Cat Mail Co. review for PC

The internet was made for cats.

Or at least maybe that’s what cats want us to think.

Our furry overlords felines are almost the epitome of coziness. In general, their fur, their purr, their laziness evoke strong cozy vibes.

Now add the idea of a small island town’s post office. Packages in, packages out, packages in, packages out. But less like a hectic post office and more like you’re working on your breathing: packages……in……packages……out…..

If these two things together sound intriguing to you then you are most certainly not alone. Cat Mail Co. came out earlier this month to thousands of players and wishlists on Steam.

So, what makes this game so appealing? Let’s check it out and see.

When you start with the game you get a short tutorial giving you the basics. Take the package, put it on the scale, stamp it with the location and necessary postage. Easy-peasy. Now go put it on a shelf and help your first customer! He’s looking for a package for his mother, it’s got a yellow ribbon on it and her name is Pippin Underfoot.  Ok! Go find it and bring it back to him. He thanks you and moves on. (just a made-up scenario, Pippin may or may not be my cat) This is almost always the gist of each customer interaction.

All of this is, by the way, NOT being timed. This isn’t a crazy fast stacking and sorting game. The customers will wait at the counter, the packages will sit waiting to be sorted. When you pick up a big package you walk it slowly to wherever you want to store it. Play at your pace.

The game goes from Dawn to Day to Dusk to Night, but you are never penalized for being slow (thank goodness as sometimes I get caught up looking for just one parcel!)

Day and Night your office window is open for customers. You ring the bell to call the next one up. They are either looking for a parcel or have parcels to send. When finding a parcel they’ll give you hints like it’s for Link Longtail and where it comes from there are crocodiles! (look for the package labeled Link L. with claw marks) On the flipside sending parcels is where the stamping comes in. Pick up their package and run it through the x-ray machine. You’re looking for certain items that require extra special attention. Follow through with all the required stamping and then bring it to your warehouse.

Dusk and Dawn brings the Captain. He has a small boat with more packages and envelopes for you to sort. (Here’s a hint click on the bottom package to lift ALL the packages on top at once!) After you’ve taken them off his boat it’s time to fill it back up with packages to be sent out. He’ll let you know where he’s going after you unload. Fill the same spot up with outbound parcels. When you’re done ring the bell and he’ll be off. (In between while you’re working he’s got sassy and charming things to say to you) Oh, but first don’t forget to check the returned packages pen! Just in case any packages get accidentally sent off somewhere they shouldn’t have been.

After the day is done a screen pops up with points scored for categories. But in my opinion it’s the returned packages that I care most about. Points are nice but cats need their packages!

I won’t give it all away but this is the gist of the game, at least in the beginning. More locations, more rooms, more decorating the office happens as you play longer and longer. The coziness remains as long as you want it to; take your time. The customers will wait at the counter no matter how long it takes, the packages will come and go.

A few thoughts on the game. I delight in each of the residents’ purrrrsonalities, including the Captain. It doesn’t matter how fast or slow you are some of the residents are grumpy and will reply with “finally” when you bring them their package. (It makes me laugh each time.) Some of the residents’ parcels look different but have similar names IE: Vivian O and Vivian G. I like that because it makes it a bit harder. There are mounds of packages falling out of some rooms that you can sort whenever you want. Then you’ll always have parcels for residents to pick up or that need to be sent out. The music is nice but reminds me quite a bit of an old Wii system menu screen. It isn’t bothersome but it isn’t going to make you want to turn your speakers up either. Which, I think, is a compliment for a cozy game. Just enough in the background to be there but not intrusive. The game intuitively builds up when it needs to, unlocking rooms, stamps, locations. I love cozy games that know just when to do that.

If you’re looking for a cozy cat pun-filled game I highly recommend Cat Mail Co.  If nothing else but the fact that I keep stealing my spouse’s computer to play it each night after work. Surrounded by our two snuggly cats I’m loving the sorting, stamping, slightly strange residents and cozy feelings this game gives me after a long day of being an adult. I wouldn’t mind another game set in this town, perhaps a library, a coffee shop, a boutique or gift store? I feel like Cats Island is a great place to ship your parcels and maybe more.

Note: Maracas Studio provided us with a code for review purposes.