Cat Secretary is a charming adventure game where you play as a cat in an office setting, which is THE recipe for hijinks. Naturally, you’ll find yourself getting into mischief and discovering things you’re not supposed to. You see, you’re working for the famed company DOX, which is undergoing a form of corporate rot that’s not at all uncommon in our own world. The company officially started as an animation studio, but its inspirations are seemingly an amalgamation of Disney, Amazon, Apple, and others. If a company is responsible for dystopian headlines that are hard to differentiate from The Onion, then that company is probably an inspiration for DOX. Cat Secretary is a deeply satirical game, touching on a number of prevalent issues with modern corporations: from the degradation of once-loved characters, to the over-expansion of a company's stated mission, to the rise of AI and the layoffs which ensue.
Let's start the onboarding process. Cat Secretary is met by Obbo, which is short for Onboarding Bot. He tells us that there was an onboarding freeze in recent months, and he’s excited to see us so that he has something to do. Apparently this freeze has caused him to ponder what his purpose is millions of times per day for months in what could only be described as an I Have No Mouth And I Must Scream level of obsession (But with a cute, chibi robot smile). After his introduction he hands us a DOXPAD, which is our little digital information hub with various apps. You’ve got your cat abilities, collectibles, and tutorials all on one handy device. You also have a pocket menu to view the floor plan, complete with different symbols to mark which room is which.
From here you learn the basics of your day job and the tasks which ensue. There are a number of tasks like optimizing the router, sorting files, or filling the coffee machine. You can, of course, fail these tasks, whether that be by accident or on purpose. You won’t be severely penalized for failing, so feel free to push over the vending machine while unjamming it. None of them are too difficult, but they remain engaging. They’re like tasks in Among Us. Each task takes half a day to complete, then night rolls around—which we’ll get into in a moment. Additionally, completing a task well generates Productivity for the company and boosts the Morale of employees. I don’t know what Productivity does, but it says high Morale may lead to a promotion. Other ways to boost Morale include eavesdropping on gossiping co-workers and finding ways to “... help your coworkers achieve optimum workplace enjoyment.” So I look forward to uncovering those in the game’s full release.
I love how this game presents its mix of cutesy aesthetics and whimsical happenings, contrasted with an underlying corporate horror. At one point we come across an employee complaining about AI taking over people's jobs and that the water cooler is now pay-per-cup, and his co-worker simply says, “Just knuckle down and dehydrate. No severance package if we quit, after all…” Their 3D models could almost be described as Corporate Memphis and their dialogue bubble profiles are wholesomely hand-drawn, which is another excellent contrast.
At night we get to wander through the DOX Museum, which details the storied past of DOX. This area reveals that DOX’s Mickey Mouse equivalent is called Goober. Two crystal statuettes of Goober were given to DOX by “an anonymous prince of the east,” and they’re placed prominently in the first room of the museum. We then proceed to hop up on their pedestals and paw at them until they fall, shattering upon the floor. Only Obbo saw us commit the crime, and he doesn’t care; his only job is onboarding, not disciplinary measures. The DOX Museum really hammers home the rigid corporatism that the company is steeped in. The presentation introducing Goober doesn’t say he was created by the CEO, it says he was founded by the CEO. A very subtle choice of words with a lot of impact. They also mention “the GoobCrew’s mesh-networked smart plushies” and the DOXBot which is designed as a replacement for workers so that they can “enjoy what matters most in life: enjoying content.” The whole thing screams Player Piano. You can dig deeper into the game’s lore by finding collectibles, which are uploaded to your DOXPAD with some info.
Once you wrap up with the museum tour, you’ve got to help out your good friend Obbo. He’s low on battery and facing the existential dread of death, so it’s up to you to travel upstairs and get his charger. It’s a simple trip up the elevator, but the robot guards on the floor you’re going to will try to remove Cat Secretary. You have to sneak around, which has a cute prowling animation. You could go with the zoomies option and run around, but doing so will probably alert the bots to your presence. They’re not particularly fast, so you can outrun them and hide again. If you accidentally run into a wall at full speed, you’ll get a little bonk, with a smacking noise playing and a cartoony star flashing on your head upon impact. This is a quick mission, but it does a good job of introducing the stealth mechanics and concept of prowling around side-rooms to avoid robots. If you’re diligent, you’ll even come across DOXBux, which can be used to buy decor and miscellaneous office stuff, like a vending machine. These additions increase Productivity and Staff Morale. It’s a nice bit of progression and customization.
I quite enjoyed Cat Secretary. It’s got heart, mystery, fun-yet-simple gameplay, and some strong satire—both on-the-nose and subtle. I look forward to uncovering the dark secrets of DOX in the future.
