Key & Compass presents:
Not Another Sad Meal
by manonamora

Not Another Sad Meal is a web browser interactive fiction game written with Adventuron and is © 2024 by manonamora. This game was an entry in Recipe Jam, SeedComp! 2024, and Short Games Showcase 2024, placements to be determined.

In this cooking adventure, you play as someone getting over a bad breakup. Drinking hasn't helped. You need to make and eat a decent meal. Do you want to make deluxe toast, cursed pizza, or fancy noodles?

This solution is by David Welbourn, and is based on Version 0.2.0 of the game.

SPOILERS AHEAD. Reading a walkthrough prematurely can sometimes diminish one's enjoyment of an interactive fiction game. Please make an honest effort to play the game before reading this walkthrough.

Map
Adventuron doesn't have containers
Walkthrough
Extras
- Characters, Credits, Endings, Inventory
Thank You to my Patreon supporters
Support me on Ko-Fi
External links:
- This game at Homepage, IFDB, and IFWiki.
- Follow me at Bluesky, Ko-Fi, Mastodon, Patreon, and Wordpress.

Map

Adventuron doesn't have containers

Before we begin, I must mention that Adventuron (at least in 2024) does not support containers as part of its world modeling, in much the same way early Quest games didn't. Everything in this game is either directly in a room, directly in your inventory, or nowhere. The author had to be very creative in pretending to have containers that aren't actually performing as containers.

This explains why the kitchen is split into different rooms. Things in the cupboard have to be in a cupboard-room. Things in the fridge have to be in a fridge-room. And so on.

The fridge's sub-parts, like the freezer chest, drawer, etc. aren't containers at all. You can't open them. Just examine them to view their supposed contents. The pizza is immediately accessible in the fridge if you know it's there; just take it.

The bread machine isn't really there; it cannot be opened. It's just a loaf of bread pretending to be in a bread machine.

More trickery is involved with the sliced bread, frying pan, pizza, and plate, which are all quasi-containers, coded to respond to commands like PUT something IN PAN or PUT something ON PIZZA, but they aren't true containers. Whenever you seem to put something in or on one of these things, either some hidden flag in the game is changed, or another object is swapped in. It can be a bit confusing wondering where the stuff in your pan is when the pan's description never changes.

Furthermore, you may find yourself carrying sliced veggies or fried eggs in your bare hands, unable to put them onto a plate. Don't worry about it.

Walkthrough

Exploring your kitchen

Kitchen

This section is just about checking out what you have to work with. If you're already familiar with your kitchen, you can skip this part and go strsight into making one of the three recipes: deluxe toast, cursed pizza, or fancy noodles.

> smell.

> open cupboard.

Cupboard

> x plates. x pans. x pan. x pot.

> x dry food.

> x snacks. x pasta. x rice. x potato.

> x cans. x tuna. x tangerines.

> x spices. x salt. x pepper. x tabasco.

> x noodles.

> close cupboard.

Kitchen

> x fridge. open it.

Fridge

> x chest. x pizza. x vegetables.

> x drawer. x avocado. x tomato. x orange.

> x shelves. x eggs. x cheese. x butter.

> x door. x beer. x wine. x vodka. x sauce.

> close fridge.

Kitchen

> x stove. (You move to it.)

Stove

> x stove. x burners.

> step away.

Kitchen

> x counter.

Counter

You can't refer to the machine.

> look. x loaf. x knife. x board.

> step away.

Kitchen

> x table.

Table

> look. x table. x cutlery.

> step away.

Kitchen

Note that there's no sink or drawers implemented. If you need water or a can opener, you'll get it automatically.

Now decide which meal you want to make: the deluxe toast, the cursed pizza, or the fancy noodles?

Making the toast

Kitchen

> remember toast. open cupboard.

Cupboard

> take plate. take pan.

> close cupboard.

Kitchen

> open fridge.

Fridge

> take avocado. take tomato.

> take egg. take butter.

> close fridge.

Kitchen

> x counter.

Counter

> take bread. (no: slice it)

Don't bother trying to take the knife; you use it automatically.

> slice bread.

The game now knows you've decided to make the toast. The slice of bread cannot be put on the plate at this time.

> take bread.

Decide if you want to toast the bread or not. Toasting is completely optional.

Counter

Option 1: Yes! Let's toast it!

>> 1

> step away.

Kitchen

> x stove.

Stove

> put bread in pan. (It's toasted.)

> step away.

Kitchen

> x counter.

Counter

> drop bread.

Counter

Option 2: Nah... it's fine.

>> 2

Counter

> slice avocado. (You now carry sliced avocado.)

> put avocado on bread.

> slice tomato. (You now carry sliced tomato.)

> put tomato on bread.

> step away.

Kitchen

> x stove.

Stove

> put butter in pan.

> put eggs in pan.

> wait. ("It's ready!")

> take eggs. (You now carry fried eggs.)

> step away.

Kitchen

> x counter.

Counter

> put eggs on bread.

Now that the toast is fully assembled, you may put it onto a plate.

> plate bread. (The empty plate in your inventory is replaced with a plated toast.)

> step away.

Kitchen

> x table.

Table

> x plate. eat toast.

[ THE END ]
FOUND: Ending 1/3 - The ~ Deluxe Toast ~

Making the pizza

Kitchen

> remember pizza. open cupboard.

Cupboard

> take pan. take plate.

> take tuna. take tangerines.

> close cupboard.

Kitchen

> open fridge.

Fridge

> take pizza. close fridge.

Kitchen

> x stove.

Stove

> put pizza in pan.

> put tuna on pizza.

> put tangerine on pizza.

> cook pizza. z. z. z. (It's ready.)

> put pizza on plate.

> step away.

Kitchen

> x table.

Table

> x plate. eat pizza.

[ THE END ]
FOUND: Ending 2/3 - THE CURSED PIZZA!!

Making the noodles

Kitchen

> remember noodles. open cupboard.

Cupboard

> take pot. (no: use the pan)

> take pan. take noodles. take plate.

> close cupboard.

Kitchen

> open fridge.

Fridge

> take vegetables. take egg. take cheese.

> close fridge.

Kitchen

> x stove.

Stove

> put vegetables in pan. z.

> put noodles in pan. z.

> put eggs in pan. z.

> put cheese in pan. z.

> put noodles on plate.

> step away.

Kitchen

> x table.

Table

> x plate. eat noodles.

[ THE END ]
FOUND: Ending 3/3 - The Fancy Noodles!

Extras

Characters

This is a solo adventure, but the narrative is riddled with references to her, the unnamed female significant-other who left you and took all the best stuff. You miss her and you need to get over her.

Credits

This is the response to CREDITS:

----------- CREDITS ----------- Not Another Sad Meal was created, written, and coded by manonamora for the Recipe Jam and the SeedComp!. It could not have been made without Adventuron (v.1.0.0 beta 78) or the help of the Adventuron Discord community (especially eツ, Garry, and Grizel). The comfort taken from the food is inspired by the seed Comfort Food by Pinkunz. The game uses the Clairsys10 font by Paul Van Der Laan.

Endings

Ending 1/3 - The ~ Deluxe Toast ~

if you make and eat the toast.

Ending 2/3 - THE CURSED PIZZA!!

if you make and eat the pizza.

Ending 3/3 - The Fancy Noodles!

if you make and eat the noodles.

Inventory

Cupboard items

Note: You will not take the pot, pasta, rice, snacks, potato, or the box of spices as a whole.

a frying pan. It's one of the pans in the cupboard. You need the pan for every recipe.

At the stove, put the sliced bread into the pan to make toasted sliced bread.
At the stove, put the butter then the eggs into the pan, and wait. Take the sunny side-up eggs.
At the stove, put the frozen pizza into the pan, put the tuna and tangerine onto the pizza, then cook the pizza for four turns to make cursed pizza.
At the stove, put the frozen vegetables into the pan then wait. Now put the noodles into the pan then wait. Now put the (raw) eggs into the pan then wait. Finally, put the cheese into the pan then wait to make fancy noodles.

a simple plate. Plates are in the cupboard. You need a plate for every recipe.

After fully assembling the bread at the counter, put the bread on the plate to create a plated deluxe toast.
After fully cooking the pizza at the stove, put the pizza on the plate to create a plated (cursed) delicious pizza.
After fully cooking the noodles at the stove, put the noodles on the plate to creat a plate filled with healthy(ish) noodles.
Note that you never put anything onto a plate except fully assembled or cooked food that you intend to eat right away. Plating is always the last step, never an intermediate step.

a can of tuna, and a can of tangerine. They're the two cans amongst the cupboard's dry food.

At the stove, after putting the frozen pizza into the pan, put the tuna and tangerine onto the pizza.
Don't worry about finding a can opener. Either these cans don't need an opener, or your can opener is so handy, you use it automatically.

a pack of instant noodles. It's amongst the cupboard's dry food.

At the stove, after cooking the vegetables in the pan, put the noodles into the pan and wait. Put the raw eggs into the pan and wait. Put the cheese into the pan and wait. The noodles are now fancy noodles; plate them to make a plate filled with healthy(ish) noodles.

a salt shaker, a pepper shaker, and a tabasco bottle. They're all in the box of spices amongst the cupboard's dry food.

I didn't find any way to use these spices.

Fridge items

Note: You will not take the orange, beer, wine, or vodka.

a frozen pizza box. It's in the fridge's freezer chest.

At the stove, put pizza into the pan, then put the tuna and tangerine on the pizza. Cook the pizza for four turns; it's now cursed pizza. Plate the pizza to make a plated (cursed) delicious pizza.

a package of frozen veggies. It's in the fridge's freezer chest.

This is the first ingredient into the pan when making fancy noodles.

an avocado. It's in the fridge's drawer.

At the counter, slice the avocado; it is now an avocado, in slices. Put the sliced avocado onto the sliced bread.

a tomato. It's in the fridge's drawer.

At the counter, slice the tomato; it is now a tomato, in slices.
At the counter, after putting the sliced avocado onto the sliced bread, put the sliced tomato onto the sliced bread.

two eggs. They're on the fridge's shelves.

If you're making deluxe toast: at the stove, put the butter then the eggs into the pan and wait to make two sunny side-up eggs. Take the fried eggs to the counter and put them onto the sliced bread as the third topping.
If you're making fancy noodles: at the stove, put the eggs into the pan as the third ingredient; see noodles.

a pack of cheese. It's on the fridge's shelves.

This is the fourth ingredient into the pan when making fancy noodles.

a stick of butter. It's on the fridge's shelves.

If you're making deluxe toast: at the stove, put the butter then the eggs into the pan and wait to make two sunny side-up eggs.

a bottle of sriracha. It's in the "spicy sauce" in the fridge's door.

I couldn't find any way to use the sriracha.

Counter items

Note: You cannot take the loaf, only slice it. You cannot take the knife or cutting board; you automatically use them when you slice something.

some sliced bread. Create it by slicing the loaf. You can only take it if you affirm you intend to toast it.

At the stove, put the bread in the pan to make some toasted sliced bread.
At the counter, drop the toasted bread.
Whether or not the bread is toasted, put the sliced avocado on the bread, then put the sliced tomato on the bread, then put the fried eggs on the bread, then put the bread onto a plate to create a plated deluxe toast.

Meals

At the table, eat your plated meal. You cannot put any spices or seasonings onto any of these; they are not "containers".

a plated deluxe toast. See bread and the making toast part of the walkthrough.
a plated (cursed) delicious pizza. See pizza and the making pizza part of the walkthrough.
a plate filled with healthy(ish) noodles. See noodles and the making noodles part of the walkthrough.

Thank You to my Patreon supporters

This walkthrough is provided free of charge since the work it's based on has less than fifteen locations. Please consider it a thank you for your support!

I create larger walkthroughs too! Please visit my Patreon account if you're interested in helping me create more interactive fiction walkthroughs. I appreciate all the help I can get! Thanks again.

Ko-Fi is a way to send me small one-time donations. Every little bit helps, and thank you!

Key & Compass presents: Not Another Sad Meal by manonamora

Map

Adventuron doesn't have containers

Walkthrough

Exploring your kitchen

Making the toast

Making the pizza

Making the noodles

Extras

Characters

Credits

Endings

Inventory

Thank You to my Patreon supporters

Key & Compass presents:
Not Another Sad Meal
by manonamora