Dec 15, 2018Reviews
Hunter’s Legacy: Purrfect Edition is yet another feline-themed Switch title. The game, which is described by its developer (Lienzo) as a Metroidvania adventure, is set in an exciting fantasy world filled with fierce foes. The game was released on the Switch eShop on 13th December for just $6.99.
Play and control Ikki, a heroic huntress cat with twin swords (are claws not enough?!), a bow, and magical abilities, in an attempt to save the Kingdom of Iripur from the evil Morodir in this action-filled 2D Platformer.
The original Hunter’s Legacy game was released on xBox, PlayStation, and Steam, where it received mixed reviews. Common complaints with the original included:
Hunter’s Legacy: Purrfect Edition is a definitive, improved version of the original game, exclusive to Nintndo Switch.
Despite these added and improved features, the game levels still lack variety and there are still inconsistent difficulty spikes.
Ikki, who is also known as the Heroic Huntress of Un’Amak, embarks on a quest in aid of the Iripur, a race of anthropomorphised cat people who have had their Fang of Alliance stolen by the evil Morodir. In order to restore peace, Ikki must locate three sacred orbs to unlock Morodir’s barrier and then retrieve the Fang of Alliance. As you encounter glowing rocks throughout the game, you will be given insight into the game’s backstory
The introduction to the game is kept very brief, with just a few cutscenes (which are shown below) that don’t provide a lot of context. Additionally, I found the narrative to be quite cliche.
The controls of the game are pretty simple. The arrow keys on your right joy-con will trigger Ikki’s moves, which include bow and arrow, sword, dodge-roll, plus more as you progress through the game, which is approximately 5 hours in length. As moves are triggered by the press of a single button, and that most of those buttons were attack moves, I appreciated that I didn’t have to fumble to fight foes.
The inventory in the game is great, as it’s de-cluttered and allows you to look at the entire world map. This map shows your current location, your destination, possible fast travel locations and where any chests in Ikki’s vicinity are located.
There are some tricky boss fights and challenging situations to face, which is something that a few critics say can be a rage-quitting factor. However, I really enjoyed it and very much felt like it was the sort of game where you could come home at the end of the day and play a game that doesn’t require too much thought. Additionally, players get a sense of fulfilment from unlocking new abilities, surely making the frustration worth it. Ultimately, it’s important to remember that despite certain parts being difficult, the game is not impossible to complete, and that save points are pretty frequent.
I really enjoyed the cute Metroidvania art style used in the game. Although subtle, there are design changes such as new animations for some characters. Additionally the game’s levels have been designed to be more fluid.
Owing to my weird sense of humour, I also liked Ikki’s variety of facial expressions, of which I may have made memes out of (sorry not sorry)
I found that the Switch version of the game ran very smoothly, and was a definite improvement to the PC version, which has been criticised for its framerate.
Additionally, in my opinion, there were no obvious visual differences between playing in handheld mode and playing in console mode.
I found the game’s soundtrack rather soothing and well-matched to the game’s environment. Initially, I really enjoyed Ikki’s cat noises (during combat, when attacked etc). However, as painful as it is for me say due to being a cat lover, these noises become darn annoying after a while. This is a sentiment shared by many who have played the original game.
Confession: I do still find the hissing amusing though.
To conclude, Hunter’s Legacy: Purrfect Edition is an affordable cat-themed Metroidvania game will alluring graphics and music. I’d definitely reccommend it to feline fans and those who like platformer games. However, whilst I do feel that the game is pretty and worth its retail price, it is let down by its limited context and narrative, and can be unfairly difficult at times. I feel inclined to agree with reviewers who have said that it doesn’t really offer anything new to the already quite saturated adventure-platformer gaming industry. However, it’s a pretty aesthetic game, and how can you not like a game with cats?
Oct 25, 2018News
[dropcap]C[/dropcap]attails, which is a feline-themed simulation RPG game available on Steam, will soon be playable on Nintendo Switch, it has been confirmed.
Developed and published by Falcon Entertainment for PC, Mac and Linux on December 1st 2017, the game has garnered very ‘paws-itive’ feedback since its release. Through the eyes of a cat, Cattails allows players to hunt for food, interact with other cats, gather herbs and explore an expansive world.
Kotaku have said that “Cattails looks like Stardew Valley, except cats.” and IGN have said that Cattails is “an adorably silly game, but one that’s also a lot of fun.”
Tyler Thompson, the founder of Falcon Entertainment, has made the following statement:
“We are extremely excited to bring our first game to the Nintendo Switch system. We hope that players, new and old, will share in our enthusiasm for introducing Cattails to a whole new audience of console gamers.”
The game is scheduled to be released for Switch in just over a month on November 29th. Whilst the price of the Switch version has not yet been announced, the game currently costs $14.99 USD to purr-chase on Steam.
In the meantime, why don’t mew check out the paw-some cat games already available on Switch.
Apr 28, 2018News
Meowza games recently released a newsletter, updating fans on the game’s progress. In light of this, we have decided to post an update containing all the latest information we have about the game. For those who are unfamiliar, Mineko’s Night Market is an upcoming cat-themed PC game. For more information about it, click here.
Twitter user Kukubee has recently been teasing fans about Mineko’s Night Market merchandise.
All night sewing. Just like old times! 😀 pic.twitter.com/RwnksYioTT
— kukubee (@kukubee) April 13, 2018
Sneak peek of a surprise thing happening soon! :O pic.twitter.com/Ve6hBD82mV
— kukubee (@kukubee) April 27, 2018
Talented Kukubee expressed hope that the cute pouches will soon be available to purchase on the game’s Etsy store. She also hinted that other items may be up for sale as she attempts to ‘build up some inventory’.
Meowza games have announced that a Whole demo of the game will be streamed on Twitch. The stream will take place on May 10th at 2:00 pm (PST) and again at 9:00 pm (PST) here. There will also be a small giveaway held during the demo.
Meowza have been busy ensuring the game is completed to an exceptional standard. Game updates include:
– A Quest system! The system is now in place and we are busy pumping out the remaining story content. Each quest is a handcrafted unique experience including: sneaking past guards to find missing artefacts, preparing a perfect meal for a special guest, and exploring a mysterious haunted lighthouse!
– Beginning work on implementing the Journal. You can now keep track of your Quest progress and Relationships in your Journal. Soon to add: Food, Discoveries and Collectibles!
– An overhaul of the Night Market/bartering system.
– Having re-written Item and NPC interactions for optimization and future-proofing it for localization work.
– Lots of bug fixes.
The newsletter also contained a free phone wallpaper, if you want to be part of those adorable giveaways make sure you sign up for the official newsletter here.
For an exclusive interview with Brent the creator of Mineko’s Night Market head over here. You can now also wishlist the game on steam.
Apr 25, 2018News
[dropcap]L[/dropcap]abo was successfully released in the US and Japan last week. Nintendo Labo has been praised for it’s back-to-basics concept that encourages children to use their imagination. Many schools have said that they would like to use Labo in the classroom. Even adults have commented on how fun assembling Labo is.
But Labo has also received approval from a rather more unintended audience. Cats.
It’s no secret that cats adore cardboard. Popular internet cat Maru has loads of videos of him playing in boxes. If your cats are anything like my grandmother’s 7 felines (yes, 7) you’ll probably relate to buying them a comfy new cat bed (which comes in a box), only for them to turn their noses up at the expensive bed and sleep inside the cardboard box instead. How rude right?
Given Labo’s popularity, it’s safe to assume many cardboard fishing rods, pianos, and robots now reside in homes across the globe. Cats worldwide must be rubbing their paws together in glee, thinking that Christmas has come early!
The internet loves cats. It’s therefore no surprise that numerous videos and photos are emerging of cats with Labo.
An example being Nintendo Labo V Cat
It’s kind of cute to see curious cats taking an interest in/being intrigued by Labo. ????
It’s admittedly a little anxiety-provoking to see cats sleeping on top of Labo and batting it playfully. ????
It is horrifying however, to watch videos that show the most fiendish of felines destroying Labo! Somebody save it! ????
ニンテンドーラボとりあえず作ったやつは隠して、残骸で楽しそうに遊ぶ猫氏w pic.twitter.com/crMkqeh88U
— AN (@AN84952239) April 21, 2018
Considering how unhelpful cats tend to be, it’s a safe bet your cats aren’t going to be helping assemble your Labo anytime soon.
Therefore, unless you like your Labo:
It’s probably best to keep your kitty well away.
After all, Labo is most likely some of the priciest cardboard you’ll ever buy! If you want to learn more about Nintendo Labo, head over here.