It is impossible to start Cat Quest 3 without a smile breaking out across your face. The quick opening animation will whisk you back to your childhood watching cartoons on a weekend morning. That feeling digs its hooks in deeper the moment you gain control and never lets go. If there’s one thing Cat Quest 3 excels at, it’s its presentation and commitment to giving you a lighthearted adventure. Every inch of this pirate-themed world, from the characters, locations, and enemies, is bright and inviting. Sure, the puns are laid on a bit thick even for my tastes, but it all feels in service of preserving that childlike sense of wonder and adventure.

Cat Quest 3 aims to be as smooth an experience as possible without sacrificing mechanical depth or choice. Unlike many games aimed at kids, it doesn’t talk down or patronize the player. Instead, it feels like a refreshingly streamlined RPG that forgoes all the bloat and wants to make each moment count. There are some patches of tedium, and the main story is disappointingly shallow, but there is a lot of fun to be had sailing these waters.

Price and availability

Cat Quest 3 will be available on August 8 for $20 on PlayStation, Xbox, Switch, and Steam. It is a 2D action RPG centered on a cat hunting down the legendary North Star in the Purribean.

Set sail for adventure

Enjoy the journey

This time around, your silent cat protagonist is setting sail on a pirate-themed adventure in search of a mystical treasure called the North Star that only they can find. Also on the hunt is the evil Pi-Rat king and the various pirate captains he’s brought under him. After this is introduced, nothing substantial or interesting changes in the main plot. You are shown your goal, all the obstacles and bosses in your way, and get to work. Being a silent protagonist, there’s little room for any interesting twists or growth, but even what we have ends up feeling dull and throwaway. That’s a real shame because everything surrounding that boilerplate plot has so much charm and life to it.

The real treasure in Cat Quest 3 is the side content and exploration. This archipelago is brimming with bite-sized sidequests that never fail to entertain in one way or another. Even when the tasks are a bit menial, the short story or twist in the plot almost always makes it worth the time. Just like any pirate adventure, it isn’t the treasure you start off searching for that you end up valuing the most but the people you meet and things you see along the way.

Cat Quest 3 never forces you to do any extra exploring or side quests if you don’t want to, either. For the most part, the main plot will give you enough experience and levels to go from objective to objective and not hit a massive wall. Bosses will be tougher this way, and you’d miss out on tons of great little stories and items, but there’s never a point where you’re forced to stop and grind.

Kitty’s got claws

Not just a hack-and-scratch

A game with the art style and tone of Cat Quest 3 might lead you to believe it would water down its combat and mechanics. I had expected a simple attack string, dodge, and some magic to throw in based on previous games, but the combat loop and progression ended up being a delightful surprise.

From the jump, you have a melee weapon, gun, and magic that all have a role and synergy. After you shoot all your ammo, you need to switch to melee or magic while it is on cooldown. Once you spend your magic, you need to recharge it by landing combos. It creates a satisfying rhythm of cycling through your tools to make the most of your offensive capabilities.

Unlocking new gear keeps your strategy evolving. Different armor and weapons not only change your base stats but can also alter your playstyle. I went with a lightning-focused build by equipping gear that boosted my lightning damage and a weapon that caused a lightning strike on the final hit of its combo. There are dozens of options between the armors, weapons, and trinkets, but I never felt like I couldn’t experiment. Your gear upgrades by finding duplicates that bring it up to your current level, or you can spend cash at the blacksmith. Coins are doled out very generously to the point that I never encountered a situation where I wasn’t able to take a new piece of gear up to a comparable strength due to lack of funds.

While the combat remains fresh, the dungeon design sadly becomes repetitive very early on. Cave and interiors all have the same appearance (perhaps in a different color) and the same progression structure. It sucks the wind out of the excitement one should feel exploring a dangerous cave or pirate hideout when you know exactly what it will look like before you enter.

Should you try Cat Quest 3?

A smooth RPG experience with a dull story

Cat Quest 3 wastes no time letting you board your ship and set sail on a lighthearted pirate adventure. Despite being mostly water, the world here is packed to the brim with charm and vigor. If it weren’t for a forgettable main story and reused dungeon designs, this might’ve been the perfect answer for the current trend of RPG bloat. Even with those flaws, Cat Quest 3 kept me smiling through my entire playthrough. That’s not something many games have done.