ENA: Dream BBQ Chapter 1 - Lonely Door

In 2020, Peruvian animator Joel G released the first episode of ENA, an avant-garde comedy that mixes 2D and 3D animation with surrealist inspiration. Although I had been aware of the project since around its initial release, I never actually watched it, as I had no idea of its content and didn’t realize until writing this review that its first season not only had just four episodes, but clocked in at under an hour total. Still, I was aware of its notoriety when I stumbled across the free official video game, ENA: Dream BBQ, on Steam when it launched back in March. Once I finally had the time to play it for myself, marking my first true introduction to the series, I found myself wishing I had played it sooner, as it contained a lot of the creative energy that I’ve found lacking in the wider gaming industry and felt like it was tailor made just for me.

As part of her job, Ena is looking for “The Boss” and meets up with two men, Froggy and Dratula, in the Hub. Dratula knows where The Boss is, beyond the Hub, but the path is obscured by smoke that harms Froggy. Froggy tasks Ena with searching for a way to turn off the smoke, which involves traveling through the “Lonely” Door and finding the Genie who inhabits it.

The Hub, with the "Lonely" Door in sight.

Some may be caught off-guard by the surreal presentation, which Dream BBQ nails perfectly. There’s a mixture of different art styles, including both 2D and 3D characters, with one that wouldn’t look out of place in the infamous The Legend of Zelda CD-i games. Characters speak multiple languages, but Ena can understand them perfectly, and the occasional moments of silence can create an eerie atmosphere at times. Additionally, no two environments look exactly the same and can include rotating 2D sprites. Some players unfamiliar with surreal media may even find the events confusing, with seemingly random and bizarre events.

However, as is the case with the best surreal media, everything feels deliberate and cohesive. While strange events may occur, there’s a consistent internal logic, a method to the madness, if you will. The disparate art styles blend well together in a visually appealing way and lend each character and area a unique personality. Although I had admittedly never played the title I’m about to mention, it quickly reminded me of LSD: Dream Emulator, but with a fresh new take that stands well on its own, with its own unique and striking cast of characters. It’s very creative, delivered with a clear unfiltered passion and enthusiasm, and a reminder of why I’ve always found myself attracted to surreal media like Mr. Stain on Junk Alley or Smiling Friends.

Ena's interactions also have some great lines.

As such, although the story advances through surreal logic, it’s well thought out you can easily follow what’s happening. There are also two branching paths, though the Chapter ends the same way regardless of your approach. By the time you reach that ending, it’s clear that there’s still plenty of ground left to cover for future Chapters, but you still get a conclusion to this bite of the overarching narrative. At about 90 minutes, the game also doesn’t overstay its welcome, which I can appreciate, while still delivering a solid amount of content for a free game.

The gameplay on paper isn’t anything noteworthy, consisting mostly of walking around and fulfilling fetch quests. This would technically qualify it as a “walking simulator”, although there is some light platforming and there’s a sense of exploration that feels rewarding (especially if you look for the collectibles from the paid Supporter Edition DLC). I do like that the tutorial is very efficient with explaining the game’s easy controls, though you can potentially run forever until you think to actually explore the small looping environment. You can also view your active Jobs at any time through a flavorful brochure. My only real complaint, a minor one, is that after completing the Chapter, you can’t go back and complete any unfinished jobs, which requires a restart. This does encourage multiple playthroughs to properly view the branching paths toward the same outcome, but it did disappoint me a little on my first run. 

You can view your outstanding Jobs at any time.

The voice acting is also a highlight, which helps considering the multilingual casting. Two voice actors stood out for me, though. I was surprised to learn that Vinnie Vinesauce voiced Dratula, as it sounded nothing like his normal speaking voice. Due to my familiarity with Lizzie Freeman’s roles as Pomni in The Amazing Digital Circus and Trish Una in JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure Part 5: Golden Wind, it was a pleasant surprise hearing her voice the minor character Taski Maiden.

In spite of the light gameplay, Ena: Dream BBQ stands out for all the right reasons and has me interested in the future paid Chapters. Even if you’re not familiar with the creator’s other work, which I’m now more curious about, it’s an experience you won’t soon forget.