Thirsty Suitors - Find the Strawberry

Have you ever wanted cooking, skateboarding and turn-based combat all in one story-rich game? Me neither, but I knew I had to play Thirsty Suitors to see how they did all of this in one game! Could it be cohesive? Yes! It can.

Jala has come home for the first time after leaving three years ago without telling anyone. She left many broken hearts in her wake and is back to make amends, or she just had nowhere else to go.

Now she’ll need to work things out with her exes in epic turn-based battles, taunting them with moves like impress, shock and rage to amp up the emotions while also bonding with her parents over Indian and Sri Lankan cooking. If that wasn’t enough, she also needs to help save the local skate haven from a creepy cult leader (who wears a bear suit) and development into a mall. Now you see how all these genres start to weave together.

While cooking and fighting felt smooth, if a little repetitive, the skateboarding is quite janky. I found myself fighting with the controls when skating around or in skate challenges. There were often times when I failed a challenge because Jala just wouldn’t go where I wanted her to go.

Sergio start fight screen — Get ready to fight! Sergio’s fight screen.

Cooking was much more fun! The process could become a bit repetitive but the moves changed with different recipes. The most interesting part of cooking was learning new recipes and the conversations with Jala’s parents. Cooking with Dad? A relatively calm and smooth process. Cooking with Mum? Expect a bit more spice! This is where you’ll learn the most about their relationship though.

I enjoyed playing Thirsty Suitors, but sometimes it is difficult to want to fight for Jala when you find out how she ended up with this pile of exes. I really wanted to lose some of them! Now, I’m wondering whether that is an option. The fights did become a bit repetitive because of the limited move-set. I don’t particularly like turn-based combat though, so the experience might differ if it’s something you enjoy.

The game does an excellent job of making the misfits of the world feel seen, as well as dealing with generational and cultural trauma in a way I haven’t seen in a game before. Definitely a game worth trying if you want something a little different.