Warrior Cats: Clans of the Forest Review: Cute, Cosy, Too Thin

The Warrior Cats books have been raising readers on feline politics, prophecies and forest feuds for more than two decades, and somehow they never got a proper big-screen game. Warrior Cats: Clans of the Forest, developed by Bamtang Games and published by TRAILMARK, finally fills that gap. It launched on October 23 on PC (Steam and Epic), PS5, Xbox Series X|S, Switch and Switch 2 - and the big review sites have mostly ignored it.

What it is

This is not a retelling of the novels. You design your own cat - fur pattern, colours, tail, whiskers, markings, eyes - pick ThunderClan, RiverClan, ShadowClan or WindClan, and play through an original story set in the Lake Territories. Each Clan gets its own campaign with its own rivalries and prophecies, and nine cats from the books turn up along the way. Choices nudge your friendships, rivalries and reputation inside the Clan.

How it plays

Between story beats you explore six locations, including the four Clan territories, the Moonpool and the Island, hunting prey, crafting, solving light environmental puzzles and decorating your den. Combat is turn-based, up to three cats against three, with 75 moves to unlock, Clan-specific abilities, stances and StarClan ancestor attacks for big moments.

The fights are the pleasant surprise. Positioning your trio, juggling stances and saving an ancestor strike for a nasty boss gives the combat more bite than I expected from a licensed game at this price. The cat creator is also genuinely excellent; I lost a good half hour making a scruffy grey ShadowClan warrior before I even saw the first cutscene.

Where it loses its grip

The problem is everything around those fights. Quests and stories are procedurally generated, and after a few hours the seams show: fetch this, chase that, talk to a familiar face, repeat. Six locations sound fine on paper, but you will know every tree by the second Clan campaign. Beyond the four Prophecy stories there is Defender, a survival mode, and Skirmish, asynchronous online battles against other players' cats - fun distractions, not reasons to keep playing for weeks. Online camp visits are a nice touch for younger players who want to show off their den.

Price

In our region the standard edition costs 29.99 euros on every platform. The 39.99-euro Feral Edition adds the Prophecy Pack, which is purely cosmetic - accessories, a cel-shaded skin and photo mode extras. Skip it unless you are buying a gift for a die-hard fan.

Verdict

If you or your kids grew up on Firestar and Graystripe, Clans of the Forest delivers the fantasy you always wanted: your own warrior, your own Clan, real turn-based battles in the forest. It is made with care for the source material. But the repetitive generated quests and compact world mean that the magic fades well before the credits of your third Clan run. A fan gift, not a hidden gem.

Score: 6/10

Image: Durator / Public domain, source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Norwegian_Forest_Cat_in_snow.jpg