How a Game about Cats Can Teach You about Quantum Physics - Kitty Q Review

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Have you ever found yourself trapped in a catathon? What’s that, you ask? Well, you may also know it as cat scratch fever or even the stray cat strut—a quantum dimension where the physical properties of nature morph into cat memes and every day becomes Caturday! August 8 was International Cat Day, and after playing the new console and PC game Stray, I fell into this realm. A week later, and I haven't managed to escape yet! So while I’m still testing pawsitive, why not use my powers for good and play more cat games?! And so, I present Kitty Q, a playable thought experiment that I enjoyed every meowment of.

Developed by Philipp Stollenmayer, Kitty Q is a puzzle adventure that feels like a scientific escape room. In fact, it’s based on the Schrödinger's cat thought experiment, in which a hypothetical cat in an unopened box is considered both alive and dead. This is because the cat’s fate is linked to a random event that may or may not occur until the box is opened.

Trippy, right? But after playing Stollenmayer’s Bacon - The Game, I was really hyped about this one. Like many of his titles, Kitty Q is bizarre and strays from the norm, but it was a meow-velous gaming experience.

From the moment I opened the app, Kitty Q drew me in. Seriously, listen to the song in the trailer above and try to get that “what is in the box” tune out of your head. It’s impossible! After the title screen, Kitty Q wasted no time getting into the narrative when a mysterious box arrived at my doorstep with a half-dead-half-alive cat inside. Luckily, I received a text from none other than Anna Schrödinger, the great-granddaughter of Erwin Schrödinger, to guide me through this cat-astrophe!

The gameplay in Kitty Q is quite similar to another cat-themed puzzler I reviewed, Cats In Time. That is to say, your goal is to solve a variety of puzzles and mysteries and help Kitty Q come to life...or, if you’d prefer...death. In fact, though not a traditional interactive story, I was pretty impressed with the elements of choice that Kitty Q had to offer. Chatting with Anna over text messages and picking the responses was an added bonus to a pretty solid puzzler. And the puzzles themselves were not only fun but challenging. I was absolutely stuck on several of these, which meant turning to Anna for research and hints to help solve the various mysteries.

What really makes Kitty Q unique is its educational value. Developed in collaboration with the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research and an organization called Complexity and Topology in Quantum Matter, Kitty Q cleverly manages to teach physics without falling into the trap of being boring or forgetting that it's a game.

And what could make a game that manages to make physics fun even better? It’s absolutely free! No ads, no in-app purchases, nothing. It’s just quality art, music, and puzzles.

That being said, Kitty Q isn't long at all. Depending on your skill, you can probably finish it in an hour or two, especially if you had Anna helping you like I did. But for a game that manages to teach physics and offers an enjoyable experience, it's the perfect example of something short and sweet. I’ve played plenty of mobile games that felt great, save for not feeling like they were designed with mobile platforms in mind. Not so with Kitty Q. This game knows exactly what it's doing, and it offers both entertainment and educational value without asking for much time in return. This pawsome gaming experience proves free doesn't mean crappy.

SCORE: 4 STARS OUT OF 5

PLAY IF YOU LIKE:

• 3D Escape Game Chinese room. If you've read my review and enjoyed the mystery-based aspects of this game, you'll love the puzzles in Kitty Q!

• Philipp Stollenmayer. If you follow this developer, you know his games are always weird, quirky, and unique! If you like that style, you won't be disappointed with Kitty Q.

• Physics. Kitty Q has got you covered if you've got a budding interest in quantum physics or just want to learn some cool facts to use at your next trivia night.

💬 If you’ve played Kitty Q, what do you think was the hardest puzzle in the game? And even if you haven’t played it, do you think gaming is a great way to teach? Share your thoughts, and I'll respond!

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