As a chronically online individual, I enjoy quite a few webcomics. Order of the Stick and Strange Planet immediately come to mind, as does Sarah’s Scribbles - anything with silly humour. The author of said Scribbles, Sarah Andersen, is branching out and has released a hidden art game, revolving entirely around cats.
The full title of this project is Sarah Andersen Comics “After Owning a Cat”, in partnership with An Infinite Story, which is quite wordy. The one thing the title leaves out is that the game was also collaborated on by Emmy-winning Artist Bobby Chiu, so it has pedigree. Although why an artist needs another artist to collaborate on a game about the first artist's work, I don’t know.
Most of these hidden object adventures work along the same way; you get one picture, click around a bit, find some things and move on. After Owning a Cat, or SACAOACIPWAIS, is very catchy, however, does things a little differently, in the best way. Thanks to An Infinite Story, your fingers are going to get a workout.
This is because at first you are presented with one picture. But then if you start scrolling, for example on the window, you will end up in another scene. Then if you keep on scrolling you will find another and another. This infinite zoom mechanic is rather fantastic and will aid you on your quest; to find and count all of the cats in this game.
It contains all the humour you would expect from the weird and wonderful world of Sarah’s Scribbles. I couldn’t resist trying it out and within a minute I was in a marvellous drawing of Sarah and the cat having switched roles and couldn't help but laugh. With the amount of pictures to find, you could be counting for days, but you will be well rewarded for it.
At the end of your journey, you can submit your guess for how many cats there are and be in with a chance to win some prizes. This includes a personalized portrait by the artist, signed copies of the Adulthood is a Gift book or a framed video print of Sarah Scribbles Cat Exploration. If these pique your interest, or you just want some fun, you can play After Owning a Cat through your browser now.
