Cat Quest II gives the player two playable characters, a cat and a dog, each with separate armour sets and spells, and swapping between them mid-fight is a constant pleasure. The two-kingdom world, with the feline kingdom and the Lupus Empire separated by a wall, doubles the pun potential of the first game.
The cat-and-dog puns are the best part, from the hot dog quests to Caesar Salad as a villain and the Doge Knight parody. The gentle bros developer cameo returns with fourth-wall quests that spawn NPCs and take over the music.
Combat is fast and satisfying, with dodge-rolling and red telegraphs, and it plays well even on a keyboard. Water walking opens up the entire world, and the regenerating heal spell proves more potent than the first game’s version.
The cactus enemies are the biggest frustration, endlessly sending off fireballs. The optional Cthulhu fight crashed once, and the cactus mother boss heals herself constantly and can one-shot the player.
Slow early travel is the other wish, with a huge map and no run button beyond the natural pace. The map cannot zoom out, new quests are not flagged, and there is no quick exit from dungeons.
The game levels the player at a rapid pace, reaching over twenty levels in the first two hours, and ten hours of content feels complete. The ending teases a third game in the series, a surprise for a story that seemed finished.
Overall, the dual-character combat and the expanded pun world make Cat Quest II a fantastic follow-up. The projectile-spam enemies and the slow early travel are the main caveats.