Code provided thanks to Robert Schindler.
Catniss Around the World: A Platformer With Another Cat
When I first sat down with Catniss Around the World, I fully expected to be writing a review. After spending some time with it, though, I felt impressions were probably the fairer route to take.
This is a game that clearly has a lot of passion behind it. As someone who appreciates just how difficult solo game development can be, I always try to look at projects like this with an open mind. You can see the effort that’s gone into creating a full platforming adventure, complete with hand-drawn animation, themed locations, collectables, and a globe-trotting premise.
Unfortunately, while I can certainly appreciate the ambition, the current version left me feeling more frustrated than entertained. That doesn’t mean there isn’t potential here, but right now it feels like a project that could have benefited from a little more time in the oven.
A Cat Called to Adventure
The story is fairly straightforward. Catniss begins the game asleep, living a peaceful cat life until adventure inevitably comes knocking. Soon enough, our feline hero finds themselves setting out across the world to deal with a threat involving some rather unpleasant goblin-like creatures. The setup is simple and mostly serves as a reason to get you moving through the game’s various stages.
To be honest, there isn’t a huge amount of narrative depth here. The opening establishes a basic premise before quickly stepping aside to focus on the platforming. That’s perfectly fine for this sort of game, although I would have liked a little more context about the world and its characters. Still, sometimes all a platformer really needs is a cute cat and an excuse to start jumping.
Familiar Platforming Foundations
At its core, Catniss Around the World is a traditional platformer. You run, jump, avoid hazards, collect items, and make your way to the end of each level. Along the way you’ll find coins, stars, and various collectibles hidden throughout the stages. These seem primarily designed for score chasing and completionists, although I never felt particularly motivated to seek them all out.
The basic move set includes jumping and a spin attack for dealing with enemies. You can also stomp on enemies’ heads in classic platforming fashion. There is an interesting mechanic involving throwable knives which can stick into walls and create temporary platforms. In theory, this adds some extra depth to navigation and puzzle-solving. In practice, I found myself rarely needing to use it, at least during the sections I played. The foundations are all there, but unfortunately the actual act of platforming didn’t quite click with me.
Precision Without the Satisfaction
The biggest issue I encountered was the controls and level design. The game seems to lean towards precision platforming, but it often feels overly twitchy. Jumps can be difficult to judge, movement lacks a little of the smoothness you’d hope for in this type of game, and many sections felt more awkward than challenging.
One particular frustration was the number of “leaps of faith.” There were multiple moments where I needed to drop down from a platform without being able to properly see what was below me. Was there another platform waiting? A spike pit? Instant death? Often it felt more like guesswork than skill. Since hazards such as spikes and bottomless pits instantly kill you and send you back to a checkpoint, these moments became increasingly frustrating over time. Rather than feeling encouraged to master the levels, I often found myself simply wanting to get through them.
The Visual Style Has Promise
If there’s one area where Catniss Around the World does stand out, it’s the visual presentation. The game combines hand-drawn 2D characters with 3D environments, creating something that occasionally reminded me of older PlayStation-era platformers. In particular, I found myself thinking about games like Pandemonium! with their side-scrolling gameplay set against fully realised 3D backdrops.
Catniss is nicely animated, and the hand-drawn approach gives the character a lot of charm. The environments are inspired by locations around the world, including places such as Italy and Norway, which helps create some visual variety. The problem is that while the backgrounds look different, the gameplay itself doesn’t always reflect those locations. The platforming challenges, enemies, and hazards often feel very similar regardless of where you’re supposed to be. As a result, the world-tour concept never fully reaches its potential.
Technical Issues Need Attention
Being completely honest, the technical side of the game needs work. I experienced noticeable pop-in when loading levels, with environments sometimes taking a while to fully render. This was distracting and made the game feel rough around the edges. Menu icons didn’t seem to highlight when using a controller. This led to me using the mouse to proceed to the next level before switching to controller.
More concerning were the crashes. A game like this shouldn’t really be struggling on modern hardware, yet I encountered random crashes during my time with it. Hopefully these are problems that can be addressed through future updates.
Final Thoughts
Catniss Around the World is a game I’m conflicted about. On one hand, I can clearly see the passion behind it. Creating a platformer as a solo developer is no small achievement, and there are glimpses of good ideas throughout the experience. The hand-drawn characters are charming, the world-hopping premise has potential, and there’s an obvious love for classic platforming adventures.
On the other hand, the current build simply isn’t there yet for me. The platforming feels awkward, the level design can be frustrating, technical issues get in the way, and there just wasn’t enough here to keep me engaged or eager for another run. That doesn’t mean the future is hopeless. In fact, the game already hints at additional content to come, and I genuinely hope continued updates help it find its footing.
For now, though, this feels more like a project to keep an eye on rather than one I’d actively recommend purchasing. If you’re passionate about supporting solo developers, it may be worth adding to your wishlist and following its progress. As it stands today, however, Catniss Around the World is a journey that still has a few miles left before it reaches its destination.
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