Cat Quest II - PC Review

Furry Introduction

Cat Quest II is a cute RPG which features two characters, a dog and a cat, that players can swap between in Solo mode. Unlike it's predecessor, Cat Quest II has two characters so that players can enjoy the game with a friend in a co-op mode. With any RPG, players level up their character, assign gear, magic powers, and armor to make quests easier. And after I no lifed the game for a couple of days, I found that it is a title I absolutely adore. 

Gameplay

The gameplay in Cat Quest II is straight forward, in that players start with a brief story that pulls them into the world. Its first quests and dungeons are extremely easy to complete, but they get progressively harder.

The first thing to note about Cat Quest II is the ability to use two characters in a solo playthrough. Players can either run around as the cat or the dog and can swap between them, allowing the AI to control the one not being used. This is quite useful for solo play and gives the ability to play in a 2 player setting for a co-op experience. While the AI isn't particularly smart, it does cast spells and do damage when players are standing back to heal themselves or change gear.

Now, with the main story quest, I would caution players to follow it through without doing some leveling. I say that because the main story line gets rather challenging and at points isn't easily finished if players haven't been leveling their character. And when I say level your character, I mean not just the characters physical level, but also the level of the armor, weapons, and spells they collect. So, while players may get accustomed to a specific build for their character, the higher level enemies have immunities to different damage types. For example, some creatures are weak to fire, physical attacks, or are not damaged by players at all.

In order to level up a players abilities, they have to go to the right place, which is one of my only gripes about the game. Unlike the other two characters that can upgrade equipment, the spells can only be leveled at one location. For weapons and armor, there are two different buildings and they have multiple locations on the map. Hotto Doggo is the weaponsmith and Kit Kat is the armorsmith. And unlike other RPGs, upgrading anything in the game is done monetarily.

One of the features of Cat Quest II that actually aids players is the ability use the Kingsmarkers to travel to various places, so long as you have discovered their site. This is extremely useful to traverse the map especially at the beginning of the game when you are bound to the continent. Later on, it is apparent that there are two separate continents - one for the cats and one for the dogs. Also, there is an ability that is unlocked later in the game that allows players to walk on water. Now, considering there are a few locations on the map that have creatures who are higher level, making a quick getaway via water is always handy. However, if players find themselves in a bind, or needing to heal before entering a cave, they can always hit one of the cities or encampments to save.

Another thing that I enjoy about Cat Quest II is the fact that once players explore a cave, an icon will appear on the entrance to show that the dungeon chest hasn't been looted (whether that is from death or from not being able to reach it.) If players haven't entered a cave, it will show a question mark - a fact that is particularly useful for completionists like me. Anyways, upon approaching a cave, a pop-up appears that tells players what level they need to hit in order to complete it. Most of the time, the level requirement is true. Don't even think for a moment that the level 150 or 200 caves are lying, because they aren't. Trust me. In my playthrough of the game, there are about four caves that I can't walk into yet because I'm simply not high enough, and I've already completed the main storyline of the game, as well as all the side quests. Meaning that the hard grind to fully complete the game has already begun.

If I had any real gripe about Cat Quest II, it would be that I have to grind to finish the last couple of caves! That is not something I enjoy about video games because it requires fighting the same monsters over and over again, even with weapons and armor that grant extra experience. I would prefer to have more side quests to complete which would grant more to the player, or perhaps a special continent that is designed for such a thing. But this isn't an issue with the game itself, it is more of a personal issue with RPG games.

Overall, I really love Cat Quest II, complete with its hilarious and often bad puns. Plus, the game is accessible for all ages, which makes it a great game to play around young family members. And finally, the developers showed off their wit with a specific area that is found later in the game. 

Controls and UI

I exclusively played Cat Quest II on controller and I found that the game is designed in such a way that it is very easy to learn. Players can easily dodge, attack, and swap characters with one button. Spells are assigned to either the triggers or the bumpers, and each one can only be assigned to one of the two characters. Meaning that both of them can hold a total of 8 out of the 12 spells in the game.

One of the features with the controls is that all spells, armors, and weapons are swappable between the two characters which allows players to use combat tactics that suit their playstyle. More than that, players are able to switch weapons and armor in the middle of a fight, at least that is true in solo play. This is useful to note because some creatures are immune to various attacks, and often players aren't given the ability to change gear when fighting. 

The UI of Cat Quest II is different from the first game. In the first installment of the game, the health and mana bars are displayed directly underneath the character you play and the experience bar is in the upper left corner. In Cat Quest II, they changed the design where all the health, mana, and experience bars are in the top left corner of the screen. In fact, cleverly the developers display the experience bar as the collar. Since, the relevant information is displayed up at the top, it makes it easier for players to see the area of effect indicators around the monsters and your character.

Once players enter their inventory, they can see and move around the map. Armor and weapons are displayed under the second tab. The third tab shows the spells that have been gathered. Finally, the fourth tab displays the game options like sound, resolution size, and quitting to the main menu. In this screen, players are also able to see the amount of money they've collected.

Graphics and Mewsic

Cat Quest II has a cartoony graphics style that suits the cute nature of the game. It's graphics are updated from the first game and they clearly define the abilities and uses of each building or object. There are rare cases where players are taking on several creatures at one time, making it challenging to see all the area of effect radicals, but generally that's when players need to dodge out of the way. Cat Quest II is a graphically appealing game.

The mewsic is this game is composed by Brian Havey, who also did the music for the first game, though his company is called zminusone sound. His compositions began as experimental electronic music but has since began writing music for other games like Last Stand, Platform Creator, and Dodge Blast - all three of those titles are indies. His music can be found on Soundcloud, Spotify, Bandcamp, and iTunes. Zminusone Sound also has a website and a Twitter feed.

Cat Quest II's mewsic is rather cute and highly addicting. The original soundtrack can be purchased on Bandcamp for $5.99 USD and it has all 17 tracks used in the game.

Feline Thoughts

I spent way too much time playing this game over the last week and this should surprise no one, especially since I love cats and enjoy RPGs. Cat Quest II has entertained me greatly with its amusing wit, discoverable paths and items, and stumbling upon special places like Founder's Island. Because of how much time I put into the game, the detail, story, music, and ability to customize your furry characters, these pets get a 9 out of 10. There is only one reason Cat Quest II missing a perfect score and that is the grind to level 200 is a pain in the furry butt.

I highly recommend Cat Quest II for anyone who likes RPGs and wants a relaxing time. This title is cute, its graphics are fantastic, and it can be enjoyed with a friend. And there will be no fighting over which is better between cats or dogs because there is both.

Be sure to purchase the game on Steam, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and the Nintendo Switch. It's also available on both Android and iOS devices! Check out their social media pages on The Gentlebros website, Facebook, Twitter, and Discord!

Game Information

Platform:
PC
Developer(s):
The Gentlebros
Publisher(s):
pQube
Genre(s):
Action, Adventure, RPG
Mode(s):
Single Player, Multiplayer
Other Platform(s):
Sony PlayStation 4, Microsoft Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, iOS, Android

Source:
Provided by Publisher

Article by Susan N.