Game: Super Phantom Cat Remake
System: Nintendo Switch
Developer/Publisher: Veewo Games
Price: £8.99/€9.99/$9.99
Age Rating: 3/E
Date Released: 21st March 2019
Nintendo’s Switch console is home to some fantastic 2D Indie Platform based titles. Super Phantom Cat Remake is a solid title which provides both challenge and lots of replayability. Don’t let its cute visuals fool you, Super Phantom Cat isn’t a kid’s titles. That’s not to say children can’t play and enjoy it, but it’s level design tests even more advanced players.
Ari Steps Up
Super Phantom Cat Remake starts by introducing you to the games main characters. Once upon a time, Ina runs into a forest forcing Ari her brother to pursue her. She soon stumbles upon a mysterious structure which results in her being kidnapped by a mysterious UFO. With the help of his Master Alpha and a variety of Phantom powers, Ari must progress through a variety of colourful stages to rescue his sister, and unravel the game’s true plot. Following Ina’s abduction, Ari is attacked by monsters which causes Alpha (the last Phantom Hero) to intervene. After saving Ari, Alpha sends him to find Elo the Sprite whose role is to guide and aid our feline Hero.
Fun Platform Mechanics
Super Phantom Cat Remake is a solid platform experience. It boasts very familiar mechanics typical of popular franchises. Breaking blocks, jumping on creatures’ heads, and travelling through pipes are all here as well as some others. As well as Ari’s standard move set, there are numerous Phantom Powers scattered throughout stages which enable Ari to shoot ice, teleport through walls, grow vines to climb walls, ground pound blocks etc. Each Stage is designed to take advantage of particular Phantom Powers.
Visuals and Extras
The game looks fantastic! I’ve always been drawn to titles with cute visuals (perhaps it’s the kid in me), and Super Phantom Cat Remake doesn’t disappoint. It’s cartoony look, as well as its soundtrack almost makes me feel young again. Another nice touch is the number of collectables which can be used to unlock additional features.
If you’re a completionist like me, you’ll have great fun exploring each stage for hidden coins, chests, and stars. Stages are short but filled with hidden areas. I’ve spent hours replaying completed stages to find every item. I’ve enjoyed re-exploring areas so much that I’ve yet to finish the whole game. If I had wanted to, I could have finished Super Phantom Cat Remake by now, but I’m enjoying the title so much that I want to experience everything it has to offer.
Collectable items can be used to unlock characters, with tweaked stats such as increased hearts and tweaked manoeuvring abilities. Money is used to purchase keys; keys are used to open chests, locked chests contain fragments which if collected go towards unlocking additional characters. Do you fancy playing as cats such as Rockskull the moonwalker, or Alice with her Princess Peach like floating abilities? How about taking the game on either as a small drumming bird, an honest looking dog (if there is such a thing), or a food-loving panda.
There are also purchasable elixir and balloon upgrades which allow players to recover from death due to energy depletion or missing a platform.
Great Value for Money
Yoshi’s Crafted World finally made it to stores on 29th March. It boasts great visuals, fun gameplay mechanics and so on, but it costs more than £40 in the UK. If you’re looking for a fun addictive platformer for just under £10 then Super Phantom Cat Remake has plenty to offer. In some ways, it’s a better buy than Yoshi, at least for more hardcore players because of the challenge it provides.
Overall
I’m so glad Super Phantom Cat Remake is finally available for Switch. The game itself first launched on Google’s App store in 2016 as Super Phantom Cat 2, but the Switch version trumps it for its control scheme alone. Veewo has produced a high-quality “catformer” for a purrfect price.
