Little Kitty, Big City XSX Review 7.5/10 "The purr-fect game to play with kids" 😸 🏙️ @LittleKittyGame #IndieGame #GameDev

It’s an interesting time in our household, as we have a three year old son who is just getting his feet wet in terms of gaming. I always keep an eye out for suitable releases to enjoy with him, and when we received the press release for Little Kitty, Big City, my dad-gaming eyes lit up. What we ended up enjoying was a wonderfully cute, fun game that wasn’t without its flaws, but the charm and family factor shines through, meaning that you’ll have a great time if you approach little Kitty, Big City with an open and curious mind...much like a kitten, in fact.

Little Kitty, Big City begins as very much a story of highs and lows, there you are – sunning yourself on your owner’s balcony when disaster strikes and you find yourself falling to street level, many floors below. Your quest? To get back to your favourite napping spot!

A game full of quirky animals and quests, in this 3D open-world adventure, you’ll find yourself roaming the area for ducklings in arcades and supermarkets in a bid to return them to their dad-duck, befriending a portal-wielding tanuki, searching through bins and under traffic cones for ‘shinies’ for a bartering crow, who will swap trinkets for hats for your feline friend – and all of this is presented through gorgeous pastel colours in a Japanese city filled with bustling citizens and hidden areas to explore.

A lot of the fun factor in Little Kitty, Big City comes from the actions that your feline friends can perform, exploring the world around you, discovering its secrets and limits, and reading the surprisingly amusing dialogue that takes place between the various animals – all whilst a lilting lounge jazz soundtrack bleeds out, casually accompanying you on your adventures. The press kit for the game stated that it can be completed in 1-2 hours, whereas completionists can spent 6-7 hours with the game, but in all likelihood you’ll be here for the 6-8 hour mark, as wandering around, catching birds, unlocking cosmetics and completing all the quests becomes addictive and oddly zen. Three generations of our family have played Little Kitty, Big City over the last couple of weeks, and everyone has got something from it, with the cute animations being a huge hit.

SUMMARY

Whilst it’s not all smooth sailing, due to some janky mechanics in the jumping at certain points, and irritatingly specific collision / action detection, it’s not enough to detract from the overall sense of kid-friendly family fun. A big recommendation for those cat lovers out there, the enjoyers of the gentler things in life - think Stray without the stress!