Ben Harnwell 
As a writer, I truly appreciate the art of world-building in games and how it transforms them into something more than just moving meeples on a board, laying down cards, or, in the case of Hangry, controlling sprites on a screen.
In the game, you play as the hungry hero, Hangry. You work for Goutra, the owner and chef of a dingy underworld diner in a city where food reigns supreme. Goutra’s greed is as insatiable as Hangry’s appetite, and Hangry must travel across the galaxy, hunting down delicious monsters and collecting the finest ingredients for the sake of the diner—and his stomach.
The gameplay is likened to Borderlands, so you can expect comic book absurdity and a few good laughs!
However, this isn’t a review of the game; it’s about how the designers have used world-building, in the form of a comic, to promote the game.
Writers Bret Nelson, Michael Sorrenti, and Matt Kresge team up with artists Matt Kresge, Rohan Bansie, and Jacon Eguren (Lynx Studios) to bring the world of Hangry to life in this short 21-page digital comic.
The story begins with an introduction to Goutra, the renowned chef who, in his desire to create more elaborate and rare dishes, falls victim to his own ambitions. Using illegally obtained ingredients, he falls from grace and ends up cooking for mobsters, the only people willing to pay for his rare offerings.
He gets in too deep with an upcoming dinner for the Confluence of Thirteen, where he promises to serve Berry Fang, a rare beast from the distant planet L’Loy.
As luck would have it, a team of hunters dining at the restaurant overhears and offers to obtain the beasts for a small favor.
On L’Loy, we find our ‘hero,’ the hungry hunter, Hangry. He suffers from an insatiable hunger, never being satisfied, and searches for that one dish, that one meal that will finally end his hunger.
After saving one of the hapless hunters Goutra sent to retrieve the Berry Fang, Hangry teams up with the survivor to deliver the order. Through an unfortunate run-in with the game wardens, only Hangry is left to deliver the prize, resulting in him working for Goutra. The arrangement seems to work for both; Hangry can hunt for the restaurant supplies, and maybe Goutra can create that one dish that will sate Hangry’s hunger.
The game premise can be defined as a quest-based fighting style RPG. It seems the Chef will either get or make requests for obscure and rare ingredients, and our hero (the player) will seek, hunt, and kill (or capture?) the beasts.
Like many RPGs, the quest mechanic can be blunt or based on tired tropes, such as meeting a stranger in an inn who tells a tale of ancient artifacts in the temple on the hill behind the village… you might want to investigate.
At least, from this introductory comic to Hangry, the quests you will be sent on have more meaning than just gaining experience, loot, or money. You are gathering unique ingredients to create wonderful exotic culinary creations. Oh, and hopefully finding that one dish that will sate your character’s appetite.
It’s a wonderful little comic and a great way to set the scene, style, and feel of the game. I’m already hungry for more.
Hangry is an upcoming RPG that you can wishlist now on Steam and you can find our more at Hangry.com.
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