Umihara Kawase Fresh! is a 2019 platform adventure game developed by Studio Saizensen, released for PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, and PC. It marks a significant evolution in the long-running Umihara Kawase series, introducing an open-world setting called Micheliner for the first time in the franchise's history. Core gameplay centers on the series' signature rubber fishing line mechanic, through which players swing, pendulum, and bound across environments to navigate levels. The game features over 100 stages and a high-difficulty challenge mode with an online ranking board, representing the largest content volume in the series. For the first time, the game incorporates a story and quest structure alongside a cooking system, allowing players to capture enemies and gather ingredients to prepare meals that grant temporary power-ups. A second playable character, Nata de Cotton, joins Kawase with a distinct flight-based ability. An English version was released in December 2020.
Kawase is a wandering chef in the magical world of Michelana. This time she ended up in a remote town called “Kingness,” where she starts working for a hamburger restaurant called “Tadaima Tavern.” For the time being, Umihara Kawase seems set on helping out Tadaima Tavern. Why? Because Kingness is the spitting image of a town that always appears in her dreams… There are mysterious things for sure. But since talking about them might make people look at her funny, it seems like she will keep them to herself. World: The Surface The area where Tadaima Tavern is located. All sorts of people live here. If you head to the sky, there are gates protected by guards.
