Dave the Diver's sushi master is getting his own PS5 prequel

Mintrocket has announced Bancho the Chef, a standalone prequel to Dave the Diver that focuses entirely on the Blue Hole's resident sushi master. Revealed during today's Sony State of Play, the PlayStation 5 game trades the original's deep-sea exploration for a mix of cooking simulation, RPG mechanics, and regional travel across Asia.

According to game director Jaeho Hwang on the PlayStation Blog, the story is set in 2004. This places the narrative 19 years before Bancho ever met Dave. Players will guide a younger, fully-haired version of the chef through Japan, Korea, China, and other locales. The goal is to learn regional techniques from master chefs and build up the reputation of various local restaurants.

Cooking with a time limit

The core gameplay loop is a major departure from the 2023 hit. In Dave the Diver, players primarily managed the restaurant floor, poured green tea, and served dishes to a rotating cast of eccentric customers. Here, you are actually cooking the meals and serving them directly under a strict time limit. Bancho will take on specific cooking requests from the locals in each region to gain experience.

The reveal trailer also shows off a complete visual overhaul. Mintrocket is abandoning the 2D pixel art of the original game in favor of full 3D environments and character models. This shift to 3D allows the developers to render the ingredients and final dishes with a much higher level of detail. Because it is a PS5 title, the studio is integrating the DualSense controller hardware directly into the cooking mechanics. The haptic feedback, adaptive triggers, and gyro sensor will all play a role in how you prepare food.

He actually has hair

I think Bancho the Chef looks great, mostly because it leans into the absurdity that made the original game so successful. Hwang confirmed the prequel refuses to stay confined to a single genre. You still get to fish, and there is a dedicated mini-game just for petting cats. Bancho was consistently ranked as the most popular character in fan polls, so giving him a dedicated origin story makes sense.

Mintrocket is a standalone studio now

The developer has a lot riding on this release. Mintrocket originally launched in 2022 as a sub-brand of the Korean publishing giant Nexon. They were tasked with creating smaller, highly creative games that blended genres. Dave the Diver started in early access on PC before expanding to the Nintendo Switch and PlayStation consoles, eventually selling over four million copies.

Following that massive commercial success, Nexon spun Mintrocket out into a wholly-owned subsidiary in late 2024. Hwang was nominated as its first CEO. This prequel is one of their first major swings as an independent corporate entity.

The team is not abandoning their flagship game just yet. Alongside the prequel announcement, Hwang noted that the studio is currently finishing up Dave the Diver's next major DLC expansion, titled "In the Jungle." There is no firm release date for Bancho the Chef, but it is currently confirmed for the PlayStation 5.

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