Little Kitty, Big City puts players in the paws (and beans on their fingers) of an adorable black cat in a city reminiscent of Tokyo’s residential neighborhoods. After falling from a high window in his home, the nameless feline finds himself on the streets of the city below. With only one thing on his mind—returning home to the perfect spot for a nap—this feline sets off on his biggest adventure yet. I’ll admit that Little Kitty, Bit City didn’t have to do much to impress me. I love cats, and it’s uncomplicated to see why I and other cat lovers are drawn to these furry friends. But developer Double Dagger Studio has also created an adorable and fun exploration of our world through the eyes of a cat that’s also a charming puzzle game.
Right off the bat, Little Kitty, Big City comes alive with a visual style that falls somewhere between customary animation and anime, wrapping the entire three-hour experience like a heated blanket. Controlling the titular cat is also a joy, with mechanics that only make sense in a game like this. This cat doesn’t sprint—holding LB on the Xbox controller releases their “zooms.” The triggers move left and right, perfect for knocking a plant off a ledge and onto the ground. Holding A to jump lets you aim your jump, which is great for catching birds and reaching fresh heights, and holding Y opens up an emote wheel for things like “Biiiiiig Stretch,” taking a nap, a scary face, or something else. It felt like every few minutes I was discovering some fresh adorable mechanic or collectible, like the wearable hats that reminded me of my own cat, Bonny, back home, and it kept me exploring the city off the golden path.
The main quest is equally enjoyable, as it lets you meet a variety of other animal characters, such as a duck who keeps losing his ducklings, a crow with an obsession with shiny things, a dog who can’t find his favorite balls, a tanuki engineer who plays with timelines and the physics of the world, and more. Between the fun dialogue and the tiny quests that are doled out, meeting and helping fresh friends never felt like a chore. For the most part, completing these quests is plain: explore an area using clues or a map, find what you need, and bring it back. Sure, they’re fetch quests, but none of them lasted longer than 10 minutes, and because Little Kitty, Big City constantly encourages exploration, I always found fresh things that caught my attention along the way.
The overarching narrative is even simpler: get home. To do this, you must find and eat four fish scattered around the city, as each one gives you more energy to climb higher. Each fish builds on the previous one, unlocking additional climbing energy and then fresh areas of the vertical city you haven’t visited in a satisfying, slightly metroidvania-like way. And once you’ve collected all four, it’s time for your most treacherous climb yet. While I was most frustrated by this final climb, mostly because the climbing is so erratic, ponderous, and imprecise, it’s also one of the game’s most heartwarming moments, thanks to the reflective encounters with everyone you’ve met so far.
Little Kitty, Big City could easily rely on its adorable cat, forgetting that controlling it and interacting with the world around it needs to be just as enjoyable. Instead, its perfectly balanced runtime, cat-centric mechanics, and engaging exploration combine to provide a reminder of why we love these animals so much.
