Pix the Cat

Genre: Puzzle / Arcade

Players: 1-4 Competitive (Local), Online Leaderboards

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Review:

Pix the Cat is a game that blends Puzzle and Arcade elements, and probably the best way to describe it would be that it plays sorta’ like a combination of the classic games Pac-Man and Snake. In each of the game modes, players move around a single screen collecting pickups that form a tail behind the player, and in most modes the player must then deliver these pickups to specific drop-off points without getting trapped by this tail or running into hazards.

The presentation here is fantastic, and loaded with personality. In each of the game’s four primary modes, the game delivers a different aesthetic, like the neon-infused retro-futuristic look of Arcade mode, the old-timey black and white classic cartoon look of Nostalgia mode, and the “world under a microscope” look of laboratory mode. Yet, in all of these modes, the game is consistent in delivering well-animated characters, solid music that does a good job highlighting the tone of the action, and sound effects that pair well with it.

This is actually kinda’ surprising since each of this game’s four game modes, while sharing some elements, actually play pretty differently. Yet, the quality is consistent across all of them.

In Arcade mode, players collect ducklings from eggs and distribute them to drop-out points on a pre-determined progression of levels, with players trying to hold off on dropping off any ducklings until they have collected all of them from within that level, with the challenge being to score as many points as possible.

Laboratory mode plays like a pure puzzle mode, with players’ performance measured in moves rather than time, and those moves now restricted by the game having you slide until you hit an obstruction whenever you move. In this mode, players collect “cels” that cannot be dropped off until you have collected all of them meaning that players must not only avoid getting trapped by their tail, they must also avoid the dropoff points until they’ve collected everything.

Nostalgia mode sorta’ combines the first two modes, giving players challenging levels that they must puzzle through, with most of the challenge this time being that these levels are particularly tricky not to mess up.

Finally, Arena mode is the game’s 4-player competitive mode, where players are hunting each other down after collecting pickups they can use to shoot down or bash into other players.

While each of these modes plays pretty differently, there’s not a stinker in the bunch – they all have their strengths. Arcade mode does a good job capturing the same rush of trying to beat your old score as the Pac-Man Championship Edition games, Puzzle mode is a solid slow-paced contemplative puzzle game, Nostalgia mode is a good challenge both for reflexes and for thinking quickly, and the Arena mode is a fun fast-paced zany deathmatch.

There are a few things that this game could have done better. Firstly, the challenge level here is a bit on the high side, which may deter more casual players. Also, two of the game’s modes must be unlocked by getting high scores in the Arcade mode, which could further frustrate those casual players. Also, two things I really wish were here that i feel are missing are an endless mode where players can rack up a high score without worrying about a clock, and a level builder for the Arena and Laboratory modes, which I think would give the game more lasting power.

However, on the whole Pix the Cat is a delightful game with a lot of surprises for players and a consistently high level of quality throughout. There’s a lot of variety here, a great presentation, loads of personality, and overall this is a superb blend of Puzzle and Arcade genres that fans of either genre should definitely give a look.

tl;dr – Pix the Cat is a game with Puzzle and Arcade elements that combines the gameplay of Pac-Man and Snake with a really good presentation and a lot of variety across the game’s four modes. It’s a bit on the difficult side, and I feel like a few additions could have made for a huge improvement, but overall this is an excellent game well worth giving a look.

Grade: B+

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