Demonic 'Mama' Takes Delight in Cruelty to Animals, but She's All Smiles When Players Complete the Vegan Thanksgiving Feast

For Immediate Release:
November 17, 2008

Contact:
Lindsay Rajt 757-622-7382  

Norfolk, Va. -- Just in time to coincide with Thanksgiving as well as the release of Cooking Mama: World Kitchen, PETA has launched a parody of Majesco's popular video game series called Cooking Mama: Mama Kills Animals, the Unauthorized PETA Edition. Why is PETA picking on poor Mama? Because Majesco's game is so heavy on dishes that are made from dead animals that the only things missing are the blood and gore. So, in the name of accuracy and honesty, PETA has decided to introduce a little horror to Mama's kitchen. 

In the original version, players score points for assembling a meal. That also applies in PETA's parody, but with this Thanksgiving dinner, players also must go through the motions of plucking the turkey's feathers, pulling out the bird's intestines, and cutting off the animal's head. All the while, a demonic cleaver-wielding Mama takes delight in the agony. When the player beats the game, Mama has a change of heart and replaces her bloodlust with a craving for tofu-turkey. Along the way, players can unlock bonuses such as vegetarian Thanksgiving recipes and undercover footage from a turkey slaughterhouse. PETA also encourages players to contact Majesco to ask for a "Cooking Mama" game with all vegetarian recipes. 

Is PETA overdoing it? Hardly. More than 40 million turkeys are killed every year during the holiday season alone. Turkeys on factory farms have their beaks painfully seared off and their toes severed without any pain relief. They are crowded by the tens of thousands into dark, stifling warehouses, where disease, smothering, and heart attacks are common. The birds are drugged and bred to grow so large so fast that their legs cannot support their weight. Many turkeys slowly starve to death within inches of food after they become crippled and are unable to move. Millions die every year from heat exhaustion, freezing, and accidents during transport. 

"We're having a bit of fun at Mama's expense, but there's nothing funny about the suffering endured by turkeys and other animals who are killed for food," says PETA's Joel Bartlett. "With all the delicious vegan alternatives available, there's no need to make the carcass of a tormented bird the centerpiece of your Thanksgiving table." 

For more information and to play the game, please visit PETA.org or click here.