Catz

After playing Nintendogs for a long time I was starting to want a game where I could take care of a kitten. When I heard they were making Catz for DS I was a little interested. At first I wasn't sure what you actually do on Catz so I didn't want to get it right away earlier this year I decided to look it up to see what Catz is really about since I was running out of DS games to play and I wanted a new game. I found out that it is similar to Nintendogs where you actually take care of a kitten. Since it was only 20 dollars I decided to get the game and see if it really is good. When I first started playing the game I thought it was really cute. To find out more about this game continue reading my review.

Story

Just like in Nintendogs there is no real story since you are basically just taking care of your kitten you pick up from the Adoption Center at the beginning of the game. You have two neighbors who will ask you to help them with their kitties sometimes and in return they will sometimes give you extra Kitty Coinz. You can use the Kitty Coinz to buy cute hats to dress your kitten up in and you can buy toys and other cat furniture. Unlike in Nintendogs you can't take your kitten for walks or take them to an agility course. Your kittens stays in the comforts of your house where you feed, pet, and play with your kitten.

Gameplay

When you start a new game you start off by going to the Adoption Center where you get to choose a kitten from one of five breeds.These five breeds of kittens are: Abyssinian, American Shorthair, Ocicat, Siamese, and Ragdoll. Each breed of kitten has three kittens to choose from and you can try and cuddle them before you make your decision on which kitten you want. Once you choose the kitten you want to take home you have to take an Adoption Test to see how much Kitty Coinz you start out with. All you have to do is correctly choose the kitten as many kittens as you can before time runs out. Once you are done with the Adoption Test you are now ready to name your kitten before you take it home.

Once you take your kitten home it will switch to the main game screen. The touch screen shows your new kitten in your apartment and it shows all the furniture including the furniture for your kitten. The top screen shows basic information like, the time, your kittens name, and your total amount of Kitty Coinz, which is the money you use to buy things for your kitten. Along the top of touch screen is the Tab Menu which has all the primary game options you will be using. The options on the Tab Menu are: PDA, Items, Info Screen, Kitten Stats, and Game Options.

Your PDA has many useful features in like, receiving email messages from neighbors, shop for new items, and you can even use your PDA to take pictures of your kitten. You will also be asked to take pictures of your neighbors cats from time to time. Items option is of course where all your items are stored which included, cat food, cat toys, litter boxes, and hats for your kitten.The Info option lets you switch the top and bottom screen so you can check if you have any task, remodel your apartment, view your published magazine covers, and check all out your collection of Kitty Cardz. The Kitten Stats option shows you the statistics of your kitten. There are four statistics for your kitten and they are Bond, Grooming, Hunger, and Energy. Bond is how strong the bond between you and the kitten to replenish the bond stat you need to pet your kitten and make your kitten happy. The grooming stat shows how clean your kitten is and when this stat gets low that means your kitten is dirty and you need to brush your kitten. The hunger stat shows if your kitten is hungry or thirsty and when this stat is low your kitten should go eat or drink. Sometimes your kitten may not even go eat or drink even though the bar is way down. The energy stat shows how much energy your cat has left the more active your kitten is the more tired the kitten will get and when the bar gets low the kitten will take a cat nap. The game options is where you can access all the game options which include: managing your save file, adjusting audio settings, viewing credits, getting help, and exiting the game.

Like I said through your PDA you can shop for items for your kitten. There are two main shopping menus you can go to. The paw icon is the one you choose when you want to buy your kitten, food, clothing, and toys. The house icon is the one to choose when you want to buy some new home furnishings. You can also receive emails through your PDA from friends and organizations that are ready to be part of your Catz experience. From time to time you will receive emails from the following: The Adoption Center, Dr. Domore, Brandon, Haley, Catz Weekly, and Aunt Rose. Like I said before your PDA can also take photographs of your kitten. To take a picture while in camera mode you can either tap the camera icon with your stylus or press the L or R button.

Whenever your kitten is feeling good he or she will cuddle up to you for more loving and when your kitten doesn't it you will enter cuddle mode. In cuddle mode you can pet your kitten up close plus you can take up close cute pictures. To enter or exit cuddle mode your self you just need to press the Y button.

There are a total of 50 Kitty Cardz to collect which have useful, interesting, and sometimes funny info on them. You will receive Kitty Cardz from Haley and Brandon from time to time and you will sometimes receive some for reaching certain milestones in the game.

Kitty Coinz is the type of money you get to spend on your kitten. You will receive Kitty Coinz from neighbors sometimes when you go over to their houses and do certain tasks for them. You will also get a weekly allowance from your Aunt Rose.

Controls

You use the stylus for most actions in the game like petting your kitten, playing with your kitten, accessing menus, and checking items. The L and R button is used to use the camera in your PDA. The Y button lets you enter Cuddle Mode when you press it. The B button is used to pan the view and the control pad is also used to pan the view in the game. You can also navigate the menus with the Control pad but it is easier to just use the stylus. The A button can be used to confirm selections but you can easily tap a selection to confirm though.

Graphics

The graphics in Catz are real cute and pretty realistic for a DS game. The kitten are as realistic as they can get just like in Nintendogs. The graphics for the apartment are real good too for a DS game. They look realistic just like everything else in the game. The kittens look so cute that you wish you can actually pick the kitten up and cuddle it.

Sound

The sounds in Catz are real cute too and they are realistic too. When your kitten meows it is so realistic plus you can actually hear the kitten purr. The music in Catz is so cute and so is the song they have when you start the game up. The sound it makes when you get an email on your PDA is realistic too.

Overall this is a real cute and great game to play. I recommend this game to any one who loves kittens and wish they had a kitten of their very own. This is the closest you can get to having a real kitten just like Nintendogs was the closest you could get to having a real puppy.