FlatPonies on Scratch The Cat – Interview Series

FlatPonies, the studio behind community-driven 2D puzzle game AkiRobots and automation game Rebots, has formally announced Scratch The Cat, a “vibrant action–adventure 3D platformer” about a waylaid DJ, an epic feud between a cat and a rat, and a “sprawling musical world” where “music is life—literally.”

“From the bustling streets of Melotropolis to the serene shores of Arpeggio Archipelago, every corner of this vibrant world pulses with rhythm,” the elevator pitch adds. “Discover lands infused with sound, where flora and fauna move to the beat, and technology hums with harmony. Your adventure will take you to lush jungles, underwater caves, volcanic peaks, and beyond – all bursting with musical energy.”

On a quest to learn more about FlatPonies’ Scratch The Cat, I decided to reach out to Creative Director Felix Sherar to iron over the details.

Scratch The Cat? Snatch The Rat? We’re going to need some extra details about this feud. Who’s who, and what, exactly, is the relationship between the two characters? Better yet, what’s the story here?

Felix: Scratch is a DJ running the nightclub/power plant in Melotropolis, the capital of this world. Every night Scratch plays to a crowd and all the partying generates power to the city. However, in the sewers beneath the city, someone hasn’t been able to get any sleep due to the commotion; Snatch. So he takes it upon himself to destroy the one thing that keeps the club’s doors open; Scratch’s record collection.

You’ve briefly spoke about a distinct “Scratch The Cat sound” in earlier talks, stating that the game will be a “celebration of music as a medium in the context of a classic 3D action-adventure platformer, highlighting the variety and diversity of genres and instruments.” Please could you tell us more about this special sound?

Felix: Well it has a basis in hip hop, with turntablism being the focal point. But we wanted to try to mix it up with unconventional instruments and sounds you wouldn’t normally associate with this. For instance, we have one level that is inspired by ancient Mesoamerica, with ruins spread across vast canyons. The music reflects this by incorporating ocarinas, cuicas and exotic percussion, but mixed with turntables, and a dash of spaghetti western guitars and harmonicas. We wanted to create a soundtrack that people would associate with the game and be memorable.

Let’s talk a bit more about this musical archipelago and its “lush jungles, underwater caves, volcanic peaks, and beyond.” Clearly, Scratch The Cat will be taking us on quite the tour. That said, we’re curious to hear more about the creative process behind this design. Could you tell us more about what you’re hoping to capture with this “look”?

Felix: We have multiple biomes at play, from urban city levels to tropical islands, to dry canyons. We want there to be variety that reflects many different aspects of music that are associated with different places in the world, and this needs to be reflected visually as well.

Tell us more about the gameplay. You’ve mentioned that the game will be an “action-adventure 3D platformer.” Without divulging too many spoilers, what sorts of trials are we likely to encounter during this musical journey?

Felix: An important aspect of the game when we started out was to ensure that this is not strictly a rhythm game. You’re free to move and jump whenever you like. However, the world around you reacts to the rhythm, so you have to consider the beat when moving, but you don’t have to be pinpoint accurate. Most of the challenges are platforming specific. Any moving platforms will move to the beat, and so you have to figure out when the best time to jump is. This combined with special interactables like carryable seeds you can plant to create new platforms, parachutes to glide vast distances or race like challenges on a timer create a variety of different challenges.

You’ve also mentioned abilities—stackable moves and the likes. Could you tell us more about these abilities, as well as how they work in tandem with the rhythm-based mechanics?

Felix: Scratch has a wide array of moves you would come to expect from a game like this. We tried to go for an easy-to-pick-up, hard-to-master philosophy. A kid should be able to get through the main game with the base moveset, but for those who want to dive into the deeper system, you will learn to cut corners and exploit your way around for speedrunning etc. All of Scratch’s moves can be performed at any time from the start of the game, without anything rhythm related per se, but it is up to the player to figure out the best time to initiate these moves within a rhythm based world. An example of a combo would be running, the sliding, then jumping from the slide to gain distance, then dashing again in midair before ending with what we call a trick jump, which are special “garnish” moves you can add for flair, but they also add a little boost like a double jump.

Do you have any useful tips or tricks for those who might be interested in embarking on their own musical quest?

Felix: Play with music on, and try to pay attention to the groove of the world. There’s visual cues as well, but your eyes are already tracking many things, your ears are otherwise on standby. My second tip is to just mess around with the player controller to see what it has to offer, what interactions you can or can’t make.

Where might we be able to find more information on Scratch The Cat, if you don’t mind me asking? Aside from the Steam handle, where else might we find general updates on the game’s progress? Say, are there any useful social channels, newsletters, or perhaps any other reading materials that we ought to be taking note of?

Felix: 

You can find us on our Link Tree, which links to all the social channels and store pages.
We recently opened a public Discord channel as well, so please come say hi there!

And of course our website at or the game’s website.

Would you like to add any final words to this story before we bring it towards its final chapter?

Felix: This is a love letter from people who grew up on these types of games, and I hope our passion shows. We wanted to make something for players like ourselves, but also something for the next generation of kids. We’ve become parents ourselves and want to share that same feeling that we had growing up on these sorts of games.

Thanks for taking the time out of your day to speak with us about Scratch The Cat — we really appreciate it!

You can find more information on FlatPonies’ Scratch The Cat by following the team on X. For additional updates on the game, be sure to add it to your wishlist on Steam here.