Save The Solar System In Galaxy Cat
Galaxy Cat ($0.99) by Monster Robot Studios is an iPhone-only game that features an adorable little cat that flies through space in an effort to save the universe. Sure, we've seen plenty of games that feature flying cats, but honestly, can the Internet or the App Store ever have an overabundance of furry felines?
My vote is no.
Galaxy Cat is a path-based puzzle game, and your job is to guide the cat to the black hole in each level. To do this, you tap on him and then drag your finger along the screen to draw a path, grabbing Collectos on your way. Collectos, these blobby blue guys, are akin to stars in other games. Grab them all for the highest rating.
Dragging your finger slowly along the screen will create more flight points, while dragging rapidly will create fewer. This has a strong bearing on the game when obstacles become an issue, and depending on how many flight points there are, Galaxy Cat will travel faster or slower.
After you have drawn a path for the cat, you hit the play button to see if your route calculations have been correct. If Galaxy Cat makes it to the black hole, you're golden, but if he has a hiccup, you will need to try again.
There are quite a few dangers in each level, which will need to be avoided when you draw your paths. If Galaxy Cat collides with land, buzz saws, or other obstacles, you will have to restart the level.
You will also need to be careful not to draw a path that goes off of the screen, because if you do, it's an instant restart. This was actually a frustrating mechanic on the small screen of the iPhone.
I liked the concept of Galaxy Cat, but I didn't feel like the drawing controls were sharp enough to be entirely functional. For example, one of my pathways (drawn both quickly and slowly) continually sent Galaxy Cat into a sharp corner, even though the path wasn't drawn near an obstacle.
I also had issues where Galaxy Cat would continually get stuck in the corner of the level when I first started, presumably because I hadn't drawn my path in that area accurately enough, an impossibility on the iPhone's screen.
All in all, it seemed like this would be a fantastic game for the iPad, but it didn't work out so well on my phone. I don't even have large fingers, so I am certain that most people will experience this difficulty when attempting to play the game.
Galaxy Cat has a great concept, but flawed execution. If you have a stylus to play with, that could potentially make this game a lot better. It does have cute graphics and decent gameplay, so it may be worth the risk to try.
