Return to the impawssibly cute series that scratches that RPG itch without taking hundreds of hours, now featuring a tonne of purrate puns straight from Davy Jones locker!
Ahoy Meow-ties! Step aboard my pi-rat ship and prepare to walk the catplank in the latest fluffy RPG from The Gentlebros. That’s right, Cat Quest is back, and this time we sail across the Purribean in search of lost treasure, kitty litter, and a tin of purrfect puns!
The puns come quick and fast!
This is the third outing for this popular franchise featuring a feline protagonist but the first to contain a pirate theme. The previous two instalments were based on a fantasy setting with Medieval references like knights, wizards, and dragons. Now, does Cat Quest 3 live up to its hairy expectations? Or does it throw it up all over the floor? Find out in our Cat Quest 3 Review!
Cat Quest 3 Review – Story
Before we cast off into the high seas, it must be said that this entry into the series still acts as its own separate story, so whether you’ve played the other games is mostly inconsequential. You are one of the last seekers in the world who was lost at sea after a fierce battle. This ancient sect of kitties once found and protected the North Star from the evil Pi-rats (yes they are in fact rats). As the baby seeker is washed ashore a spirit guide named Captain Cappey finds you whilst studying a treasure map and takes you into his care.
Aww baby kitten.
Fast forward many years later and you begin your cat-venture to find the North Star. It is said to contain the greatest power in the world and grant anyone their deepest desire. However, you aren’t the only swashbuckler looking for this ancient treasure. The fearsome Pi-rat King is also out to find the lost booty so it’s up to you and Cappey to track down the North Star and discover its true purpose first!
A map fit for a pi-rat!
Along your journey you will face enemies in the form of rats, skeletons, boars and even a Pirate crew full of Octopus’. However, you will receive help from one of the many hilarious side characerts including a beefy tavern owner that goes by Mama Milka. Overall the story is quite straight forward and short, bolstered by the many side quests and dungeons you can complete but the ending is well worth the journey, even if the most important part is the ones we share it with.
Got milk?
Cat Quest 3 Review – Gameplay
If you have scratched your back on Cat Quest 1 or 2 then you know how entrancing the gameplay loop can be. As you go from quest to quest, exploring and treasure hunting, you are never far from another level up which means closer to the next area, beating a hard dungeon or a difficult boss. This is addictive as a bag of catnip and will keep you surprisingly busy for the next 10-12 hours.
Even some cats need love, savvy?
The core mechanics are quite straight forward with melee attacks, ranged attacks (including magic) and some dodging. The complexities get added when you equip certain gear and trinkets that buff or give you additional abilities, like damaging enemies as you dodge through them. Your ship handles in a similar way with a boost/dodge, normal and special attacks although it visually stays the same regardless of upgrades which is slightly disappointing.
All your equipment for your plundering needs!
Squeaking of upgrades, the game has a steelsmith and a mage that can upgrade your equipment and spells respectively. Each costing coins or mana points per upgrade. Although as you find duplicates of gear throughout your travels it will automatically upgrade that piece of gear, making the smithy mostly useless until the latter part of the game.
Cat Quest 3 Review – Visuals and Audio
Cat Quest 3 boasts a pawfect 2.5D visual style that highlights the gorgeous world it’s set in. Sailing across the purribean has never looked better with the cartoonish detail that the series is well known for. A slight increase in fidelity and loading times are the main differences between the previous version and this new entry on next gen consoles. Otherwise the only real changes are the singular asset designs to go with the new pirate theme which are also just *cats kiss*.
Different locations on the map changes the time of day!
The variety of soundtracks have also been increased and given a sea fearing touch that adds to the pawsome feeling of carrying out your cat pirate dreams. The overworld music can get a bit repetitive as you spend so much of your gameplay time there, however the theme for the villian, the Pi-rat King has some fantastic organ sounding tunes that adds a spooky layer to the game.
Cat Quest 3 Review – What Else?
As this is an RPG, there is a whole bunch of side content you can swat at, with some being necessary in order for you to level u and continue the main story. Side Quests, dungeons and a new type of area, towers are all apart of this kitty litter box of cativities. Although whilst the map seemed a lot bigger, the land mass, side quests and dungeons were noticeably less, with this entry barely taking 10 hours to complete everything. The new ship combat and towers did make up for this somewhat as quality is prefurred over quantity.
This whole dungeon was an 8-bit fantasy come true!
If that wasn’t enough, Cat Quest 3 returns with some more co-op action, either online or a drop-in feature similar to the lego games. Another returning feature is Mew Game plus where you can restart your adventure but continue to level up and upgrade your gear for players that need just a bit more piracy action.
Even pirates need to let loose once every so often.
Lastly one of the more challenging tasks is completing all the bounties found in the tavern. Whilst some are tied to quests, some more difficult bosses can be found around the map that need high level equipment to take on, especially the duck of doom!
Cat Quest 3 Review – Conclusion
Returning to this one of kind RPG world created by the talented team of 8 at The Gentlebros has been an absolute delight albeit a very short one. This can be forgiven by how much attention to detail they have placed in the pirate themed designs, sounds and of course puns.
The end features an interesting reference to another possible sequel…
Cat Quest 3 lives up to its promise of being a seafaring adventure for all to enjoy whilst containing snippets of an overall story that fans will enjoy. Come for the booty looting pirate travels but stay for the puns and catitude!
Why should you play Cat Quest 3?
- Short but sweet RPG with a pirate vibe
- Fun and satisfying combat
- Excellent side characters
- You captain a boat!
Why shouldn’t you play Cat Quest 3?
- Main story is quite short
- Not as many side quests and dungeons as previous entries
- You are allergic to cats or puns
A review code was kindly provided by The Gentlebros for the purpose of our Cat Quest 3 review. You can check out our other reviews here and if you haven’t already, be sure to join the Qualbert Discord to find out about the latest game and review updates!
