ways.
Cons
Con Versus play is local only
Playing matches against other people is limited to local matches. The Rites have a lot of potential for a larger multiplayer mode against players around the world.
Con A lot of text
The visual novel aspect of Pyre may be a lot to deal with for some, despite the well-written story and characters. Unless you have the patience to read a lot of text, then Pyre may not be for you.
Con Too easy at times
Even playing on normal mode, Pyre's Rites may be too easy to complete for some players. Adjusting or customizing the difficulty may be necessary for those looking for a bit more of a challenge.
Con Can be incredibly frustrating
Trying to work at such a fast pace with so many obstacles and general mayhem going on at once can wear on you after a while. There's a lot to keep track of at once, and it's easy for things to spiral out of control as your mistakes pile up. If your group isn't doing well and you're running out of time, you might find yourself losing your patience with your team and yelling at them. This might not be the game for you if you don't have a team that's willing to be patient and cooperative with each other, even when you're not doing so well during a particular round.
Con Single-player isn't as fun as co-op
If you only want to play alone, then Overcooked 2 might not be the best game to pick. All the fast-paced fun from co-op mostly comes from communicating with your team and trying to pull off your task together before the time runs out. You control two characters at once while playing alone, but this still lacks the team-based chaos that makes the game so addicting. You could instead go online for matchmaking, though you might get paired with people who don't want to talk or work as an actual team.
Con The controls are a bit sluggish
There's something about the controls that feels heavy and deliberate, and not necessarily in a good way. The feeling goes against the fast-paced nature of the gameplay that demands you in one place and then the next. If you played the first Overcooked, you may notice the difference right away. This change shouldn't be too much of a hassle, though it's still noticeable.