News • By • June 3, 2026 • 2 min read

Mintrocket Announces Bancho The Chef Prequel for PS5

Mintrocket revealed Bancho The Chef, a standalone prequel to Dave the Diver, for PlayStation 5. The game follows a young Bancho's culinary journey across Asia, blending cooking simulation and adventure elements.

#Bancho The Chef #Dave the Diver
Animated man with afro and sunglasses on a seaside road, traditional buildings, and ocean

Key Points

  • Mintrocket announced Bancho The Chef, a new game for PlayStation 5.
  • The title serves as a standalone prequel to Dave the Diver, set in 2004.
  • Gameplay features Bancho learning cuisine across Asia and serving customers directly.
  • The game transitions to 3D visuals and utilizes DualSense controller features for cooking sensations.

Mintrocket has announced a new title, Bancho The Chef, set to launch on PlayStation 5. This game is a standalone prequel to the popular Dave the Diver, delving into the origins of the beloved chef character. The announcement came during a "State of Play" program.

A Culinary Journey Across Asia

Bancho The Chef is set in 2004, nineteen years before the events of Dave the Diver. The narrative follows a younger Bancho as he travels through various Asian regions, including Japan, Korea, and China, learning local cuisines from master chefs. This journey is framed as his path to becoming a top sushi chef. Players will experience his growth as a chef, aiming to increase restaurant reputation in each area.

Gameplay blends cooking simulation, RPG, and adventure elements. Unlike Dave the Diver's sushi bar service, Bancho The Chef focuses on preparing meals and serving them directly to customers within a time limit. The game also incorporates minigames such as fishing and interacting with cats, and Bancho will take on cooking commissions to gain experience. This move into 3D visuals contrasts with Dave the Diver's pixel art, aiming to capture finer details of the cooking process, like the sheen on fish or oil splatters.

Enhanced Immersion with DualSense

The development team focused on simulating the act of cooking. The transition from pixel art to 3D is intended to enhance the player's experience of these details. Furthermore, Bancho The Chef will leverage the PlayStation 5's DualSense controller. Features like haptic feedback, adaptive triggers, and the gyroscope are being utilized to replicate sensations such as cutting fish or cracking eggs, aiming to let players feel the joy of cooking firsthand.

Bancho The Chef is slated for release on PlayStation 5 and PC. While the initial announcement specifies these platforms, other platform availability may be considered in the future.