Cat Quest 3 is here! I have previewed the game, reviewed the game, and somewhere in-between conducted an interview on the game as well. It's a Cat Quest 3 hat trick, folks. I was approached to shoot some questions over to the development studio, The Gentlebros, and got some answers back from Desmond Wong. Alongside being The Gentlebros' CEO, Wong is also an artist and game designer for Cat Quest 3, so he might be the perfect person to answer a variety of questions. I asked about the new setting and some of the design choices going into a third Cat Quest, as you'd probably expect. But I also thought it would be fun to ask some more broad questions, such as what it's like to be part of a Nintendo Direct, for example. That has to be a weird experience, right? Anyway, check it out, and let us know what you think!
Lucas White, Shacknews: How do you iterate on a series like Cat Quest? What kinds of questions or problems were front and center when cooking up Cat Quest 3?
Desmond Wong, The Gentlebros CEO (and artist, and game designer): I think the biggest hurdle when creating a sequel in the Cat Quest series is retaining the spirit and core of the game, while still making a fresh experience each time. Because the Cat Quest games pride themselves on their accessibility, we couldn’t simply add more mechanics or systems as that might make the game too complicated or hard to play. With each iteration, we had to make sure anything new we added wouldn’t take away from what the series was known for but add to it or evolve the core mechanics instead.
Was it pirates right away, or was this setting a final choice among multiple options?
Wong: We knew it was pirates right from the beginning. Back when we were first concepting the Cat Quest world, we had already planned what each kingdom in this world would be like. Therefore, when it came to introducing the pi-rats to the Cat Quest universe, it was natural to bring players to the Purribean!
Is it safe to call Cat Quest a “series” or “franchise” now? What’s it like to have a growing game IP when you aren’t AAA?
Wong: Considering we aim to make nine games in this series (because cats have nine lives), I think it’s safe to say so, yes! It’s a very fulfilling experience to see more and more fans with each new iteration, but I think the best part is literally growing the world we’ve created. We started with just cats in Felingard, but now our world has dogs, rats, multiple dimensions and even an impending apawcalypse waiting to happen!
I think not being AAA is a boon for us because it enables the team to create what we want and take risks. It also gives the series a lot of room to grow in terms of production value, and we hope to turn Cat Quest into a series that can stand toe to toe with the biggest games in the future!
Anything(s) specific that folks on the team are most excited to see players run into in CQ3?
Wong: Cat Quest 3 has so many hidden secrets, but the biggest one we hope players find is… the development team! We’ve hidden ourselves in the game, and the quest to find us is cool!
What does it feel like to participate/be included in a Nintendo Direct while it’s streaming?
Wong: It’s both a surreal and nerve-wrecking experience as you’re excited but also nervous to see what people think of the footage you’re showing. Often, the aftermath of a Nintendo Direct is better as you can interact with your fans and receive valuable feedback!
The Pi-rat King’s design is intense! Can you tell us about the road to that final design?
Wong: The two inspirations for the Pi-rat King were Darth Vader and Davy Jones. We wanted a villain that was intimidating at first glance, but also tortured in his own way. The earliest idea was to always have a character that was in constant pain, so the concept of the Pi-rat King being cursed such that his wounds could never heal, but also could never die was born. This was also how the idea of a gas mask came into fruition. We figured that the Pi-rat King would be barely held together by tubes and stitches, therefore needing a gas mask to breathe.
What was the writing process like for Cat Quest 3?
Wong: Like with the games that came before, the team would always begin with a central theme. The original Cat Quest was about love, the second about unity, and with Cat Quest 3 we wanted to center the story around family. With the theme of family, we would draft out the high-level synopsis of what we wanted the goal of the player to be, and the kind of villains and characters he/she would meet along the way. Once we had all that and the general backbone of the story and events, the team could easily design quests and start fleshing out the minute details needed to bring players from the beginning to the end.
Were there any surprises with how the audience reacted to/engaged with the first two games, that impacted this one in some way?
Wong: We noticed that players loved to find secrets in Cat Quest games (even though there weren’t really that many). Because of this, we made sure to leave many easter eggs and secrets in Cat Quest 3 for people to find. There is an especially hidden one that we think people would spend a long time searching for.
What’s something really cool about the game that the average player might not perceive?
Wong: When hopping on your ship, the music actually changes to a more upbeat and heightened version of the regular theme. It’s a small little flourish that we have not seen many previewers talk about, so maybe it will be missed by the average player!
Do cat pirates get hairballs (Note: I did not see this trailer until after I asked this question; I am a fool)?
Wong: Let me check... *cough cough* *puke*... yes, I can confirm cat pirates do get hairballs!
Cat Quest 3 is available on August 8, 2024 for Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, and PC.
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replyLucas White posted a new article, Cat Quest 3 developer talks secrets, sequels, hairballs & The Apawcalypse
