Video game developers often invest significant effort into making virtual food look appealing, recognizing that appetizing visuals enhance the perceived satisfaction of a meal. However, this same dedication can be twisted to create deliberately unappetizing virtual cuisine, whether as an Easter egg or to serve a grim narrative purpose. These objectively gross video game foods are typically not meant to be taken seriously, but they warrant a closer look.
In the post-apocalyptic world of Fallout, players can find plentiful and cheap irradiated radroaches. Cooking these over a campfire turns them into a source of nutrition that also replenishes health, though it comes with the side effect of increased radiation levels. This "Roasted Mutant Bug Meat" perfectly encapsulates the series' focus on the disgusting aspects of survival.
Final Fantasy XV's chef Ignis usually prepares mouth-watering dishes, but a notable exception is the "Moist Tomato Cake." This creation is made from a single "Killer Tomato" enemy, garnished with more of the same. Despite boosting stats, its unsettling appearance, compounded by the additional tomato garnish, makes it a questionable culinary choice.
Death Stranding features Sam Porter Bridges consuming "Cryptobiotes," squirming alien creatures dug up from the ground and eaten raw to restore stamina. This convenience comes at the cost of a deeply unsettling visual, emphasizing the alien nature of Sam's world.
Xenoblade Chronicles 2 presents "The Literally Killer Tart," a dish crafted by the character Mythra, known for her poor cooking. Its ingredients consist entirely of insects and reptiles, such as "Everyman Cicadas," "Gregarious Scorpions," and "Munchygrubs," with no additional pastry elements. The tart, despite its unappetizing composition, provides in-game buffs and surprisingly, the party's trust in Mythra.
The Castlevania series features "Mysterious Wall Meat," chunks of meat inexplicably embedded in castle walls that restore health when consumed. The origin and presence of this meat remain unexplained, hinting at a potential video game trope of unexplained food items.
A clear nod to Castlevania's concept is "Floor Chicken" from Vampire Survivors. This whole roast chicken, found on the ground as a health pickup, is considered a direct reference and an ode to older arcade game food pickups. Collecting enough Floor Chickens can even unlock a bonus stage populated by mutated chickens.
In Heavy Rain, during a scene where Scott Shelby offers to cook breakfast, players can choose to burn the "Scrambled Eggs" to a crisp or serve them completely raw. Crucially, the game's narrative and Lauren's reaction remain identical regardless of the cooking outcome, adding to the game's somber atmosphere.
Persona 4 features "Mystery Food X," a homemade curry prepared by Chie and Yukiko with unconventional ingredients like foie gras and sea cucumber. The game deliberately avoids showing the final dish, but character reactions of visible distress and the dish's ominous name seal its unappetizing fate.
Cult of the Lamb offers "Minced Follower Meat," crafted from the remains of a sacrificed cult member. This grayish-brown mush, served in a grass bowl, is used as a disciplinary measure, often making the dissenting follower violently ill. It can also be employed as a psychological weapon, serving the remains of a dissenter's friend to them.
Across multiple Wolfenstein titles, protagonist B.J. Blazkowicz consumes bowls of dog food as a regular health pickup, an act that is neither acknowledged nor explained. Internal game code refers to this item as "Bad food," and its entity name, "bo_alpo," is a direct reference to the Alpo dog food brand. The reason for a war hero consuming kibble remains a mystery.
These examples demonstrate how decades of game design have explored the intersection of "gross" and "functional" when it comes to in-game food. Whether these items matter aesthetically or solely for their gameplay function, they offer memorable, if unappetizing, experiences for players.