A Bizarrely Buff Platforming Adventure
The list of Japanese things that I like is fairly long and varied.
The noble art of drifting, the Nissan Skyline (I’ll take a Bayside Blue R34 GT-R if anyone has a spare), Karate, the musical stylings of Babymetal… There is a lot to appreciate.
To this list I’m now going to add another thing, and the item in question is KinnikuNeko: SUPER MUSCLE CAT from Kamotachi and Mameshiba Games. See, it features quite the strangest hero I think I’ve ever played.
If I tell you that “neko” is Japanese for cat, does that give you any clues? No? Well, come with me on a peculiar journey and I’ll try to explain what is going on.
The Magic Posing Pouch: Transforming into Muscle Cat
First of all, what is a KinnikuNeko? Well, the subtitle of the game should give you a clue – it is a Super Muscle Cat. And don’t think about a muscly cat like a tiger, for instance: oh no, it is much weirder than that.
You see, when KinnikuNeko slips on a magic posing pouch (bear with me here) he is transformed into a bodybuilder, with a cat’s head. Imagine Arnold Schwarzenegger in his prime, but with a furry little head, and you’ll be on the right lines. And fortunately, the world has been invaded by aliens, and while they would love to capture this odd cat/bodybuilder hybrid, KinnikuNeko may be the last hope of the world to defeat the aliens. You wanted a story? You’ve got one, right there!
Flexing for Freedom
On to the presentation now, and the story here is pretty good, to be fair.
KinnikuNeko is depicted brilliantly, with every muscle and tendon picked out in glorious detail, and his attacks seem to involve just flexing his impressive physique, but the animation is very good indeed. The basis of the game is that of a side-scrolling 2D platformer, and various aliens will run or fly towards you to try and stop you getting to your goal; which is usually the other end of the level. Intersperse this with occasional boss fights and that is pretty much it!
Cat Form and Combat
The design of the aliens, both big and small is pretty good, but there is an awful lot of repetition of foes: after mowing down your tenth cookie cutter soldier in a row, you do begin to crave a bit more variety. Luckily, the bosses mix things up a bit, so no worries there.
Sound is also great, with a default Japanese voice over that works really well. Even KinnikuNeko gets in on the voice over action, but he just meows: one of the other characters that are on our side can understand him perfectly, oddly. Combat and posing sounds are also very well done, as is the music of the levels. All in all, the presentation is pretty good all round.
Aerial Attacks and Controller Quirks
Now, let’s have a look at the gameplay, and the first port of call is that magic posing pouch we were discussing earlier. This piece of cloth plays a pretty pivotal part in the game: when KinnikuNeko removes it, he just becomes a plain old neko, and can do things that his muscled alter ego can’t. While in cat form, he can jump further and sprint, and also climb walls that have handy cat’s paw print icons on. Sadly, he can’t attack in this shape, so he needs to find his buddy who will pop the pants back if he wants to engage in combat.
And engage in combat he will need to, as there is a seemingly endless series of enemies who need a good slap. He can flex these enemies to death, or he can jump on their heads a la Mario, with the advantage that if he does uses a jumping attack, he can use the enemies to access higher platforms and maybe reach new areas.
Sadly, the aerial attack/bounce seems a little imprecise, and quite often you‘ll find yourself flying off in weird directions. There is one bit about halfway through the game when you have to bounce on four flying saucers in order to reach a platform, and by the time I had managed it, there were rather more teeth marks in my controller than there used to be!
Humor and Homages: A Wacky World
There is a great thread of humour running through KinnikuNeko: SUPER MUSCLE CAT, and lots of nods to other games and anime to spot; an alien in the background dressed as Luffy from One Piece, anyone?
A Fun and Bizarre Platforming Excursion
There’s no doubt that KinnikuNeko: SUPER MUSCLE CAT as a whole is pretty fun, and while it doesn’t do anything surprisingly new (ignoring a cat headed bodybuilder, obviously) what it does do, it does well. If you like a platformer, this is an easy sell, but even those who don’t may find themselves sucked in by the silliness.
Important Links
Meow-scles! KinnikuNeko: SUPER MUSCLE CAT Flexes Its Way Onto Console (And It’s Gloriously Weird) – https://www.thexboxhub.com/meow-scles-kinnikuneko-super-muscle-cat-flexes-its-way-onto-console-and-its-gloriously-weird/
Buy from the Xbox Store – https://www.xbox.com/en-gb/games/store/kinnikuneko-super-muscle-cat/9P1KQX1Z4Q1M
