Talking about Mewgenics is, in essence, analyzing one of the longest gestations within the independent scene.Just as the lady from Titanic would say ‘Fourteen years have passed’ since we learned of the existence of the game, a time in which the project went from becoming a promise of Team Meat to being cancelled, to finally being reborn from the ashes like a Phoenix under the direction of Edmund McMillen and Tyler Glaiel.But what makes the title feel truly special is not its winding path, but the lineage, as it is the new work from the creator of The Binding of Isaac.However, although this work remains on the margins of the roguelike, it moves away from the frenzy of shooting to embrace the reflective pause of the RPG and the turn-based tactics, that ‘fossil’ that still gives us so much joy in 2026.
Mewgenics feels like the project of a lifetime, an amalgamation of obsessions about biology, ugliness, and chance.The game immerses us in the suburban decay of Boon County, a town with a peculiar but extremely disturbing charm. As players we assume the role of a cat breeder in a world that seems to have forgotten about hygiene and sanity.The story is not handed to us on a silver platter, but is filtered through encounters with a repertoire of quirky NPCs and the evolution of our home itself.In fact, there is something strangely moving about the way survival is treated, as it feels like a kind of chronicle about legacy and persistence in a hostile environment where we continue to create life in the midst of chaos.
The gameplay, contrary to what it may appear, is incredibly deep. The game touches on many topics and does so masterfully.As a result we have a labyrinth of decisions that begins long before entering the battlefield.The structure is divided into two perfectly connected ‘phases’: domestic management and tactical expeditions.At home, the game feels like a life simulator, very dark and raw, where the apartment where the felines live becomes an ideal structure for genetic engineering.In this sense, the title shines since cats are not just pets, but containers of DNA that live, eat and reproduce, to finally die in cruel ways and without an iota of glory.
The depth that this system reaches is impressive.At first it seems simple, but as the game progresses it can be a bit overwhelming, although with a unique magnetism whose force can keep us glued to the chair for hours.Beyond the attributes of each kitten lies a biological lottery where physical or mental conditions function as modifiers.However, this does not always work against us, but can become tactical variables.For example, a cat with dyslexia can see the damage numbers shuffled, and at the same time possess unmatched brute strength, while another with weak bones can develop ‘spines’ as a result of the exposed fractures that occur when falling in combat.
This way of embracing these ‘imperfections’ and turning them into a tool that enriches combat is what separates this game from any other conventional tactical RPG.And if Mewgenics has something left over, it is a unique and very human personality that permeates everything, even the game mechanics.We may at first bring cats into the house without thinking too much about their characteristics, but as the hours go by, this perspective changes.Ultimately, we are going to have to decide what traits to enhance and what diseases or mutations we are willing to tolerate in the next generation.All in order to ensure that our ‘future warriors’ have a chance to survive abroad.
When we finally take our creatures out on expeditions, the game adopts a roguelike structure, although much more linear than what we are used to seeing in the genre.Instead of having multiple branches, the maps are made up of a zig-zag line joined by nodes where we will find combats and events.The latter are usually resolved through a kind of dice roll whose difficulty is determined by certain specific attributes of each cat.Depending on it, the result in each situation can offer us a pleasant reward or a punishment that can make things very complicated for us.For example, looking into a cursed mirror can cause dementia in one of the cats, causing it to attack everyone during battles, regardless of whether it is an enemy or an ally.
Regarding the combat system, it is turn-based and presents a complexity that draws directly from the philosophy of collectible card games.Grid positioning is vital, but the real magic lies in the synergies.Every movement counts and the environment is another element of the equation.Both the weather, the state of the terrain, as well as interactable objects can turn a certain defeat into a miraculous victory.It is a bloody chess where improvisation becomes extremely important as prior planning.Something that constantly reminds us that, although we have designed the ‘perfect cat’, the battlefield will always have the last word.
The class system offers the typical RPG archetypes, only here they are defined by the use of necklaces.By equipping a feline with a Warrior, Mage, Cleric or Archer collar (just to mention some of the available classes), we will not only choose a role, but at the same time we will be accessing a catalog of skills that seems to have no end.To give an example, we can play 10 runs with the same type of character and have a constant feeling of discovery.When it seems like we’ve seen it all, Mewgenics has a surprise up its sleeve.In addition, the progression system allows you to mix any skill from different professions, giving rise to bizarre hybrids that defy any traditional design logic but operate under their own twisted rules.
One aspect to highlight is the interactivity of the scenarios.Maps present elements that we can use to our advantage with some ingenuity, but that can also make things very complicated for us.Tall grass burns and spreads fire, water freezes creating slippery surfaces, and debris can be used as projectiles.This reactivity enriches each confrontation and turns it into a small ecosystem of causes and effects.The best thing is when we manage to chain the use of these elements with the skills of our group of cats.The result is a tactical satisfaction that few games manage to convey with such force.
I could spend many lines talking about the multiple elements and benefits of Mewgenics but the scale of the work is simply titanic. Completing the main story and all the content that the game has to offer can take more than two hundred hours, a figure that is scary but justified by the procedural nature of the game.In this aspect lies one of the greatest virtues, but also one of the points that -personally- never really stuck with me.I mean that each new game offers the possibility of discovering new aspects of the title and relies on the player’s curiosity. However, when we reach the end of a scenario and defeat the boss, we do not have the possibility to continue.On the contrary, we are forced to return the cats home and only in the next game will we be able to access the new area.This is something that, from my point of view, slows down progression.
On a visual and sound level, the identity is unmistakable.The art style of thick strokes and heavy shadows creates a cartoonish nightmare atmosphere that fits perfectly with the tone of the game.It’s impossible to watch Mewgenics and realize that McMillen is behind the project.The music, for its part, accompanies the descent into madness with a mix of catchy melodies and disturbing sounds that reinforce the feeling of being in a place that should not exist.It is a coherent sensory experience that ensures that even the most repulsive is nourished by intrinsic beauty.A brand of the house that here reaches its maximum expression thanks to the fluidity of the animations and the expressiveness of the cats.
Beyond the technical, the game has no concessions for those looking for a light experience.It is a very difficult title that requires attention, courage to experiment and, above all, adaptation to failure.There is something very pure in the fact that a game about raising deformed cats is, at the same time, one of the most polished and ambitious pieces of strategy in a 2026 that has just begun.Of course, it is clear that he does not try to please everyone. Losing a run literally means losing everything: the cats, the items obtained, and any type of progress.But for those who manage to connect with the proposal, I can assure you that it will become an obsession that is difficult to let go.
The sense of ‘heritage’ is something that permeates the entire game, not only in cat genetics, but in the history of independent development itself. Mewgenics is a testament to the patience and unwavering artistic vision of its creators.Seeing how a cat we raised for generations falls in combat hurts in a real way, but seeing how its lineage continues in a puppy with its same eyes and a powerful new mutation is what gives meaning to the whole experience.
Mewgenics is a wonderful anomaly in the current video game landscape. It is an RPG with excessive ambition that manages to balance disgust with tenderness and randomness with the deepest strategy.After more than a decade of waiting, the result not only lives up to expectations, but also offers a generational experience that, like The Binding of Isaac, will have a lot to talk about.It is, without a doubt, the masterpiece of a way of understanding independent development: without filters, without fear of risk and with a huge heart beating under a skin full of hair and mutations.
