Cat Quest III
Cat Quest III fixes all the issues I had with the second game, and is just really well polished and enjoyable throughout. It iterates on the previous formula with a new theme; it's an ARPG where you play as a cat with a companion who has a dubious backstory, you hack and slash your way through an overworld (with caves and dungeons, with the addition of 2D levels), increase your gear levels, find new stuff and generally explore the Purribean. The game is full of cat puns as always, and is just a joy to play.
Pros
- Combat is just as good as always - although I note the complete removal of telegraphing system
- Excellent music
- Controls are great, as always
- Inventory management is much improved
- The fixed the major problem with CQ2 - having two player characters on screen at once when playing solo. Now there's only one of you, which is way better
- You can swap between ranged and melee at any time
- The game tells you how many of the treasures you've found in each area/cave and how many pieces of equipment you've found
- All the bosses, and a few other NPCs, have bounty posters in the pub
- There are multiple accessory slots for your character and ship to customise your build
- There are now some 2D levels in interiors, which adapt the overworld combat style very well
- The boat / land transitions are seamless, and it works really well with the combat formula
- Fun writing and interesting side quests
- Great map
- Boat combat is simple and fun
Cons
- The camera is at a much lower angle than previous games which felt quite strange to start with - it's mainly because of the boat, but it could have switched between the two depending if you were on land or not
- Most of the bosses happen in small 2D spaces, which I really didn't like
- Although the game is excellent, I still feel like CQ1 was the best in the series - but I think that's because I just enjoyed the original combat system the most