“Scram Kitty and his Buddy on Rails” is an interesting mix of a magnetic/gravity physics based wall-hugger. See the video, understand what I mean by wall-hugger (they call it “rail-riding” which makes sense). Anyways, you are in a spaceship with a few offensive and defensive capabilities including weapons and a spin second jump, you are tasked with trying to save all the kitties from the evil mice.
Artistically, I was immediately reminded of Sega Dreamcast and other 32bit+ Sega games. Chu-Chu Rocket is an obvious comparison, though not because of gameplay. Mainly the art and the 2D top-down view. And yeah, cats vs mice.
The music blends into the game, it sounds like a synth mixed with an electronic keyboard. Simple stuff I likely won’t catch myself humming, but it didn’t get on my nerves.
I really had no idea what I was getting into when I started playing this. A second screen (the benefit of the Wii U) wasn’t required, it would just expose a slightly different region of the camera, and you can quickly switch between the two with the – button. You only “need” it in the menus.
I had difficulty with the controls, and I’m not sure why. The physics worked exactly as I expected them to, but I kept messing up my jump and orbital swings. It made getting a few of the collectables required to save some kitties harder than I expected. There are also a few annoying enemies that seem to have way too much health, and can quickly disappear. You will take most of your damage from these guys either running into you or shooting you.
Perhaps this game is less forgiving than I want. I kept dying T_T I suggest you go a bit slower than me. Only the cat that runs away or the Challenges require you to run through quickly, usually you can prep for jumps and battles. I think this would work well on the Sony Vita (no need for two screens) or by playing the gamepad solo.
Here is me playing a few starter levels, with some basic commentary.
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Available now for $9.99 on Nintendo Wii U.
http://www.dakkodakko.com/scramkitty/kitty/
