Series: Cat + Gamer

Review – Cat + Gamer, vol 3

Posted August 10, 2026 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments

Review – Cat + Gamer, vol 3

Cat + Gamer

by Wataru Nadatani

Genres: Manga
Pages: 168
Series: Cat + Gamer #3
Rating: three-stars
Synopsis:

A brand-new cat owner with no experience living with pets, quiet office worker Riko uses lessons drawn from video games to guide her in cat care.

Musubi, her cute new companion, tries to understand Riko's behavior through a cat's worldview. Enjoying their time together, Riko learns more about cohabitating with a cat, as lessons in grooming, play, and personal space continue to be learned.

“Leveling up” in skills, surprises, and adventures extends to real life, as Riko discovers what it’s like living with a cat! Wataru Nadatani’s hilarious manga series is translated by Zack Davisson (Demon Days, Kaibyo: The Supernatural Cats of Japan) and lettered by Susie Lee of Studio Cutie.

Cat + Gamer vol 3 continues to be really cute: it’s essentially the same from volume to volume in many ways, but you do get to see Riko learning more about how to take care of her cats. The nerdy references to games that are not quite like real games are funny too, like playing spot the game.

It still veers a little too close to cringe for me when Riko acts like she only understands life through video games (how does she manage getting by when she refers to shop assistants as “shopkeeper” and so on?! how is she supposedly so high-functioning and good at work when she speaks in such unserious ways?!) but… kitty! So cute! And I know it’s not meant to be “realistic”; the whole idea is meant for laughs. But given the stereotype of gamers as cave-dwelling losers, it’s just… not so funny to me.

On the positive side, the interludes from Musubi’s point of view steal the show, really. Kitty!

Rating: 3/5 (“liked it”)

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Review – Cat + Gamer, vol 2

Posted August 5, 2026 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments

Review – Cat + Gamer, vol 2

Cat + Gamer

by Wataru Nadatani

Genres: Manga
Pages: 174
Series: Cat + Gamer #2
Rating: three-stars
Synopsis:

A quiet office worker embraces her new role as a cat mom when she begins sharing superfluous amounts of cat photos on the internet.

Riko can’t help it—her tuxedo baby is just too cute! Will her coworkers feel the same or will it add to their bewilderment about her? At home, Riko learns more about Musubi, from favorite toys such as a free grocery bag to their shared joy of video games. And Musubi himself learns a new trick—how to tell her when it’s dinner time!

“Leveling up” in skills, surprises, and adventures extends to real life, as Riko discovers what it’s like living with a cat!

Volume two of Wataru Nadatani’s Cat + Gamer is pretty much the same as volume one: it’s cute, silly, and a little bit cringe when Riko uses gaming terms for perfectly ordinary stuff (like calling the shop assistant “shopkeeper” all the time, and then “great sage” after she gives some extra advice about how to keep a kitty happy). I know it’s meant to be silly, but it just comes across as weird, and I promise gamers can actually function in society without treating it like a video game (as we know Riko must be able to, since she functions fine at work).

I did enjoy the chapter where Riko’s sister came over and gamed with her for a bit, that was fun, and it was also kinda nice to go see more of the “shopkeeper” (did she even get a name though?!).

And of course, Musubi (the cat) is adorable.

Rating: 3/5 (“liked it”)

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Review – Cat + Gamer, vol 1

Posted July 21, 2026 by Nicky in Reviews / 10 Comments

Review – Cat + Gamer, vol 1

Cat + Gamer

by Wataru Nadatani

Genres: Manga
Pages: 186
Series: Cat + Gamer #1
Rating: three-stars
Synopsis:

Riko, a twenty-nine-year-old office worker with an obsession for video games, finds her quiet life upended when she takes in a stray cat in this adorable manga series!

Her coworkers can’t quite figure her out—she never talks about her personal life, she never works overtime, and she never joins them for happy hour. Is she antisocial? Nope, she’s rushing home to play video games! One day, a stray cat is found in the office parking lot, and before Riko knows it, the cat has moved in with her! Having no experience with pets, Riko uses lessons drawn from video games to guide her in cat care, while her cute companion tries to understand her behavior through a cat's worldview.

Volume one of Wataru Nadatani’s Cat + Gamer is pretty fun: an office worker who clocks off right on time and goes home to play video games at night impulsively adopts a cat. She knows little about taking care of pets, and eventually decides to view it in a gamified sort of way.

Sometimes that’s kinda cringe (rushing the cat to the vet with fleas, talking about it having a debuff), but it mostly comes out cute. I especially like the interludes between chapters, showing events from the cat’s point of view.

Overall it’s silly light fun, and a nice palate cleanser.

Rating: 3/5 (“liked it”)

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