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0 CustomiseSounding a bit like the sound you make when you stub your toe, Nyaaaanvy is a crazy arena-based fighting game that has now come to Nintendo Switch. The game is made by Japanese devs Team DigitalMind and published by Phoenixx and it is also available on PC via Steam. Incidentally, it was launched for Switch on Japanese Cat Day (22nd Feb for your calendars!).
Cats, bottoms, sumo, berserk mode!
If you fancy a party game where cat-like animals (called a Nyanvy) get to wrestle and spin attack to win then read on!
Gameplay
The premise of Nyaaaanvy is fairly simple. You are a long slinky cat and you must battle and jump your way through a series of sumo-like arenas and become the last cat standing. Can you become “Cat of cats!”?
Customise
You can customise your own cat’s features from colour and pattern all the way down to ears, paws, tail and accessories. Each item can be unlocked using coins collected from playing.
Modes
There are several cats to play as along with a single-player arcade and survival mode. There is also multiplayer for 4 players locally or 6 players online. It is a comical game to play and makes for some real laughs when playing on the couch together.
Each round has up to 6 cats taking part. The idea is to not be eliminated by being hit out of the arena. The physics-based controls are simple to understand, with a tutorial available, and it is not long before you have your character spinning around trying to knock your opponents off.
Let battle commence!
There are 11 arenas and they vary from the roof of a building, dojos and temples to more dynamic settings such as the Arctic with floating ice segments that drift apart. There is also a paw-shaped platform with spinning paws on poles to knock you off as well as a factory arena with conveyor belts to negotiate. The variance in levels is enticing.
Your Nyanvy has a health bar and a power bar that you need to be mindful of. Should the health bar get low then you risk being knocked out, and therefore unable to counter any attacks until you have recovered. Equally with each attack, you appear to get stronger, leading to the eventuality of sending an opponent flying off the screen. There are at times powerups that appear that can restore your health or send you into a scary berserk mode for maximum destruction.
Every round is under a timer and the gameplay is quick. Several battles are going on and it feels more like a WWE Rumble. Should a battle go into extra time then a bomb appears, latched to the backside of one of the cats. As the timer ticks down above the bomb, the idea is to knock into an enemy and transfer the bomb to them. The last cat to have the bomb when the timer reaches zero flies off the screen.
If you are the last cat remaining then you win and become cat of all cats!
Graphics & Audio
Nyaaaanvy looks as you would expect a game to look on the Switch. The style of the graphics is very Japanese in both the features of the cats and the background objects. The movement of the sausage-like Nyanvys are smooth and the camera positioning is great for the carnage that ensues.
The sounds in the game mirrors the action with explosions, shrieks and cat vocalizations. The voice of your cat can be chosen and ranges from miaows to metallic robot noises.
Longevity
While there is a single-player campaign to play through and practice room to try out your skills; multiplayer offers a lot of longevity through the number of arenas, round settings and the modifier buttons that can be turned on and off. This brings in an extra danger within each arena or you can start each match with one of you having the bomb. It makes for an intense battle!
Final Thoughts
Nyaaaanvy is a bizarre but really enjoyable battle game. At first, I was a little unsure, however once I had played the first match and got to grips with the controls and arena physics it became one that I couldn’t put down. For a game that is quite simple, nudging and spin attacking your opponents is great fun and makes for a brilliant game both in single and multiplayer.
Nyaaaanvy scores a Thumb Culture Gold Award!
Disclaimer: A code was received in order to write this review.
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