Shady Cats is a fast-paced platform game that tests your reflexes as you guide a nimble cat to goodies. You must run as far as possible through dangerous terrain while avoiding a dark doppelgänger that follows your footsteps.
The tempo of this platformer quickly changes from basic collection to dramatic survival. The basic guideline is to keep moving forward because stopping lets the trailing threat catch up instantly. A playthrough requires balancing the temptation to take every visible prize with the need to stay away from your pursuer. Precision, spatial awareness, and pressure-handling are needed.
Gameplay is a pointless pursuit across the sky. You must jump at the right time to avoid the shadowy entity after you and to capture fish scattered over the environment. Additional mimicking characters make the screen more chaotic as you advance. Normal mode is a regular reaction test, while Crazy mode is for those who want to max out their processing speeds.
Move slowly, and you stand a better chance of living. Avoid running back the way you came or sprinting back and forth, which would bring you toe-to-toe with your pursuer. Shady Cats always plot a safe route before you go for a fish. Keep moving—staying motionless allows the mimicking figure to capture your cat and stop your run.
Shady Cats features a dynamic, self-generated threat, unlike Super Meat Boy and Celeste, which use static environmental hazards. And of course, the major danger is a loop from your previous action that you take advantage of to sabotage and circumvent yourself. Perfect for quick arcade junkies and the score chasers that need a loop to sub in and fill bits of time.
The best part of this challenge is that it uses your own actions against you, forcing you to think two steps ahead. Few embellishments are as satisfying as the high-speed escape, with each jump and run playing into the danger you'll be tangled up in moments later, setting the tone for an all the more thrilling dash away.
Shady Cats is an addictive survival platformer with repeat value all around with its unique mimic mechanic and two difficulty settings. Challenge your reflexes and beat a new record today!
Have a thing for precision platformers? Head over to Hyper Cars Stunt Racing!
