Developer: Hit-Point
Publisher: Hit-Point
Genre: Monster Tamer
Platform: Mobile, iOS, Andriod
Rating: E for Everyone
Price: F2P
Do you like cats? Of course you do, you’re on the internet! If you don’t like cats, you likely don’t qualify as a human being.
Of all the genres in the world, being the crazy cat person is apparently a thing. A big thing. A thing with cute little merchandise popping up all over the place. Am I complaining? Not at all. I’m a cat enthusiast and Neko Atsume is a F2P app that functions more or less as a glance and go game. It’s cute, it’s fun, and it requires minimal effort. Is it worth occupying some data in your phone?
Content Guide
Spiritual Content
There… isn’t really any. I suppose if you want to strain out a gnat you can say that the existence of cats like Lady Gaga in cat form would promote a less than Christian-friendly pop icon in some form, but that is a really, really big push.
Violence
Unless your goldfish are harmed by kitties playing with them, there is none.
Language/Crude Humor
Butts.
The worst you get in this regard are little “x” ‘s over where the kitty’s back end would be, but any cat owner sees that a million times a day. Cat bums are hardly taboo.
Sexual Themes
There is none.
Drug/Alcohol Use
There’s nothing to mention.
Positive Themes
This game is just one feel good experience. The entire theme of the game is to attract kitties to your yard by providing them with food and things that they can play on. If anything, this game promotes kindness towards our feline friends. Let’s face it: the world is not nice to kitties. There’s just not enough people putting out a dish for the babies that are thrown out into the cold to fend for themselves. While some folks do take it to the extreme, Neko Atsume is a nice little app that may encourage a person or two to shell out a few cents a day to feed one of God’s little creatures or to stop and give a stray a friendly passing pat on the head.
Review
Your yard. Well…my yard. It’s been upgraded a bit but this is essentially what you have to work with. Set out food and toys and see what happens!
Turn off the app, do something with your life, check the app- LOOK! KITTIES!
Neko Atsume is as simple as they came. You start out with a very small, very basic yard, some currency (which comes in the form of silver and gold fish), and some basic toys. Every player can use the endless supply of cheap kitty chow to attract kitties, but the goal of the game is to attract and photograph every kitty in the game. There are dozens of kitties, each with their own name and personality. There are also rare kitties, often cosplaying popular figures in media or history, that can only be attracted by putting out special toys or food.
For example, you can only attract the rare kitty Mr. Meowgi by putting out the “scratching Log” goodie. There are some more obscure kitties that require trial and error (or an internet guide if you’re impatient) to figure out what will bring them by your yard. Essentially, you want to collect and place every goodie you can to see what kitties are attracted by them. The app has updated a few times since its release, introducing new goodies, to include seasonal ones, and kitties to keep the game interesting.
The game offers a lot of options of customization. You can give the kitties all new names if you so choose- which can be fun if one wanders into your yard that resembles one of your own furry friends. You can also expand your yard and remodel it by saving up your golden fishes. The larger your yard, the more you can put out and the more kitties you can attract. This costs quite a bit so it takes time to save up…or you can spend real-life money on the game to obtain golden fishies right away. The golden fishies also allow you to remodel your yard into an ever expanding array of “styles” which has no real purpose other than to be visually appealing to the player.
Gotta…hoarde ’em all?
If you’re REALLY hardcore, you can collect all kitties and all their gifts!
Attracting kitties will earn you silver fish as each kitty will bring you a certain amount of fishies to thank you for your kindness. On rare occasion, a grateful feline will present you with a collectible item known as a “memento.”
Essentially the point of the game is to attract and photograph every kitty and complete the “catbook,” which is accessible in the menu. As aforementioned, the game updates from time to time with new kitties so it’s a never ending quest. There is only one song in the game, but it’s a cute charming background tune as you play. The graphics aren’t anything mind-blowing but they’re adorable and crisp, and what little animations there are give the cats personality.
Over all, Neko Atsume is just a fun game to check up on through the day. It requires minimal effort but it’s oddly addictive and satisfying in its own way. If you’re a cat lover I’d give it a peek. If you aren’t a cat person, what’s wrong with you? Fine. Go play Nintendogs.
The Bottom Line