For the past couple of months, I’ve become an expert in the Cat Quest video game series. Well, that’s not completely true. I didn’t pay full attention to every bit of the story, but I was able to successfully beat two of the three Cat Quest games.
Cat Quest is a simple, action RPG series where you take control of a cat-venturer (or two) and face medieval critters, cute wizards, and fuzzy pirates as you complete random quests. The games are very helpful at always pointing you in the right direction of what to do next. This means less time spent endlessly wandering.
When Cat Quest III was announced I thought it looked like a great co-op game, but I also thought, I have yet to play any Cat Quest game. I had previously looked into Cat Quest II, knowing that it was a co-op adventure. Lucky for me, the first two games were both part of the PlayStation Plus games library. I downloaded both when I received a review code for Cat Quest III — that is why it has taken so long to write this piece.
This series isn’t very complicated. The gameplay was solid from the start and gets better with each release. The battles are simple, yet strategic. Paying attention to enemy attacks teaches you when to strike or dodge. Saving up your mana gives you the opportunity to perform high damage magic attacks. The difficulty in the Cat Quest games is nowhere near a Souls-like game, however it’s not an easy “spam the attack button” game either. There is some skill involved, and boss fights can take some time, and a couple of failed attempts.
Cat Quest | The OG
The original Cat Quest lays out the template of what to expect in these games — lots of fighting and questing, and making sure you are strong enough to fight your next battle. The only problem with this first game is that it is a solo adventure.
Due to the single player nature of Cat Quest, I did not make it very far. I only made it about three hours before moving onto Cat Quest II with my partner. After telling her that the next game was co-op we were both ready for the sequel. I definitely got the general idea of the series from this first game. I was also able to notice how the gameplay transitioned between these first two games.
I’m including some photos in each game’s section to show off the changes in visuals and customization.
Cat Quest II | Now with Co-op
Cat Quest II introduces co-op gameplay, and I was able to play with my partner as two cute critters. The gameplay loop of battles and questing remains unchanged, but there are plenty of improvements. In certain cases I do want to see a sequel go much further with gameplay updates, but when it comes to a simple, little game like Cat Quest I’m more than happy with these small changes game-to-game. Cat Quest II added new weapons and powers, along with mastering the royal arts (or abilities).
We did make it to the end of the Cat Quest II story. I even remember a few fake outs where we thought, this must be the final boss. Overall, thirteen hours is the right amount of time to complete a Cat Quest game — especially when you have another on deck.
These are semi-mindless games, and that is perfectly fine. The addition of co-op is definitely what made us play to the end. We failed plenty of boss fights, but bringing a partner along makes you want to try again. This series is even a great intro for new gamers to try a simple version of an action RPG before getting into something more intense.
Cat Quest III | Bring on the Ship
Cat Quest III still implements that same gameplay loop, but there are much more quality improvements — even the art style has more detail. The pause menu now features more pages of customization — from outfits to weapons to trinkets (or power ups). There are even new side-arm weapons — guns and wands — allowing you to switch weapons.
The biggest change in Cat Quest III is the addition of a ship and sea battles. Previously, the critters would just walk on water (like some fuzzy little messiahs). In Cat Quest III, you can travel by floaty (and be incapable of combat on the open waters), or you can travel by ship and fight it out with your canons and ramming enemies.
There is also a full page of ship customization in the menu. As you level up you can add more features to your ship. This goes with most pages — as you level up you can carry more trinkets and magic spells. We definitely enjoyed Cat Quest III the most, and there’s still much end game content to complete.
These Cat Quest games are the perfect little series for anyone looking for some couch co-op fun, especially for a couple with a gamer and non-gamer. We had just finished Split Fiction, which introduces so many new gameplay elements throughout the game, it was a nice break to go into something more routine. I’ve been thinking of other similar games to Cat Quest, but more intense for our next co-op adventure.
Something I left out is the writing in these games is so silly. Each game is full of cat puns. The writing team must have had a great time with naming characters too (dRATcula, Captain MEOWtallika, PURRseidon). The weapons and locations also have great names.
Side “Cat” Quest:
Each week, multiple new “cat games” drop on the Nintendo eShop and
Steam. Many of them are trash games to trick any cat lover into buying
them. We’ve also seen some big stand out games recently in the “cat
games” genre, like Stray, Little Kitty Big City, and I will put the Cat
Quest trilogy in that same category — MUST PLAY CAT GAMES.
While playing these Cat Quest games I was able to feel the dev
teams love for video games and cats, and that’s all you
want from a good “Cat Game.”
My only complaint about the Cat Quest series is that the first game didn’t feature co-op play. If it did, we would have logged almost forty hours of Cat Quest-ing, instead I logged three hours in part one and thirteen hours in each of the sequels (that’s a whooping twenty-nine hours).
These simple action RPGs should almost always have the option for two players. I’m happy they were able to figure that out for the second and third game. It became the main sticking point of the series for us. I even played a few side missions on my own in Cat Quest III, just to level our characters up for the next big mission, and it wasn’t as fun playing solo.
I really hope there’s a Cat Quest IV on the way.
*myVGBC.com was given a review code for Cat Quest III by the publisher. Cat Quest I & II were both available on the PlayStation Plus games library.
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