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The Monster and the Cat HD app review: an interactive story book with multiple endings

Reviews

Introduction

Interactive books in the App Store are getting more and more popular, and all these books are finding new ways to try and differentiate themselves from the rest of the crop.  Some of them use famous stories to sell themselves, while others focus more on art or in-book mini-games. The Monster and the Cat HD by Jorge Caballero has decided to sell it on the phrase “Living a book.” This app, compatible only with iPad, focuses on a truly different experience every time you read it. As this is a children’s book, don’t expect too much in terms of depth, but you will get a nice story with a little interactivity and multiple endings depending on the choices you make.

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The Monster and the Cat HD - Living a Book

Free

How it Works

The book reads as you would expect any other book app to read. You can either press the buttons or tap the pages to turn a page backward or forward. There are some interactive elements to the book such as small animations and some music playing in certain parts. The true interactivity comes in when you make the choices, as they will actually affect the outcome of the book. In my reading time I only found two different endings, and even though the developer doesn’t spoil how many different endings there are, it’s probably safe to say there is at least one more to be found.

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How it Works image

Other Features

In terms of other features, the book doesn’t have much to offer. You can switch to monster mode, but as far as I know, this just changes the background of the book to purple, and doesn’t offer anything else special. It would be cool if the developer added a different perspective to this monster mode, such as living the story through the eyes of the monster. I would have loved to see a little more interactivity and artwork here as well, as the book ends up being mainly text. The story would really benefit from some interactive illustrations. Lastly, as this is a book that can help kids learn how to read, a voice over would be nice for the smaller children.

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Other Features image

The Monster and the Cat HD - Living a Book

Free

Pros and Cons

Pros

  • A really great story
  •  Different endings
  • Some interactivity

Cons

  •  No voice over
  • Switching to monster mode just changes the background to purple

Pros and Cons image

Conclusion

The Monster and the Cat HD is a really nice book for your children to read. They will have to be able to read, as there is no voice to help them, nor is there any explanation of difficult words. Some interactivity is there, but it’s very minimal. The multiple endings of the book are all very well done and you won’t get stuck in a loop due to bad design. This app is only compatible with iPad and is just under 30 MB in size, which is what you would expect from a book with this amount of interactivity.

The Monster and the Cat HD - Living a Book

Free
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Woutst

Wout has worked in the video games industry for over 10 years and is an avid traveler. His iPad is his most trusted friend and he's passionate about keep you up to date on the latest apps and games.