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Every time Devolver Digital publishes a game an angel gets its wings. Indeed, DD proved to be impeccable when it comes to publishing indie games, a good chunk of them becoming favorites among gamers and Gato Robot, from the developer doinksoft, is yet another game on that list.
After crashlanding on a suspicious planet the captain of the ship sends his cat Kiki, armed with a mech suit, on a mission to save him from the wreckage. The premise is as simple as it is quirky.
Along your adventure you will discover audio recordings that will offer more insight into the story and why the rats are trying to kill you... or is it mice? Sometimes it is so hard to tell with the minimal visuals. Clever segue way...
The visual style is something between Atari and Gameboy, going for a monochromatic look, not unlike Minit, another great offering from DD. Color can be a great tool in Metroidvanias to differentiate between the larger sets of a stage, so I was pleasantly surprised to see Gato Roboto did just fine without color, which just tells you how good the level design is.
Never did I feel lost to a point that I hardly needed a map, until I went for extra collectibles.
Among those collectibles are 14 items that can change the color of the game, like a red hue that will give you flashbacks playing infamous Virtual Boy, or a urine pallet, which speaks for itself.
Don't worry, they are more fun than they sound, especially the chewed bubblegum colors.
As said before, you control a cat in a mech suit, which is not something you can play as every day. While being in a mech suit you can shoot your cannon at first, but as you unlock more upgrades you will be able to fire rockets, double jump on enemies and even zoom past the obstacles. However, a good portion of the game is dedicated to controlling the cat outside the suit where you will have to rely only on your cat reflexes.
Without the suit, you can climb the walls, swim (say what?) and crawl through the tight spaces where the suit can't fit, but beware, one hit and you will die, while the suit can take significantly more damage. The game uses this gimmick to a great effect, never making you feel like you are doing the same thing over and over, and changing the rules at just the right times.
Despite being in a Metroidvania genre, Gato Roboto doesn't really feel like one. It is a much more linear experience and the game is better for it. Backtracking is never tedious and it always makes sense in the context of the stage. It sounds like a short game, and it is, with about 3 hours needed to complete the game, and maybe an additional hour to find every collectible.
So it must be a hard game to compensate for the shortness, right? Nope, Gato Roboto is an easy game to a point where even a complete beginner might feel like they are speedrunning the game, and I mean that in the best possible way. There is even a timer at the bottom and an achievement to be earned for completing the game under 1 hour.
I've never speedrun a game, but Gato Roboto made me try speedrunning it without me even realizing. It is definitely a game for multiple playthroughs.
Gato Roboto is a Metroidvania for those who either never cared for that genre or just don't have enough time to invest in gaming. Yes, it is on a short side, but if it was any longer it would lose much of its appeal. Even if you never come back to Gato Roboto, I assure you it will make you wanna try more Metroidvanias.
Get in the Game ! 
