When you think about licensed games released in the early 2000s for the 6th generation of consoles, you probably don't think of the Cat in the Hat.
However after playing through the game for the first time since I was a very small child I can confidently say that this game maybe shouldn't be slept on quite as much as it is.
There's this genuine sense that the developers cared about the project they were working on. Despite being relatively short with only 10 regular stages, a bonus stage, and 3 almost identical boss fights, each regular level is filled to the brim with visually interesting backgrounds, each stage having its own set of dozens of unique assets slotting in perfectly with its theme.
Character & enemy models are fairly low poly, and there is some level of mismatched aesthetics in regards to general visual consistency, however these did little to impact my enjoyment of the creativity on display.
Mechanically, the game is a 2.5D platformer without a large suite of mechanics. The cat can jump, hover, shoot bubbles to capture enemies or goo and then shoot them at things, stomp the ground with his umbrella, and cower in fear under it. The goo acts as an explosive projectile that can break certain metallic objects as well as regular wooden breakables.
There are some minor hiccups within these mechanics. Turning 180 degrees at a standstill forces you to wait for the turnaround animation before the cat moves, which can be awkward, especially considering this doesn't happen if you turn while in motion. Teleport pads always without fail cause the cat to launch off them slightly, forcing you to stop holding the directional pad in mid air so you don't miss the pad and potentially fall to your doom.
Attempting to aim at objects in the background with a projectile can be finnicky depending on the camera angle you're given, which can cause some frustration if you need to backtrack.
Given its status as a tie-in licensed movie game, it's generally surprising the developers had the foresight to allow you to backtrack throughout any entire level to collect stray collectables you might have missed. This is something I've rarely encountered even in renowned sidescrolling games and I have to give the developers credit for taking this into consideration. On my journey to get 100% in the game I would backtrack in several levels because I missed something, so it's much appreciated.
Unfortunately the audio is a mixed bag. The game features a sleuth of generic stock sounds youv'e heard a million times before, and the soundtrack is a lot of fairly generic "licensed game" music, with some standout moments in each track that made the songs bareable. However the voice acting is surpisingly solid. The majority of voice acting talent is given to the cat (Chris Edgerly) and the goldfish (Nolan North). While this may not be their best performances, it's solid, and you can tell they gave it their all to add emotion to these quite frankly weird looking models.
The Cat in the Hat isn't some magnificent hidden gem waiting to be uncovered by the masses, but it's not deserving of middling to low scores. It's a generally entertaining 2.5D platformer with some well thought out elements to make the ride smooth. Interesting & varied visuals, okay sound design, pretty good level design, and decent mechanics are what makes the game worth a look at the bare minimum.
However after playing through the game for the first time since I was a very small child I can confidently say that this game maybe shouldn't be slept on quite as much as it is.
There's this genuine sense that the developers cared about the project they were working on. Despite being relatively short with only 10 regular stages, a bonus stage, and 3 almost identical boss fights, each regular level is filled to the brim with visually interesting backgrounds, each stage having its own set of dozens of unique assets slotting in perfectly with its theme.
Character & enemy models are fairly low poly, and there is some level of mismatched aesthetics in regards to general visual consistency, however these did little to impact my enjoyment of the creativity on display.
Mechanically, the game is a 2.5D platformer without a large suite of mechanics. The cat can jump, hover, shoot bubbles to capture enemies or goo and then shoot them at things, stomp the ground with his umbrella, and cower in fear under it. The goo acts as an explosive projectile that can break certain metallic objects as well as regular wooden breakables.
There are some minor hiccups within these mechanics. Turning 180 degrees at a standstill forces you to wait for the turnaround animation before the cat moves, which can be awkward, especially considering this doesn't happen if you turn while in motion. Teleport pads always without fail cause the cat to launch off them slightly, forcing you to stop holding the directional pad in mid air so you don't miss the pad and potentially fall to your doom.
Attempting to aim at objects in the background with a projectile can be finnicky depending on the camera angle you're given, which can cause some frustration if you need to backtrack.
Given its status as a tie-in licensed movie game, it's generally surprising the developers had the foresight to allow you to backtrack throughout any entire level to collect stray collectables you might have missed. This is something I've rarely encountered even in renowned sidescrolling games and I have to give the developers credit for taking this into consideration. On my journey to get 100% in the game I would backtrack in several levels because I missed something, so it's much appreciated.
Unfortunately the audio is a mixed bag. The game features a sleuth of generic stock sounds youv'e heard a million times before, and the soundtrack is a lot of fairly generic "licensed game" music, with some standout moments in each track that made the songs bareable. However the voice acting is surpisingly solid. The majority of voice acting talent is given to the cat (Chris Edgerly) and the goldfish (Nolan North). While this may not be their best performances, it's solid, and you can tell they gave it their all to add emotion to these quite frankly weird looking models.
The Cat in the Hat isn't some magnificent hidden gem waiting to be uncovered by the masses, but it's not deserving of middling to low scores. It's a generally entertaining 2.5D platformer with some well thought out elements to make the ride smooth. Interesting & varied visuals, okay sound design, pretty good level design, and decent mechanics are what makes the game worth a look at the bare minimum.