Review: Wildcat Gun Machine

40 different guns, mechs, and… kittens?

Wildcat Gun Machine is a casual 2D bullet-hell dungeon crawler with 40 guns, mechs and kittens.

Being a cat person, I had mixed feelings when eyeing up the announcement trailer for Wildcat Gun Machine. I like cats. And I like video games. And I love shooting things. But how would I feel about all three simultaneously?

Tired is the answer. Tired and a little irritable. Because Wildcat Gun Machine isn’t the Gungeon-killer I, and perhaps others, were hoping for.

Use your own imagination, cos we can’t be bothered

No story is conveyed in this game, so the reason for kittens mutating into vile, violent beasts is left to the player’s imagination.

Some kind of lab experiment gone wrong? Or perhaps a hyper-intelligent supervillain cat realised that the feline powers of malice and narcissism need to be unlocked to their true potential with a bit of technology to take over the world? Well, if it isn’t that, I will definitely make a movie with precisely that premise!

The main thing is that the cats have gone a bit rabid and need putting down. And for a game like this, that is probably about enough story for most players. Though it is a tiny bit lazy on the part of the devs.

Bulging feline muscles

Glancing at this game, it would appear that a lot of love has gone into the way this title looks and feels. And it has… kinda.

The world looks stylised in some aspects, but when you take a moment to inspect the enemies and environments a little more diligently, everything is a little more generic than one might hope.

The bosses are very detailed, with bulging muscles and cannons sprouting from their chest, face, or… elsewhere. But the smaller enemies, whilst they have detail, show little imagination.

Environments are varied throughout the different acts of the game but lack attention to detail, and little love has been put into them. However, they do fit well with the enemies that inhabit them, making for a slightly derivative yet coherent world.

Scary cat eyes

Much like every other aspect of the game, the visuals of Wildcat belie its casual core.

A bright palette and cartoon-style visuals express the game’s suitability for the less hardcore and younger gamers.

Explosions bloom high and bright, like angry red clouds of fire. And animations are artistically assembled, giving a smooth and delightful display of video game craft. This is especially the case with the bosses.

However, there are a few visual bugs with Wildcat, be they very minor. The screen appears to render in layers as the player moves. And sections of the gun disappear if the player walks too close to a wall. These are very minor but noticeable.

Squish that cat!

The gameplay loop of Wildcat is simply shooting enemies, upgrading, shooting more enemies until you get to the boss. Kill the boss and move on to the next area. Rinse. Repeat.

Don’t get me wrong, there is a lot to enjoy about this game. Once you get going, the gameplay has a great flow. And due to the way the game discreetly teaches you to play it, you’ll be setting off incendiary objects like barrels and cat-alien embryos like nobody’s business.

Dashing is unlocked early in the game, essential for dodging attacks safely. This is fun to use, with the number of dashes in one go being unlocked throughout the game.

Generally, Wildcat places itself awkwardly between casual and hardcore gaming markets. It is challenging but not truly tough. Fun but with no replayability.

The hook is that you can be an invincible killing machine for a while after killing a certain amount of enemies, but the appeal only lasts a short time. And if you keep getting sent back to the checkpoint, it can be difficult to generate the energy needed for the gun machine at the right time.

Wildcat is not a rogue-like, so there is no permadeath. However, this does not mean it isn’t difficult. There are a certain number of lives you can unlock with the bones currency. And you’ll need them! Whilst no Cuphead or Dark Souls, Wildcat is moderately challenging at times.

Overall, gameplay is varied at times but can become repetitive. And it can be frustrating trying to work out how to approach a level and progress, as this is not a game which encourages tactics.

Musical score, sound effects

The musical score of Wildcat is a generic blend of dub and drum and bass, which does its job adequately, chugging away in the background. However, like much of this game, it lacks imagination.

Sound effects are often lacking. When several sounds occur at once, there is an unpleasant clipping effect, a rattling like a Geiger counter, which is irritating and sucks you out of the moment.

Additionally, many of the weapon sound effects are damp squibs. The grenade launcher pistol, for example, makes a weird, squelchy sound when releasing a projectile, then is silent when that projectile detonates. This lack of oomph is the same across the weapons roster and makes for an unsatisfying experience.

Emotive response

I really wanted to love Wildcat Gun Machine. Whilst I was well aware it would not be the next Gungeon, as it was never trying to be, I expected to enjoy it a little more than I did.

Overall, Wildcat feels like it had the wrong intention. Of games recently reviewed by PCZONE, Fixfox was made to spread a message of non-violence, showing games can still be fun without combat. Will You Snail? was created as a joke which got out of hand in the best possible way.

These are great intentions and this was clear in the excellent end product for these titles.

Wildcat, however, exhibits a lack of innovation across the board. The intention appears to be to simply create a game for commercial reasons. We have all seen where this intention gets developers, and it never ends well. Wildcat is no exception to this rule.

Wildcat Gun Machine is available on Steam for PC.