KinnikuNeko: SUPER MUSCLE CAT Review

As soon as I saw the trailer for KinnikuNeko: SUPER MUSCLE CAT, I thought the game looked weird and incredibly bizarre, but I knew that I had to try it and find out exactly what was going on here! Developed and published by Kamotachi, this game feels like you are playing through an anime from the ‘90s!

When starting the game, you are treated to an animated intro with a catchy theme song, like intros from your favourite anime shows. This game feels like it should definitely have a cartoon based on it; with such fun characters and a silly story, it feels like a no-brainer. Plus, I will never say no to a show with a cute kitty!

Aliens are invading and collecting species that live on the planet; well, they actually only capture the species that they feel will be of use to them. These “Misterious Aliens” (that's how it's spelt!) have a bigger mission; they are trying to retrieve something for their leader, the Mother Queen, that we're not privy to in the beginning, but it is clear that she is the one calling the shots here.

We are introduced to three characters: Lemon is a girl with bright blonde hair; she seems nice but a bit ditzy at times. Keita, a boy who is a bit of a chicken but sticks with his friends since he's sure aliens will find and capture them, and last but not least, our titular hero, KinnikuNeko. This character is a massive bodybuilder with an adorable blue cat head. It looks so weird yet kind of cute at the same time. Kinniku packs a big punch; this kitty hybrid isn't much for words but sure loves to meow, and damn, it sounds adorable.

The game offers two methods of control: keyboard or gamepad. Since I'm playing the game on Steam, I opted to use my Xbox controller or play on my Steam Deck. Controlling Kinniku was straightforward: D-pad or left thumbstick to move, bottom face button to jump, swipe or punch with the left face button, and the ever-important meow with the right face button.

You will find Lemon hanging out in multiple areas of the stage. She will either give you health or change you between the cat and the kitty muscle man? I’m not totally sure exactly what the cat-human hybrid would be called, though. Each form has different abilities and moves that they can do. If you are currently the human, she will turn you into an adorable blue cat. In this form, you can climb up walls, run fast, and make huge jumps. The little kitty cannot attack, so you will have to avoid the aliens at any cost, but your alien foes can take each other out; yay, friendly fire!

The bodybuilder is strong and can attack the enemy with punches and flying knees. He is also able to break through clusters of stones and can work out at the gym to raise his strength level. The kitty cannot lift weights, though seeing a little cat try may be cute, so you will need muscle to do that. Working out has you bench pressing weights as fast as possible and in the correct numbered order. As you progress in the game, the amount of weight you need to lift increases, which means you will need to do some serious button smashing to raise it up!

At this point, I'm sure you are wondering how this is even possible. Well, it's quite simple; the secret is magical alien underwear. Though putting underwear on a cat sounds pretty challenging! This definitely sounds weird, but it fits the personality of this game!

The game is vibrant and exploding with personality. Some of the characters look like they were inspired by Toriyama’s art. We even see nods to some of his creations in a cosplay contest taking place at the school, with aliens dressed up as Dragon Ball characters. There are also costumes from One Piece and Lum from Urusei Yatsura.

The music is upbeat and energetic. It always feels fun, fitting with the action of KinnikuNeko: SUPER MUSCLE CAT. My favourite song was the one that played during the anime-style intro. These lyrics were so silly, but they set the stage for what was going to happen during the game. There is also a bit of voice acting here; aliens are fully voiced and say everything that the text below says, whereas our main characters talk a bit in short reactions like Keita’s “Are you kidding me?" and “What the heck!” or “Wha!!” from Lemon. The best was the variety of meows from KinnikuNeko; this matched the nyan words that appeared below.

This 2D platformer has multiple stages to play through, each set in a different location, so there is a lot of variety. The game lets you go and play through any of the stages you have cleared before to visit gyms to strengthen your character or to collect more stars that are placed around the stages. When you complete the stage, you see a WANTED poster screen that displays how many soldiers you eliminated, your strength level, and the number of stars you collected.

The stages that you play aren't all your standard platforming-type levels: there are also times when you will need to play a rhythm game with four columns that represent the four face buttons. You will have to try to hit the falling cat faces with the right button. You may also have a word-based arm wrestling match, or play through areas with forced scrolling. These scrolling levels that appear later on are quite challenging; I wish there were a few more checkpoints along the way! It’s amazing how hard and frustrating they could be!

There is so much to love about KinnikuNeko: SUPER MUSCLE CAT, this game is great! From the great sense of humour to the crazy characters and silly stories, I was surprised at how good this title is. Though seeing the bodybuilder sit down, lift his leg over his head and lick them clean like a cat will always seem odd! Don’t let the cute aesthetic fool you; this game can be incredibly challenging at times, but once you get through the trickier areas, you feel a great sense of accomplishment. If you love ‘90s anime, fun characters, cats, or 2D platformers, you are going to love this unique and bizarre title!