When comparing Mario Kart 8 Deluxe vs Overcooked 2, the Slant community recommends Mario Kart 8 Deluxe for most people. In the question“What are the best couch/local co-op games for the Nintendo Switch?” Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is ranked 12th while Overcooked 2 is ranked 30th. The most important reason people chose Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is:
Every race in MK8DX is a fast-paced battle for first place. You drive at high-speeds, drift to gain speed boosts, fly off ramps, and collect mystery boxes that give you random power ups. It can be one-use weapons to set back your opponents. Or it can be one-use items that boost you in some way. For example, if you get a banana peel, you can drop it on the track, so anyone who drives on top of it spins out, setting you further ahead of them. Or if you get Bullet Bill, you can transform into a massive bullet, gaining increased speed, automatically steering through the track, and knocking out any opponent you touch. This is very useful for catching up to other racers, especially because the effect's duration increases the closer you are to last place. The end result is a very enjoyable gameplay that is equal parts strategy and skillful driving. It can be very easy to spend hours playing and not notice the passage of time.
Specs
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Pros
Pro Entertaining kart racing gameplay
Every race in MK8DX is a fast-paced battle for first place. You drive at high-speeds, drift to gain speed boosts, fly off ramps, and collect mystery boxes that give you random power ups. It can be one-use weapons to set back your opponents. Or it can be one-use items that boost you in some way.
For example, if you get a banana peel, you can drop it on the track, so anyone who drives on top of it spins out, setting you further ahead of them. Or if you get Bullet Bill, you can transform into a massive bullet, gaining increased speed, automatically steering through the track, and knocking out any opponent you touch. This is very useful for catching up to other racers, especially because the effect's duration increases the closer you are to last place.
The end result is a very enjoyable gameplay that is equal parts strategy and skillful driving. It can be very easy to spend hours playing and not notice the passage of time.
Pro Accessible to beginners and young players
Despite having a very high skill ceiling and 48 tracks to master, MK8DX makes it less intimidating for beginners by including the "Smart steering" and "Auto acceleration" options.
The former option automatically prevents collision with walls and the latter option glues your foot to the gas pedal. These two options used in tandem basically auto-drive your kart while still giving you control over the on-screen action. This gives you comfortable training wheels to learn the ins and outs of the game while also allowing really young players to enjoy the game without feeling too frustrated.
Pro Fun battle modes
Other than MK8DX's 3 main racing modes, there are also 5 battle modes, focusing on battles in arena-like tracks.
There's the Balloon Battle, where you have to pop or steal your opponent's balloons, Renegade Roundup, where racers are split into teams of cops and robbers, Bob-omb Blast, where you throw bombs at other racers to get points, Coin Runners, where you try to collect the most coins to win, and Shine Thief, where you have to hold a star for 20 seconds to win, but your opponents can steal it away from you. These 5 modes can be a great distraction when you get tired of regular races, keeping the game fresh for a long time.
Pro Excellent variety of race tracks
MK8DX features 48 unique race tracks, including tracks running through a haunted mansion, an airport, a medieval castle, and even outer space. Each track also has a completely different layout, providing its own set of twists, turns, loops, and shortcuts for you to enjoy and master. As a result, there's enough variety to keep gameplay fresh and exciting for a long time.
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 Unlockables might not feel that exciting
Every character (except Golden Mario) and race track is unlocked from the beginning, leaving you to only unlock new kart parts. While these are very good for improving/adjusting your kart's performance and looks, you probably won't ever use the vast majority of the parts. This can cause unlocking them feel pointless and tedious, making it really disappointing for players looking for a more meaningful progression system.
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.