I’m a little sheepish about how much I’m looking forward to Cat Quest 3. It’s neither big budget and mainstream, nor a conceptually thrilling indie. If the first two games are anything to go by, it’ll be a paint-by-numbers action-RPG with simple combat, lots of grind, and endless cat and dog puns.

Yeah. That’s why I like it, though. Now it has a release date: August 8th.

Cat Quest 3’s customisation trailer.Watch on YouTube
The cats are the problem. Plenty of other games feature melee combat with dodge rolls and dopamine-tickling levelling systems, but it’s the presence of cats and cat puns that throw up a red flag. They’re the warning sign that you’re approaching something creatively shallow, a game which has opted to court the most tired of internet memes in lieu of developing its own personality.

Yet I don’t feel that way about Cat Quest. Its cat puns are so relentless, so laboured, they loop back around to being charming, and its combat has a reliable, does-what-it-says-on-the-tin sort of appeal. I feel the same way about Cat Quest that I do about the similarly-named Beast Quest children’s books, which likewise have a straightforward fantasy world where there’s always a monster, always a magical item, always a victorious final battle. I read those books to my son, and Cat Quest 2 introduced co-op which my son and I played together.

And Cat Quest 3 adds sea combat! No guilty pleasure, only pleasure – right?

I’m going to buy this and I’m going to like it, I can tell. It’s out on August 8th, but there’s a Steam Next Fest demo if you want to play it now.