Hey there Feline Friends! 👋
In today's Steam post, Team17 sat down with Jumping Jazz Cat's development team at Le Catnip Collective to bring you a two-part Dev Blog! 🥳
Before jumping in with the Dev Blog, earlier in the week we announced our new Steam launch date for Jumping Jazz Cats - 20th May 2025! We're super excited for you all to experience our kittycat party game on May 20th 😺
In part two of our Dev Blog series, we'll be chatting with Dan, Le Catnip Collective's Director & Co-Founder, to discuss Jumping Jazz Cats' origins, gaming inspirations, the party game's cat animations, and the upcoming launch on Steam! 💜
Dev Log Q&A with Daniel Harris
How did the concept of Jumping Jazz Cats come about?
"The concept was inspired by my love for cats and their fascinating movement. As a veteran animator, I’m constantly captivated by the way cats move—there’s such an elegant yet quirky flow to their motions. Their natural parkour-like dexterity felt like the perfect foundation for an engaging gameplay experience. I wanted to capture that unique grace and fluidity, making it both fun and challenging for players to control these jazzy, acrobatic cats in action."
What inspired you and your team to create Jumping Jazz Cats?
"As big fans of couch play and party games, we saw an opportunity to bring something fresh and unique to the genre by combining the fun of cat GIF antics with engaging party game mechanics. It’s not often that you see sophisticated 3D platforming integrated into a party game, and that’s something we were really excited to explore. Our goal was to create a game that’s accessible and easy for casual players to jump into, while also offering enough depth and complexity in the mechanics to keep more advanced players coming back for more. We wanted to strike that perfect balance between fun and mastery.
Also, creating a unique environment and world was a top priority for us. Drawing inspiration from nostalgic jazz, architectural themes, and the stylized art of Disney and Saturday morning cartoons, we aimed to build a beautiful, wild, and occasionally odd fantasy world for players to escape into. We wanted the environment itself to be just as engaging and immersive as the gameplay."
How did you go about capturing the essence of cats in the game’s animations and in Jumping Jazz Cats’ gameplay?
"A big part of capturing the essence of cats started with extensive reference study. I spent a lot of time observing frame-by-frame videos of cats in action—whether they were jumping, prowling, crawling, or pouncing. Sometimes it was about faithfully understanding the physical movements of cats and quadrupeds, while other times, it was more about emphasizing dynamic character control. To keep the gameplay engaging, I used cartoony motion to "cheat" the timing and make movement feel quicker and more fluid. I also added special effects to highlight certain actions, creating an exciting feel during key moments."
Is there one feature of the game that you are most proud of?
"While it’s hard to pinpoint a single feature, I’m incredibly proud of how fun the game has become overall. After hundreds of hours of playtesting, our team still genuinely enjoys playing it every time. It’s amazing how often the mechanics surprise us, and that sense of discovery is something we’re truly proud of. It shows that we’ve created something that not only works, but continues to be enjoyable and exciting even after so much time."
Cat games have become their own genre recently with games like Stray, Little Kitty Big City, and more! How does it feel to add another twist to the kitty game formula?
"It’s true—there are so many new and exciting ways to experience playing as a cat now! It’s been really fun to be part of this growing trend. Being compared to such fantastic titles as Stray and Little Kitty Big City is an honor, as they each bring their own unique take on the cat genre.
Our goal is to offer something different with a more quirky, cartoony vibe, and the chance to play as a wild party of cats with friends. We’re excited to offer a unique, multiplayer experience that we hope cat-game fans will really enjoy!"
Describe your emotions and how you are feeling in the lead-up to the launch!
"There are definitely a lot of emotions at this stage! I’m excited to see players around the world come together to prove their cat parkour skills. At the same time, I’m feeling a sense of relief knowing we’re about to launch our very first game. It’s such an incredible achievement for our small studio to get this project over the finish line and out into the world. We can’t wait for everyone to experience what we’ve worked so hard to create!"
Just days away from our launch...😻🗓️
Jumping Jazz Cats launches on Steam on 20th May! We're so close to our launch date and cannot wait to see you all jumping around Ellington Estate and playing our cat parkour mini-games soon! 🥳
We hope you enjoyed this Dev Blog Q&A with Dan around the development of Jumping Jazz Cats! 💜 If you missed part one of our Dev Blog with Arun, Le Catnip Collective's Co-Founder, Music Composer & Sound Designer, you can read this in the post below! ⬇️
https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1951780/view/499442589740565452?l=english
Wishlist Jumping Jazz Cats today! 👇😼
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1951780/Jumping_Jazz_Cats/
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