Pix the Cat (PC) Review

An obnoxious and overly happy announcer marks the start of Pix the Cat's journey into the core of its TV set, in order to save lots of ducklings before time's up. Pix must pick up scattered eggs that hatch and add one more chick to its "tail," before dropping them on certain targets to complete the level. The task at hand is far from a complex one, and moving around this cute little hero is as simple as ABC; but there's certainly more than meets the eye here.

This is nothing more than a hunt for the highest score possible, something that gets quite interesting through the use of a wonderful reward/punishment system. Getting trapped in corners, bumping on Pix's tail, getting hit by an enemy, or start "depositing" baby ducks before all eggs are gathered, decreases both the overall speed and the much coveted score bonuses that go with it, while perfect runs obviously increase those two. Bear in mind, though, that although Pix the Cat is easy to learn, it is also a tad tough to master.

The placement of eggs and target areas are semi-randomised, making path memorising impossible. Pix is given about two seconds to react before actually colliding with an obstacle, but even this tiny pause subtracts a small percent from the speed and score meter, increasing the time needed to reach the speed limit and turn on Fever Time, which makes everything look like an LSD trip, while the score gets a major boost while that lasts, which means as long as the player doesn't make any mistakes.

Various little tricks separate the casual from the skilled, with turning at the right moment, or being able to instantly figure out the best path being the most common strategies. A nice innovation is how each level is actually within the previous one; in fact a careful observer will even be able to see the next one in line, yet this isn't just a good-looking gimmick but something with a great practical value, since it's possible to wander back to a previous stage and make a bit of room for the 30+ duckling followers.

Apart from the various unlockables and the daily map, which is a welcome change from the only three available grids, there are also three different game modes, which, surprisingly, are as fun as the main one. Laboratory is a puzzle take on Pix the Cat's gameplay, Nostalgia focuses on the Snake aspect a bit more, but with a nice, early Disney-esque look and sound, and, finally, Arena offers a great dose of multiplayer mayhem for up to four people.

In conclusion: every single part of this Arcade title is very enjoyable, has excellent controls, and has no bugs or imbalances whatsoever. It should also be noted that it's breaming with tons of subtle, yet very good aesthetic and audio touches. In the end, though, this is not something that will keep gamers awake until six o'clock in the morning, which means that after the first few days of playing, this will turn into nothing more than an occasional, yet very enjoyable distraction - just replace "occasional" with "frequent."