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I feel pretty similarly, partly because if the intro wants to be realistic, I just can't stop thinking about the fact that most domestic cats that get abandoned die of starvation, parasitism, disease, in agony, if they're not hunted and killed by feral/abandoned dogs (or coyotes or wolves etc. depending on where you are in the world). Even if they live for some time, they often have fleas, mites, arthritis, are hungry, and suffer privation for years. So...for all the comments saying 'unfortunately it's realistic' or similar - is this also what you want for the whole game? Because that *is* reality.
The reality of the first part just made me constantly think of the reality of the second part. I nearly quit the game because of it, because showing one side of the humans and not realistically showing what happens to abandoned domestic cats (I've worked in rescue, it's *awful.* One of my current foster fails/rescues was found in the bushland eating a leather glove with her siblings as a kitten, hours away from starving to death, in organ failure. A normal end for an abandoned domestic cat, honestly). Abandoned domestic cats do not live in happy little utopias, even when they work together.
I would have found this game a lot easier to take if it just had a setting where we lived in a fantasy world in the game with cats who had taken over the world after humans vanished (it would explain the technology, the fantasy elements, the clothing, etc. and be far more logical to the *actual gameplay*).
Being realistic about one thing and then completely abandoning that felt really jarring and strange honestly. But also starting the game from a point of devastation, not knowing if this meant my cat was going to die soon (because of the realistic pressures abandoned domestic cats faced), was really odd. I bought the game expecting a generally relaxing game, and what I got was brutal reality followed by complete unrealistic fantasy. The latter part I eventually got used to, but now I just pretend humans don't exist and my cat had a bad dream at the beginning.
As a cat lover, I had a really hard time with this game and its 'let's be realistic' followed by 'lulz it's a fantasy now!' - but working in rehab has probably just made it too hard for me to think that cats could *ever* be this happy in the wild once abandoned. So yeah, I very much just pretend it was always a fantasy world where cats live and have tech, and pretend the human part was a blip on the radar, someone who wanted 5 seconds of reality followed by peak fantasy lmao.
i guess suspension of disbelief is easier if you've read warriors, but i do have some problems with what you've said, mostly that last bit, but lets examine what ACTUALLY happens.
We get abandoned due to the mother wanting to punish her child, sad but unfortunately animals are treated as commodities by a lot of people. we are found by another cat, whom, if you've played the game, you know shares a similar backstory. Coco teaches us some basic survival and then introduces us to a colony.
Since you and i are presumably both familiar with stray cats and harsh realities, i dont need to tell you that feral cat colonies exist. some liberties are absolutely taken but this isn't "peak fantasy." its mostly talking cats, how is that weird in a moderate fantasy cat game? and while yeah feral cats, outdoor cats, and strays tend to only live around 5 years, some cats can absolutely thrive, either by wit, location, and sometimes just dumb luck. we're in an area abundant with prey, no predators aside from bats and other cats, and little to no human activity. a colony of cats, or even 4, would absolutely thrive.
as for the disease, ig this is where the afformentioned suspension of disbelief comes from, especially if you're familiar with series like warriors. but basically there are cats with limited knowledge of useful herbs. yeah doctor cats are unrealistic.
Aside from the stuff with the guardian, theres not really any magic.
theres some unrealistic colors and talking cats.
But thats it. thats the fantasy elements. the cats have an exaggerated social structure and a guardian ghost thing that watches over them.
The clothes are there in case someone wants to dress up their cats or replicate some OCs. its there to let people express their characters
Your cat can die, you can starve or become too inured, you can let your cats life end there and start again, but this game likes to give you choices.
I wouldn't call it peak fantasy, moderate at best, but yeah its a game with some liberties taken.
I want to go back to the beginning though. The cat spends a short amount of its life being loved, carefree, and having fun before being tossed aside like a piece of garbage to punish someone else. the daughter is probably traumatized, The cat has no say in the matter, again treated like a commodity not even a life. (personally i think the purpose of the intro is to show how cruel that sort of behaviour is) but the cat is then taken in and given a second chance, control for a change, a life they can lead themselves, no longer just a whim for someones convenience. That's the part i find uplifting. reality is often cruel, humans are often cruel, which the beginning showcases just fine without being over the top. The rest? the rest is what you make of it. your cat, your choices. this is still a fun game. it has some problems but the intro isnt one for me. If you have a hard time playing because it bothers you the cat isn't suffering in the wild for realism sake ig thats up to you. but a game with no chance of success doesn't sound fun to me, just watching an animal suffer no matter what choices are made. theres more realistic sims out there, but i dont see how a 20 second intro just destroys the tone of the game, which can actually be quite uplifting when you think about it. I often think about the little girl while playing and it breaks my heart, but i push forward. the cat will never understand why it was abandoned, but as they often do, they will try to make the best of things.
Until we undoubtedly destroy the ecosystem and have to change locations XD forget the guardian stuff, thats my explanation for wildwood. speaking of if you prefer fantasy have no realistic origin, which is impossible anyway, you'll be happy to know the next game starts off with guardian shenanigans, no humans as far as i know, heck the cat from this game could be dead by then if thats how you want to view it due to the timeline, maybe it did die a horrible flea ridden death, but maybe that'll be easier for you on the whole suspension of disbelief thing, since it is a standalone sequel.
I have literally no idea how you got this from my post, which was literally an agreement with the OP that my problem is the intro - and how I don't see the point that so much dystopian cruelty was shoved into a game that I expected to be relaxing.
My problem is clearly with the introduction being realistic, and that being jarring compared with the tone of the rest of the game, going against how the game is advertised, using tags such as 'Cute' with zero warning like: 'By the way this starts in a dystopian hellscape for a cat that's treated as a commodity by humans' - as you so thoroughly and horribly described. Like yes, that's *exactly* where my problem is, thanks.
Maybe go back and read this entire thread, and my response, where it's clear that my issue is with the intro? I was pretty clear that the thing that made me not want to play was how the intro made me felt and that's why I responded to a thread about the *intro.* I don't want the game to be more realistic, lmao, I'm upset that it's as realistic as it is while being labelled a 'cute' game on Steam, because it left me feeling like the game was going to be far more dystopian and dark than it ended up being - and I had no way of knowing otherwise until I'd invested several hours into the game, which was why I didn't feel like playing. I now just aggressively pretend that humans don't exist in this world, or that they died out a long time ago, and that seems to be doing the trick.
If you enjoy thinking about the little girl and having your heart broken while playing, good for you, I'm glad you enjoy that kind of pain while playing. I picked up this game because it literally had the tag 'Cute' and I assumed it would be a cute game about cats. And the beginning is not at all in line with that.
The intro was not cute, and it did not make it look like this was going to be a cute game about cats after all. I've played badly tagged games in the past, I had no way of knowing things were going to be different, and I came to this Discussion board to check only to find other people agreed with me on that feeling. (Hence, why I'm here). The gameplay has gotten better since then - but unlike you - I wanted a cute game, so I am trying not to think about that beginning as much as possible.
"speaking of if you prefer fantasy have no realistic origin, which is impossible anyway"
There's plenty of fantasy animal stories where humans have never existed, or have died out a long time ago. There's whole games, animal games, 'animals as main characters' games etc. where this is the premise. Something can be realistic without starting in tragedy and then labelling itself as 'Cute' on Steam. :) Also you do actually seem to agree with the thread itself, that the intro *is* heartbreaking (you literally use that word when reflecting on the little girl in the beginning) so...even though you're fine with the intro, maybe just appreciate that not everyone is you, and some of us have problems with it?
I'm not pressuring the devs to change anything, this is a Discussion board, where people discuss things, including things they found difficult, or jarring, or unexpected. That's...how conversation happens sometimes.
And yes it is a cute game. i also described the game as uplifting if you were paying attention. having a sad origin isnt "dystopian," my problem with your descriptions is the over exageration. "peak fantasy," when its barely that, "dystopian" when again... not really? not even the intro. You made several assumptions based on the intro that were never hinted. again its a sad intro thats not the games fault that you assumed a cute game would show colonies starving to death and flea and mange ridden because... we got dumped on the side of the road by a mean parent.
I dont necessarily care whether or not people have a different opinion. again i find the story uplifting (if not a little bland) but your descriptions were just as "gruesome" as mine and i only responded in kind because it felt like hyperbole and just over exaggeration. the intro could've been a whole lot worse, its really not that bad. yes i agree the intro is sad, but i disagree its a problem. plenty of stories have sad origins for characters. if it ruins a game for someone to see a cat abandoned but learning to thrive, I can only assume they are either immature or have not had much exposure to (or not a fan of) common writing tropes, cause this is a common trope in books, movies, and games.
I wasnt even gonna respond cause i already made my point, but that bit i quoted bothered me.
FYI, the rescue I volunteer at had a cat come in last month that was burned all down his back, as though someone had thrown boiling water on him. Showing a cat being abandoned in the wild is nothing compared to what ACTUALLY happens to stray cats. Again, if you love cats then please support your local rescue.