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Vidroid’s “Molecats” is a puzzle game in vein of “Lemmings” and “Pipemania”, where you need to get one or more molecats to the exit. To do this, you need to traverse an underground maze by rotating tiles and/or by reversing, stopping or by making your molecat run really, really fast. So far, so simple.

I felt quite a lot of “Lemmings” and “Pipemania” vibes while playing “Molecats”.

However, there are many maps with obstacles in the way, ranging from mechanical to fauna and animal. In addition to that, knowing when to rotate a section of the map to access other areas becomes a crucial element to succeeding.

“Molecats” is a rather original puzzle game I have to say. As it’s an indirect-control tile-twisting puzzled adventure that’s full of traps.

A molecat is, as everyone knows, a cat/mole hybrid. Once you reach the exit point, you are given 1 to 3 points depending on how well you did. The start of some sections of the map requires a certain number of total stars, so if you don’t have at least the required you would have to replay a map that you did badly on to increase your star total.

This is the first level of “Molecats” and it introduces the main molecat (his called Orange for some strange reason).

Special objects can be collected for side-maps. Well, at least as long as you have picked up enough of them. Furthermore, as you progress in “Molecats”, the maps get larger and trickier (especially when you have multiple molecats running around). Fortunately enough for you and me though, the special abilities that you gain throughout the game will help immensely along the way.

This is what the level selection screen looks like in “Molecats” (there are plenty of levels to be played. Especially since you also got a handful of secret levels to unlock).

Other than that, being able to reverse your molecat can save time, running allows you to ignore some objects like switches and of course stopping a molecat is useful when you want them to meet at a set point. In addition, some molecats are afraid of certain creatures, and others aren’t, which further complicates things.

Here’s a free pro-tip from me to you, if a tile has arrows, then it can be rotated.

You can also zoom in and out of the map, and that gives you a better view of what’s going on, and enabling you to sort of plan ahead Some sections also starts with a weird four panel comic strip, which is just there. So It’s hard to tell whether it’s part of the overall story or just a little side story, as it doesn’t really make any sense.

The difficulty builds up fairly slowly and by the fifth floor, you have to deal with multiple molecats, switches, yeti-like creatures and plants. It’s also from this point you’ll either be an ardent fan or just give up.

The graphics and visuals are very nice and detailed, and the awesome soundtrack makes the game even better (the music might be a bit weird, but it fits “Molecats” perfectly).

The controls are fine and are responsive. However, the abilities will only work in the current active tile, which means you need to remember to click in it before you can use them or rotate the tile. You can’t use the mouse to click on the abilities either – although they depress, nothing happens.

Another problem is that it isn’t always easy to see what color the doors are as they all look the same, even though they mostly need specifically coloured keys.

There are a lot of things that I like with Molecats (like the comic strips in this picture, for example). However, there are some down sides to the game as well. Such as the fact that some levels feel like you can only complete them by pure luck, or that the game can get somewhat repetitive at times.

Nevertheless, all in all, I still find “Molecats” to be a fun, creative and rather original puzzle game. So if you’re really into challenging puzzle games, then “Molecats” might just be the game for you (especially if you like games such as “Lemmings” and “Pipemania”).

Pros:
+ Graphics very nice with some detail on characters and objects, and they animate smoothly
+ Music is very weird but does fit the game
+ Fairly original
+ There are plenty of levels to be played

Cons:
– You need to remember to activate a tile before it can be rotated. Special abilities only work with the activated tile
– Some levels feel that they can be completed only with luck
– Whether or not you will want to continue after the 5^th floor will depend on whether you like puzzle games or not. Game will probably appeal more to the hard-core puzzler than the casual one.
– The game can get somewhat repetitive

Gameplay: 4/5
Graphics: 4/5
Sound and music: 3/5
Controls: 4/5
Replay value: 3/5
Story: 3/5

tgg grade 4 out of 5

Verdict: 4/5
If you love puzzle games then you’ll must certainly enjoy “Molecats”. Especially since the game has a “Lemmings” sort of feel to it, but with less explosions and more molecats. However, with the constantly increasing difficulty, you will need to really love this sort of games to be willing to continue with it.

Title: Molecats
Developer: Vidroid
Format: PC Download
Genre: Puzzle
Resolution: User-defined
Release date:2018-08-28
Difficulty: Scaled
Spent time: +2 hours
Average grade internationally: N/A
PEGI age rating: +6
Price: 11.15 Euros via Steam