Compton's Cookoff

Guide yourself through Compton's Cookoff in Psychonauts 2! Learn how to beat the judge, master the timed cooking challenges, and find all the collectibles.

Alright, so you've made your way back to the psychoisolation chamber. Time to deliver those bees to Compton and get this next chapter rolling!

First up, you'll have to fight a 'judge' enemy. Now, here's a pro-tip: if you use Telekinesis to snag his giant gavel and chuck it back at him, you'll snag the Objection! trophy/achievement. Heads up though, this makes him angry and he'll start throwing books at you from a distance. Normally, he blocks most psi blasts with that gavel, but you get a small window when he's swinging it. He's got a couple of moves: a big overhead smash that's easy to dodge, and a circular swing that needs some fancy footwork. If you get too close for punches, he'll slam the gavel down, creating a shockwave, so be ready to move! Your best bet is to use Time Bubble to slow him down, or just bait his swings and blast him, then go in for a few punches. If you're a dodging champ, throwing his own gavel back is a solid damage dealer.

After that, you're thrown into a cooking challenge. Don't worry about the figments or collectibles just yet – you're on the clock! The first task is pretty forgiving with the time limit, so just focus on getting it done. Grab an egg with Telekinesis and hustle it over to the boiling station on the far left. You'll need to jump over some purple goop. See that ledge with a yellow figment? Don't get too close to the steam vent there. Make your way to the trampoline, but wait for the steam vent to blow before you jump. Then, hop up to the left. Toss the egg into the designated spot in the water and slide down the ramp. Next, snag the onion from the stands on the far right. Take it up the ramp to the right, carefully avoiding the goop and timing your run past the spinning blades to reach the chopping station. Deposit the onion, pull the handle, and give that button a good pound. Grab the onion again, slide down the ramp behind you, and deposit it on the right side of the plate. By now, the egg should be almost ready. Head back to the boiler, grab the egg once it's done, slide down the ramp, and put it on the left side of the plate. Hit the button near the plate, and boom – dish complete! Warning: If you miss the time limit, you'll have to quit and reload your save before the next fight to try again. You won't permanently miss the prize, though.

After the cooking challenge, you'll get a chance to explore this area without any time pressure. If this is your first time here, it's a great opportunity to get familiar with the cooking stations for future tasks. Need a health boost? Hit those green blobs, but steer clear of the purple goop!

Assuming you beat the clock, your prize is a HALF-A-MIND (1/2). Grab the PURSE TAG from the audience seating. Let's start exploring the cooking stations, beginning with the boiler on the left. Drop off the ledge onto the trampoline below and to the left. Follow the mental connection nodes to snag the DUFFLEBAG TAG. Head back up, then follow the Dark Thoughts nodes from there to a trampoline behind the blender. Use it to reach a higher ledge and grab a NUGGET OF WISDOM (1/2). Now, drop down to the base of the blender station and open the VAULT (1/2). (Psst: Time Bubble is super handy for opening vaults from now on!)

Next, climb the netting on the right side of the blender station and drop onto the trampoline behind the right platform. Turn right, use your mental connection, then drop down and collect another NUGGET OF WISDOM (2/2). Float over the burners ahead, and just past them, you'll find the PURSE. Tag it! Jump up to the top level, land on the frog figure, and behind the sign back there, you'll find the SUITCASE TAG. Now, jump on the flipper on the right side of the frying station to reach the chopper station. Drop to the ledge on the left and open the VAULT (2/2). Behind the chopper's arm to your right, you'll find the DUFFLEBAG.

Hop on the pink grind rail. After the fork, use the interact control to reverse direction. At the fork, lean to Raz's right, jump the gap, and at the end of the steel blue grind rail, you'll get the HAT BOX TAG. The HAT BOX itself is chilling at the back of the audience seating, between the ramps for the frying and chopper stations. Head back towards the boiler, and tag the SUITCASE on a ledge below. You can wander around and collect figments now – I managed to grab 40 out of 51.

Ready for the next task? Pound the button on the stage. For your assignment, grab a strawberry and take it to the blender station. Use Time Bubble on the rotating incline to make it easier to cross. Climb the netting on either side and toss the strawberry to the top of the blender. Drop down and hit the button below the blender to get that going. Next, grab an egg and take it to the boiler, just like before. For the final ingredient, pick up the bread and take it to the chopper station. Pull the handle and pound the button. Then, grab the bread again...