[Disclaimer: This review covers both Cat Quest 1 and 2 as I bought the first game while I received a review-copy from the developers through Save or Quit. You can read the full 4.1K word (20K character) review down below with visual aids and a (soon to be done) video.]


With the release of Cat Quest 2, it’s difficult to share the same adoration for its predecessor after having played something that takes everything the previous game did so well, yet simply does the same concept so much better. Thankfully, with the release of the Cat Quest 1 & 2 bundle at a reasonable price, I can happily recommend the original as much as the sequel—but it’s quite clear which game is superior. (Psst, Gentlebros, if you were to recreate Cat Quest in the sequel as DLC with reworked dungeons and the same quests and story, I would happily buy that day one.)

Anyway, in preparation for the sequel, I first played the original before and after several hours with its next installment; the purpose was to view both games as fair as possible while also acknowledging each game’s strengths. If you were to ask me what my expectations were versus the reality of the situation, my assumptions were that Cat Quest 1 and 2 were both equally good games with their own ideas much like Torchlight 1 and 2. However, while both games are equally fun in their own ways, a more proper comparison is to compare Cat Quest 1 and 2 as Diablo 1 to Torchlight 2 respectively. Once you have played something with a similar schtick, an updated take can often make any lessons learned all the more obvious much like a dog discovering that anything can be used for fetch when someone wants to take it from you.


You know, one of the first thoughts that ran through my mind, starting off as a joke before solidifying as a fact with time, is how much Cat Quest feels like Skyrim except with more cat-people. In other words, you can say the Gentlebros went elsewhere for ideas. It would honestly not surprise me if there was a design document somewhere that had these sentiments written down as one of the core tenets for Cat Quest because so many ideas can be traced back to that game.

If that comparison sounds like a complaint that the game is unoriginal, then that’s not my point. Granted, there are obvious differences that won’t appeal to everyone; the isometric, fixed camera; the more simplified gameplay; the mobile concessions; and the more laxed, self-aware narrative are all elements of its own creation. Ignoring these obvious points of contention, what makes Cat Quest resemble Skyrim is that addicting core gameplay-loop of exploring dungeons, finding loot, completing side-quests while wandering the world, and then repeating the same process in a random manner with constant positive reinforcement (or you can call it pun-ishment.) Even the fact that the story centers around you, the Dragonborn, fighting off the dragons’ return can feel like a wink to the audience. Instead of viewing Cat Quest (or Skyrim) as an RPG, which I would argue it is not, it’s more accurate to describe the game as a grinding game where the RPG progression is its own cathartic pleasure.

Having described Cat Quest in such a generalized manner for its intended audience, it would be helpful to illustrate those deviations in greater detail. First, the camera differences are apparent enough, although the drawbacks are less obvious until you have played the game for several hours. One common problem is that magical spells and damage numbers will clutter up the screen, making it more difficult to avoid taking damage once you have more than one enemy casting spells, especially when the enemy is also physically attacking you. Another somewhat related matter is that when you attack, your character sometimes snaps between more than one target, which puts your character at greater risk. As a result, the player’s hit-box can often feel as exceedingly generous as much as it will often feel unfair. If you only play this game on the default setting, then this problem can be circumvented with enough armor, but the flaws of this camera and combat system become more of an issue on Mew Game plus.

While these concessions are likely due to the fact that the game was originally intended for mobile devices, it’s quite an accomplishment that the rest of the game has enough attention elsewhere to make the game feel like a proper PC port. Menus have complete keyboard and mouse support and you can even use spells just like mobile version by pausing time to select the right spell, or you can simply hit the hotkey to keep the combat pace intact. The only noticeable aspects that betray the quality of this port is that your options are limited to screen resolution sizes, there is an annoying faint circle around your character, and you cannot rebind the keys. Thankfully, these latter two problems have been addressed in the sequel as well as another mobile influence: Lootbox-based rewards.

Now before you abandon ship like a scared cat jumping at its own shadow, these lootboxes are not purchasable outside of the game; they are all in-game rewards randomly given to you in dungeons or at Kit Kat’s shop for in-game gold. The game also offers golden chests for another randomized selection of higher quality equipment scattered throughout all the land and the dungeons, but you need a key from a certain island that won’t be accessible until you can learn to walk on water. This aspect only adds more needless backtracking to the game and I’m glad the sequel made them less important in favor of adding more hidden chests or a reward for killing all the enemies in a dungeon. However, one thing the sequel could have included was some monetary reward in addition to the higher-tier items to encourage players to level up these mid-to-late-game weapons.

The problem, and some might say the thrill, with this system is how much randomness it adds to the game to make repeatable runs enjoyable. Maybe this dog here is getting too old for you darn mewling kids because this system feels catered to audiences who want to always chase after another reward rather than make the most of what you have. Some games benefit from the added RNG like Torchlight, but Cat Quest is a case where the surprise gets in the way of your adventure. Sometimes you will simply get literal crappy weapons, and other times you will get upgrades to equipment you no longer want to use. Unlike the sequel, there is no method to properly improve or farm one particular set of gear, which makes the game too artificially difficult for my liking.

While there is mostly a randomized set of loot throughout the entire game, there is another cache of gear that is more consistent: Side quest rewards. Unfortunately, those items don’t appear to be influenced by the level that you perform the task, so if you neglect a side-quest until much later into the game, you might come across some good gear that is far too under-leveled to use. Again, this problem is fixed in the sequel since you can spend your gold on these side-quest rewards to bring them up to par with the rest of your equipment. The importance of understanding this system is that Cat Quest is a surprisingly difficult game if you aren’t properly maintaining your gear, which is given more importance in Mew Game plus if you enable the Level One Forever modifier.

You can read the rest of this 4.1K word (20K character) review for both Cat Quest 1 and 2 along with any visual aids and a (soon to be released) video.

[b][Disclaimer: This review covers both Cat Quest 1 and 2 as I bought the first game while I received a review-copy from the developers through Save or Quit. You can read the full 4.1K word (20K character) review down below with visual aids and a (soon to be done) video.][/b] [h1]Cat Quest: Back to Where It All Furst Began[/h1] With the release of Cat Quest 2, it’s difficult to share the same adoration for its predecessor after having played something that takes everything the previous game did so well, yet simply does the same concept so much better. Thankfully, with the release of the Cat Quest 1 & 2 bundle at a reasonable price, I can happily recommend the original as much as the sequel—but it’s quite clear which game is superior. (Psst, Gentlebros, if you were to recreate Cat Quest in the sequel as DLC with reworked dungeons and the same quests and story, I would happily buy that day one.) Anyway, in preparation for the sequel, I first played the original before and after several hours with its next installment; the purpose was to view both games as fair as possible while also acknowledging each game’s strengths. If you were to ask me what my expectations were versus the reality of the situation, my assumptions were that Cat Quest 1 and 2 were both equally good games with their own ideas much like Torchlight 1 and 2. However, while both games are equally fun in their own ways, a more proper comparison is to compare Cat Quest 1 and 2 as Diablo 1 to Torchlight 2 respectively. Once you have played something with a similar schtick, an updated take can often make any lessons learned all the more obvious much like a dog discovering that anything can be used for fetch when someone wants to take it from you. [h1]There is One They Fear; In Their Tongue, He is Called… Dovakit[/h1] You know, one of the first thoughts that ran through my mind, starting off as a joke before solidifying as a fact with time, is how much Cat Quest feels like Skyrim except with more cat-people. In other words, you can say the Gentlebros went elsewhere for ideas. It would honestly not surprise me if there was a design document somewhere that had these sentiments written down as one of the core tenets for Cat Quest because so many ideas can be traced back to that game. If that comparison sounds like a complaint that the game is unoriginal, then that’s not my point. Granted, there are obvious differences that won’t appeal to everyone; the isometric, fixed camera; the more simplified gameplay; the mobile concessions; and the more laxed, self-aware narrative are all elements of its own creation. Ignoring these obvious points of contention, what makes Cat Quest resemble Skyrim is that addicting core gameplay-loop of exploring dungeons, finding loot, completing side-quests while wandering the world, and then repeating the same process in a random manner with constant positive reinforcement (or you can call it pun-ishment.) Even the fact that the story centers around you, the Dragonborn, fighting off the dragons’ return can feel like a wink to the audience. Instead of viewing Cat Quest (or Skyrim) as an RPG, which I would argue it is not, it’s more accurate to describe the game as a grinding game where the RPG progression is its own cathartic pleasure. Having described Cat Quest in such a generalized manner for its intended audience, it would be helpful to illustrate those deviations in greater detail. First, the camera differences are apparent enough, although the drawbacks are less obvious until you have played the game for several hours. One common problem is that magical spells and damage numbers will clutter up the screen, making it more difficult to avoid taking damage once you have more than one enemy casting spells, especially when the enemy is also physically attacking you. Another somewhat related matter is that when you attack, your character sometimes snaps between more than one target, which puts your character at greater risk. As a result, the player’s hit-box can often feel as exceedingly generous as much as it will often feel unfair. If you only play this game on the default setting, then this problem can be circumvented with enough armor, but the flaws of this camera and combat system become more of an issue on Mew Game plus. While these concessions are likely due to the fact that the game was originally intended for mobile devices, it’s quite an accomplishment that the rest of the game has enough attention elsewhere to make the game feel like a proper PC port. Menus have complete keyboard and mouse support and you can even use spells just like mobile version by pausing time to select the right spell, or you can simply hit the hotkey to keep the combat pace intact. The only noticeable aspects that betray the quality of this port is that your options are limited to screen resolution sizes, there is an annoying faint circle around your character, and you cannot rebind the keys. Thankfully, these latter two problems have been addressed in the sequel as well as another mobile influence: Lootbox-based rewards. Now before you abandon ship like a scared cat jumping at its own shadow, these lootboxes are not purchasable outside of the game; they are all in-game rewards randomly given to you in dungeons or at Kit Kat’s shop for in-game gold. The game also offers golden chests for another randomized selection of higher quality equipment scattered throughout all the land and the dungeons, but you need a key from a certain island that won’t be accessible until you can learn to walk on water. This aspect only adds more needless backtracking to the game and I’m glad the sequel made them less important in favor of adding more hidden chests or a reward for killing all the enemies in a dungeon. However, one thing the sequel could have included was some monetary reward in addition to the higher-tier items to encourage players to level up these mid-to-late-game weapons. The problem, and some might say the thrill, with this system is how much randomness it adds to the game to make repeatable runs enjoyable. Maybe this dog here is getting too old for you darn mewling kids because this system feels catered to audiences who want to always chase after another reward rather than make the most of what you have. Some games benefit from the added RNG like Torchlight, but Cat Quest is a case where the surprise gets in the way of your adventure. Sometimes you will simply get literal crappy weapons, and other times you will get upgrades to equipment you no longer want to use. Unlike the sequel, there is no method to properly improve or farm one particular set of gear, which makes the game too artificially difficult for my liking. While there is mostly a randomized set of loot throughout the entire game, there is another cache of gear that is more consistent: Side quest rewards. Unfortunately, those items don’t appear to be influenced by the level that you perform the task, so if you neglect a side-quest until much later into the game, you might come across some good gear that is far too under-leveled to use. Again, this problem is fixed in the sequel since you can spend your gold on these side-quest rewards to bring them up to par with the rest of your equipment. The importance of understanding this system is that Cat Quest is a surprisingly difficult game if you aren’t properly maintaining your gear, which is given more importance in Mew Game plus if you enable the Level One Forever modifier. [url=https://twitter.com/SchmaltzyCynic/status/1180262042923671552?s=20]You can read the rest of this 4.1K word (20K character) review for both Cat Quest 1 and 2 along with any visual aids and a (soon to be released) video.[/url]