Diner Bros is a restaurant simulator for playing with your friends

You’ll need to run a tight operation in this chaotic kitchen.

Working in a customer service job can be pretty soul-destroying, but it’s definitely improved if you have good colleagues. And if your colleagues are also your friends, it can even be quite fun. Diner Bros is a lighthearted game where you can sit in your living room and have a go at running a restaurant with your mates. If you’ve ever considered starting up a business venture with your friends, then this game might be a good experiment to separate the sound operators from the lazy deadbeats who can’t run a bath let alone a business.

Don’t take the word ‘simulator’ too seriously though, as Diner Bros is intended as a fun party game, as demonsrated by its cartoony visuals. You can play a single player campaign mode, but the experience of starting out selling burgers and sodas and gradually growing your customer base until you become a popular neighborhood restaurant is above all designed for co-op play with up to four players.

Inspired by various old school splitscreen co-ops, this game has been in development for a year by solo studio JAYFL Games and is intended to be very easy to pick up and play even for non-gamers. However, as you buy increasingly sophisticated equipment and make more complex recipes, the difficulty level can be ramped up as the game progresses.

Playing in different roles from server to chef, you will need to communicate well, and pay attention to your customers. Watch out for special character types such as Punks, who try to sneak off without paying, and Athletes who are always in a rush and will need you to keep healthy options on standby for them if you want to maintain their custom.

Diner Bros will be available on Steam when it releases. You can follow its progress on Twitter, and wishlist it on Steam here. It will be Canada-based JAYFL Games’ debut release and will go live at some point later this year.