Little Kitty Big City (Switch) Review

It’s been a good few years for games starring animals and messing around with the world around them. There was Untitled Goose Game, and then Stray and Little Kitty Big City is somewhere in the middle. Taking place over a few hours, the game lets you mess around with the citizens of the big city as the kitty just tries to get back to his home. They say cats can always land on their feet; this one lands on their feet after falling from an apartment window in their sleep. Mad skills.

Unlike the cat in Stray, our little kitty here is very young and isn’t yet the most aerobic cat right away. It can pounce, jump, and eventually climb, but right off the bat, things start very slow. Despite the name having Big City in it, the city you’re dropped into, modelled on a small Japanese town, is relatively small. Still, there’s a lot to see and do on this small map, with activities, missions and things to collect littered all over the place. The first thing you’ll need to try and find is Shinies; a crow requests you collect them to feed you fish and help grow your ability to climb back up to your owner’s apartment.

Controlling the kitty is pretty fun, if not a little wonky in places. There are plenty of cat things to do, like pouncing on birds, slinking under fences and knocking stuff off fences and ledges. The game also has a dedicated meow button, which never gets old. You can interact with a whole host of things in the game, including people, nuzzling up to them or tripping them up and stealing their phones. There are stores to break into, plus there’s fancy hats to collect to accessorise Kitty with. These hats don’t change how you move; they’re just super cute – although I’ve never met a cat who likes wearing anything on its head. 

The game is very chill, and if you rush through the story, you’ll probably finish it in a few hours. It’s better to take your time and explore the world, as there’s a lot of detail hidden in stores, down alleyways and under fences that you might miss if you just go for the goal. There’s no rush to get you home. The other animals in the game, including other cats, are all quite funny, so you’ll want to speak to them all – the game’s writing is a highlight – if not a little too verbose for some characters. 

Since the game launched, a patch has been issued that has fixed a few of the glitches I found, and other reviews might also mention them. It’s still not perfect. Kitty can float around during jumps, miss ledges and get stuck in walls, but the patch has reduced these occurrences. There were also a couple of times when I had to reload a save to get unstuck, as the cat would no longer jump. Otherwise, the game runs quite well on the Switch, both in docked and handheld mode; the game’s art style is simple but also very cute. 

Little Kitty Big City isn’t just a game for fans of cats; anyone can enjoy it over the few hours it lasts. Returning to find all the items in the game will also net a couple more hours. Knowing that the game is still an adorably fun time and, despite some rough edges, exploring the big city as a little kitty is certainly a fun time.

Rating: 4/5