Catz
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| Catz

In some respects, cats are like fish: they're the pet you have when, really, you don't think you've got time for one. Of course, anyone who's got a puss or an aquarium will be quick to tell you that this is a misconception. While cats are certainly not as high maintenance as dogs, you'll find yourself investing more time into your feline friend's wellbeing than you initially expect.

It's a similar case with Catz, Gameloft's moggy take on the virtual pet genre. Although you might not expect to do much more than empty litter trays, clear away frog corpses and pick hair off your favourite black trousers, it's actually a very involving, entertaining little game.

In fact, it's probably got more going for it than Dogz; Catz certainly seems to keep you busier and your catty charge seems to exhibit more personality. From the very opening of the game, where you can adopt one of several kittens, Catz seems determined to avoid falling into the repetition that too many virtual pet titles drift into.

Each of the catz, sorry, cats looking for a new home is not only a different colour but a different character, too. Some are more playful while others are more quiet and sleepy, for instance, traits that will continue throughout the game.

And we say 'game' with more intent than is usual for this genre, because Catz offers many more elements to get involved with than its competition. There are several mini-games that you and your kitten can enjoy, including a rather random but nonetheless entertaining take on hide'n'seek that takes place with a torch in the dark of the attic, and the ever-present pet tournaments that virtual pet games everywhere seem to sport.

It's the latter aspect and the presence of a pet shop where you re-stock on food and buy toys that are really the only elements of Catz that are standard issue for pet sims. The way in which your kitten scampers over, under or around the furniture in your house is genuinely endearing, as is its reaction to the interactive items dotted around the place. And the first time you see your cat paw at the television that you've just turned on will be almost enough to drag an 'Awww...' from the most manly of mouths.

The visuals are pretty in a cartoon-style, which means your handset is never really pushed in what it has to draw on-screen, though the 2D details are pleasant enough to give you a sense of immersion in your virtual house.

Gameloft has also worked on putting more detail into the subject of the game itself: your pet cat. Where the puppy in Dogz was little more than a bread bun with legs, your kitten in Catz is far better looking and, as a result, you'll feel a much tighter connection with it.

The sound effects are less impressive, and are relegated to some tinkly incidental music and a few squeaks that are supposed to be meows. But the lack of quality audio isn't enough to prevent anyone (whether you think of a cat as being a great pet or not) from enjoying Catz. Neither is the too-vague cursor, which needs to be more precise when clicking on items and objects, nor the irritating way that messages telling you instructions or notifying you of events pop up in the middle of you trying to do something else.

Sure, they're frustrating to begin with but you soon grow used to the cursor's ambiguity and the deeper you get into the game, the fewer messages pop up anyway. Which leaves Catz as a sterling example of how to put together a virtual pet sim: it's got enough cuteness for young girls longing to care for something small and furry, and enough attention to detail to provide a large measure of entertainment for more, ahem, serious pocket gamers.

Catz

The cat's whiskers
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