Dosa Divas (PS5) Review: A Charming Bite-Sized RPG

While I adore role-playing games, the lengthy runtimes that often exceed 40 hours can make them feel like something you need to schedule your life around rather than a game you enjoy in your downtime. Outerloop Games’ Dosa Divas hears the pleas of time-crunched RPG fans and delivers a 13-hour turn-based RPG that is full of charm and fun gameplay. It’s one of 2026’s most pleasant surprises and well worth checking out.

Gameplay-wise, Dosa Divas has a lot in common with the Mario & Luigi RPGs, as you can get in extra hits and defend yourself from enemy attacks with a well-timed button press. The latter is particularly important, as you take a good chunk of damage when not mitigating it, and if you time a block perfectly, you actually take no damage at all. Skills also differ between charge attacks, button mashing, and timing minigames that allow you to deal extra damage if you do well at it. With elemental weaknesses (which are all food-themed) and even a Bravely Default-style mechanic to add in extra attacks in a single turn, there’s a lot of depth to its battle system, which really shines during the more intense boss fights.

Outside of battles, you’ll find yourself exploring maps, completing side quests, and doing a lot of cooking. If you’re unaware of what a dosa is (it’s a South Indian crepe dish), prepare to get acquainted, as you’ll be cooking plenty of them with ingredients you collect and buy, as they help build relationships with the villages you come across and can give you buffs during battles as well. Like with combat, there’s a good amount of depth to the cooking portion of the game, as you’ll have to do an array of different minigames to create different kinds of dosa, and different ingredients can add bonus effects.

While it took me a little bit to warm up to the characters, two sisters who are reconnecting after time away and can be a bit cold to one another as a result, the writing is actually pretty charming all the way through, especially as you meet more characters. The main story revolves around a family business gone awry, as a third sister has gone mad pursuing success, and trying to reach your family home. While the critique of capitalism is still timely, if a bit tired at this point, it’s at least delivered in a fun way, with the unique world and its relationship to food being enjoyable to explore for the dozen or so hours it lasts.

Dosa Divas (PS5) Review: Final Verdict

Blending systems from past RPG greats, as if they’re ingredients in the culinary dishes you will make in the game, Dosa Divas is a fun turn-based RPG that keeps your attention during combat and doesn’t overstay its welcome. With a well-realized world and some funny dialogue, it’s a consistently charming RPG that is worth checking, as even an appetizer can be quite fulfilling.