As a feline fanatic whose introduction to roguelike games came via The Binding of Isaac, there was no doubt in my mind that Mewgenics would be my most anticipated new release of the year.
After 13 years of teasing, this cat-breeding, turn-based tactics game from Edmund McMillen (The Binding of Isaac, Super Meat Boy) and Tyler Glaiel (Closure, The End Is Nigh) is almost out on the prowl, and I’ve spent the past week lapping up its delightfully dark humour and tactically rich battles.
With a 200+ hour campaign, and McMillen recently confirming it can take around 500 hours to complete fully, there was no realistic way I could experience everything the game has to offer in just a week. As a result, I reserve the right to return and update this review with post-launch thoughts if I find something particularly noteworthy.
With that out of the way…
What is Mewgenics, then?
As McMillen puts it, the elevator pitch for Mewgenics is: “The Binding of Isaac, but turn-based, more in-depth, and with cats.” That’s a very top-line overview, but the gameplay actually unfolds over two main phases. At your home in Boon County, you raise and breed an army of cats, which you’ll then take out on runs to gather resources such as food and gold.
Spanning multiple biomes, runs take place on a board game-style map, where you move from one randomised event to the next. These can include enemy battles, situational challenges, or trips to vendors, all building up to a final, challenging boss battle. For an extra dose of difficulty, you can tackle each level’s hard path, which features tougher enemies but offers greater rewards for those willing to take the risk.
Returning home safely with as much gold and food as possible is vital for your success. Food fuels your feline army and prevents them from dying of starvation, while gold can be spent on stat-enhancing items to support future runs or on base upgrades that improve breeding outcomes.
Claws and Consequence
Ahead of runs, your cats can be equipped with class-specific collars, which determine their stat profiles and available moves.
Before slinking into combat, a key strategic decision is your team composition. For example, adding a Cleric improves healing efficiency but may reduce overall damage output, while pairing a Tank and a Fighter strengthens close-quarters combat but leaves you more vulnerable to long-range attacks. Strategically balancing your team and assigning each cat the class that best complements its skills is essential for success in battle.
As mentioned, battles are turn-based, and the gameplay is more similar to XCOM and Into the Breach than it is Isaac. Your successes in combat don’t hinge on quick reflexes, but instead on making clever decisions when it comes to ability-enhancing items, the moves you learn as you level up, and positioning your units carefully to navigate environmental hazards.
One particular aspect that makes combat feel especially high-stakes and unforgiving is that downed cats suffer stat-altering penalties at random. If they sustain three hits whilst downed, they’ll die, leaving you one unit short. Keeping them alive, even while injured, is obviously the ideal outcome, but your party will still be permanently weaker.
Raising Your Own Purr-sonal Army
Cat breeding is where the silliness really cranks up a notch. At night, your cats might pair up and produce kittens that inherit traits from both parents. The genetic pool is vast, with over 100 unique abilities inspired by human conditions such as autism, ADHD, and dyslexia. The possibilities feel endless, and it’s a blast experimenting with different pairs of your favourite cats to see which traits get passed on.
You don’t have to just stick two cats in a room and hope for the best, either. By donating your unwanted felines to certain NPCs, you can unlock upgrades that improve your home base and make future breeding more fruitful. These upgrades can increase the comfort of your cats, boost fertility rates, or even influence which traits are more likely to be passed down.
Purr-fect Presentation
Before I wrap up my final thoughts, I have to give credit to the sheer level of care and detail poured into the game’s presentation. Each main boss has a signature song with lyrics, and these rank among the most catchy and memorable tracks I’ve heard in gaming. I also loved the many nods and references to The Binding of Isaac that are sprinkled throughout, with numerous enemies and items clearly inspired by that game.
While some have criticised the visuals as crude or overly simplistic, I appreciated how they fit McMillen’s signature style. The game’s dark humour also may not be for everyone, but it consistently had me cracking a smile or two during every run. One boss, for example, appeared deceptively as a lone baby spider—only for my false sense of security to be shattered when a giant eight-legged beast emerged.
The Verdict
Given the hype surrounding Mewgenics, I was concerned it might fall short of its lofty expectations, but I’m pleased to say it looks set to wear the same badge of quality as McMillen’s previous work.
The game is dripping with charm and depth, and I had a blast experimenting with different team compositions and the breeding mechanics to build the ultimate cat army. Over the next few weeks, I’m looking forward to diving deeper into the game’s various upgrade paths and uncovering more of its hidden Easter eggs.
It’s too early to say whether this is truly McMillen’s magnum opus, but everything that I’ve experienced so far is extremely promising.
Mewgenics is out on PC. I played via access kindly provided by the publisher and their loyal customers in PR.
We were lucky enough to interview co-creator Tyler Glaiel recently about the game’s turn-based combat, decision to skip Early Access, and more. You can find the full interview here.
