These days, cats run everything around here — the Internet, train stations (RIP Tama), social media, and our hearts. Basically, people want to see cats on anything and everything. From cat-print tights, to cat wearing tights, damn these cats are everywhere.
But for them to infiltrate the world of gaming seems all right; we could handle that. They’re awesome and cute, and cute noises come out from their mouths, so why shouldn’t they be in games? From mobile games to video games, we celebrate the games that embrace the magical and powerful feline.
Neko Atsume
Almost everyone is playing it now — who cares that the entire game is in Japanese? It’s cute and fun and requires no gaming background at all. Just feed the cats, provide them with toys, collect the sardines they leave you to buy food and toys — that’s it. As you buy new toys, you collect new cats as well. It’s like being a cat lady minus the real cats. We’ll even teach you how to be a pro at it.
To download Neko Atsume, visit the App Store or Google Play.
Nom Cat
If you know your celebrity cats like Nyan Cat, Grumpy Cat, Keyboard Cat and more, you’ll want to have Nom Cat on your phone. The retro graphics and music make it quite nostalgic and endearing if you like old-school stuff. It requires just two fingers to tap and hold open the mouths of both cats to feed them with a crazy amount of fish. Unlock celebrity cats as you progress further in the game.
To download Nom Cat, visit the App Store or Google Play.
The Cat Lady
The darkest game of the lot, this is one you’d best stay clear of if you prefer something with a more cheery disposition. The Cat Lady is a twisted and violent horror point-and-click game. The plot, though crazy, also manages an emotional connection. You play as Susan Ashworth, a lonely 40-year old on the verge of suicide. She has no family, friends, and no hope for a better future. One day, she discovers that five strangers will come along and change everything. Tempting and mysterious.
Get The Cat Lady from Steam.
Sushi Cat 1 & 2
Addictive and perfect for a quick distraction, Sushi Cat is a puzzle game you can play online or on your phone. The premise? You play Sushi Cat, who needs to fatten up before he can confront the injustices he faces in life. And I mean really fatten up. Click your way through the game to bulk up, while reggae music with a Japanese touch plays in the background.
Play Sushi Cat 1 | Sushi Cat 2 online.
Battle Cats
Cat games are not all pastel colours and fluff (haha); Battle Cats is a game about war, strategy, and mass destruction, except you have these cute cats fighting on the warfront. Still, it’s more Battlefield Hardline than Sushi Cat, and provides you with endless fun collecting rare cats, building your army, strategising which cat to send out to the field, and satisfaction when you ultimately defeat the enemy base. Brilliant.
To download Battle Cats, visit the App Store or Google Play.
Catlateral Damage
There’s Goat Simulator, Shark Simulator, Snake Simulator, Killer Whale Simulator and a whole list of other wild and crazy animal simulators out there, and then there’s Catlateral Damage — a first-person game about being a cat and destroying everything. Jump on tables, break mugs, throw stuff off tables, scratch and ruin surfaces forever, and more. Being a cat must be so satisfying.
Get Catlateral Damage from Steam.
Garbage Cat
All cat owners can vouch for this. When the moon is high and and the skies are dark, that’s when the cat is at its most active. As a cat, wreck the room and make as much noise as you can to get your owner to wake up — this game is an insight to the not-so-pleasant side of these cute creatures, and is very grounded in reality.
Play Garbage Cat online.
Hot Tin Roof: The Cat That Wore A Fedora
A tribute to the 90’s when all crime-solving detectives wore gentlemen hats and coats — this is the same but the detective is…a cat. Get on the case as a PI, where you manoeuvre around a string of grisly murders. Your revolver is the main interaction with the side scrolling world, and the dialogue is pretty good as well. Noir, with a sense of humour.
Get Hot Tin Roof from Steam.
Shelter 2
Probably the most visually stunning of the lot, Shelter 2 is an open world survival video game where you have to guide a Lynx through vast open landscapes, give birth to cubs, raise them and protect them as you move through the cold and harsh tundra. The music is beautiful, the sound effects are almost real, and the graphics are breathtaking.
Get Shelter 2 from Steam.
Bonus: Games for Actual Cats
So we’ve been playing games with cats in them, but besides fetch and Scratch-A-Sofa, maybe we can entice your feline friend to engage in one of these games for actual cats? They’re safe, and nothing will be broken or scratched in the process. We hope.
Friskies Cat Fishing
It’s free, and it’ll free you off some time as your cat gets preoccupied with fishing for digital fish on a screen.
To download Friskies Cat Fishing, visit the App Store or Google Play.
Paint for Cats
You cat chases a mouse while also painting at the same time. Genius.
To download Paint For Cats, visit the App Store.
Pocket Pond
For both you and your cat — it’s relaxing and zen to you, but it’s hunting season for your cat.
To download Pocket Pond, visit the App Store or Google Play.
