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0 This year, I’ve begun playing hidden-object games between other games as a way of relaxing and clearing my mind a bit. This was particularly needed recently after playing Blue Prince and Expedition 33 — two games that drain you mentally and emotionally respectively. It’s purr-fect timing, then, that Devcats are back with a new title, A Building Full Of Cats 2. I’ve played a few of their games previously, on both PC and PS5, so was somewhat clued in as to what to expect from this new entry to the Full Of Cats series. Still, there were still some surprises to be found.
Bursting With Purr-sonality
A Building Full Of Cats 2 is Devcats biggest game yet, with over 2000+ cats to pet. While the residents of the building are away on holiday, it’s up to you to check in on the cats and help with various other tasks. One resident requires you to locate all their mislaid artist paints, so the cats don’t eat them. Another want’s you to collect all their video game cartridges from around their apartment. While the story elements of the game are fairly light touch, but they do add a little flavour.
Unfortunately, shortly before this game released, original Devcat Mr Forfino passed over the rainbow bridge after a short battle with cancer. We’d like to send our condolences to the Devcats team at this difficult time. We hope this review
Gameplay
For anyone unfamiliar with hidden-object games, think of a digital equivalent of the Where’s Wally books. Players are presented with a picture, littered with objects and visual noise, and tasked with finding several items on a list from amongst the chaos. In A Building Full Of Cats 2, and indeed the wider Full Of Cats series, you’re primarily searching the rooms for cats. Once you’ve spotted one, a simple click will highlight them, and you can consider that cat petted/found.
The majority of the felines are simply hiding in plain view, not that that makes them easy to locate. Many times during my play through, I was convinced there was some kind of kitten conspiracy happening. “There’s no way I looked in this area four times and didn’t spot you”, I thought. This is indicative of how well Devcats are able to blend critters into their surroundings, and of how our brains summarise what we are seeing rather than capture it in detail.
Some cats, though, are more elusive, and are sequestered away inside other objects or furniture. These particular furry friends require a bit of trial and error, and luck, to uncover. There appears to be no set rhyme or reason for their hiding places, so be prepared to click a little wildly around the scene. The reward for eventually coaxing them out of hiding is a costumed cat, usually in reference to a pop-culture icon. These references, along with the countless Easter Eggs in many of the themed rooms, were a treat to discover.
Items of Interest
As mentioned briefly earlier, each resident will also have another objective for you on top of looking after their cats. All the different apartments have their own theme, be it weight-lifting, magic, video-games or something else. Items matching the apartment’s theme will be hidden throughout for you to find. Find them all and you will unlock a mini-game. These were fun and varied side-quests, and helped break-up the main gameplay with something different — although a few of them also include finding hidden objects too. My favourite was probably the ‘Wish Note’ graphic novel; it was super wholesome.
With 10 apartments in total, each with 4 objectives, there’s a good amount of content to get through. There are even some additional events that happen during the game that add to the experience and change things up a little. And don’t worry if things get a little tricky finding the last few cats or items, there’s a very forgiving, unlimited hint system should you need it.
Graphics & Audio
The artwork in the game is the cat’s whiskers. Each apartment is made of 3 rooms; a main living space, a bathroom, and a bedroom. All of these are drawn in tremendous detail. I adore how they all contain so many elements and Easter Eggs related to the theme of the room. The 2 video-game apartments in particular are absolutely littered with references that I’m sure I could spend ages spotting and highlighting. What initially drew me into these games was the clever way the cats are incorporated in the drawings. Sometimes a cat is a cat, sometimes a picture, or a shape is a cat. It’s a great balance between spotting cats easily, scratching your head, and facepalming.
Alongside having themed art, the rooms often have themed music to go along with them too. Sophie’s supernatural apartment, for example, has a mysterious piece of music accompanying your search, whereas Jerome’s has a retro-game-inspired tune. Petting cats, and finding hidden cats, are accented with rewarding trills, increasing the satisfaction and making the discoveries. Overall, the audiovisual elements of A Building Full Of Cats 2 fully deliver to support the relaxing and charming vibes of the game.
Longevity
I managed a 100% run in just under 4 and a half hours. That’s completing the surface level content, if you want to dig deeper, there’s also additional secrets to find. I was definitely not paying attention to the correct details to uncover the additional secrets, but the Devcats Discord has some dedicated players that are unravelling the mysteries if you care to join in.
The Full Of Cats games are not there to be huge time sinks. They are wonderful, short experiences with an additional purpose of sharing ideals of animal care and safety. Bang for your buck is going to vary, but with a low price point and a lot of love poured in, I believe these games are worth your time if you’re interested in playing.
Final Thoughts
As a casual, short, and rewarding experience, I highly recommend A Building Full Of Cats 2. Actually, the whole Full of Cats series, if hidden-objects games and/or cats are your jam. You can’t go wrong for the price, and you’ll be supporting an important cause, as a portion of money from each game goes towards rescuing, fostering, and adopting cats.
A Building Full Of Cats 2 gets a Thumb Culture Gold Award. Go wishlist of purchase on Steam now, there’s an introductory 10% discount until June 30th.
Searching for more hidden-object games? Check out our Hidden In My Paradise review here.
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