Unchallenging, but good music - this game is meant for young children.
Gameplay (7.2 out of 10):
The general gameplay involves going from left to right in a level collecting Felix head emblems, attacking enemies, and defeating bosses at the end of all but one world. Collecting Felix heads gives additional power ups whether as a set of three milk jars to replenish magic power or a magic heart that increases the magic level allowing for an extra hit. All game stats (lives, score, etc.) are placed on the bottom, except the magic power. Magic power is represented by a series of ten hearts and one heart is lost every 6 seconds. Milk jars replenish 2 hearts each. Each level has about 40 or so Felix heads. By touching an enemy or running out of magic power, Felix's magic level drops. Touching an enemy with the lowest magic level will cause Felix to lose a life, but the lowest magic level has infinite magic power, with the exception as the case of World 8. There are 2 to 4 different magic levels, depending on the mode. Each world usually has 3 levels, with worlds 6 and 8 as the oddballs to this. Scattered around each level are large magic purses which are filled with Felix head emblems and sometimes can be used to take a shortcut through the level.
Felix has 4 different modes. The most common of which is walking on land. Felix has a magic purse that can transform into almost anything. With land-based exploration, Felix jumps, walks, and attack enemies, sometimes using simple, slow-moving platforms to cross large gaps or reach higher areas from a lower area. A second mode involves flight where Felix uses the magic purse to fly through a level. Flight-based levels have you pressing the A button a few times to go up or not pressing it to fall. The third mode is much like land-based exploration, but you have water below that Felix must cross which has strong currents pushing Felix back toward the beginning of the level. The fourth mode is swimming, of which functions a lot like the flight-based levels, but instead of a sky theme, it's an ocean theme.
At the end of each world, except one world, is a boss which takes several hits to defeat. Higher magic levels reduce the number of hits needed. The bosses have simple actions but they attack more frequently as they take more hits. Defeating the boss gives a big score boost and access to the next world.
At the start of each odd-numbered world, there is a simple and brief telephone call from the professor, of whom has kidnapped Kitty.
The major downside to the gameplay is just how easy the game is. If I never got any extra lives, I could still quite easily get through the games on just the 3 you start with, and it's even possible (with moderate difficulty) to go through the entire game without losing a single life or going through 10 levels without getting hit. Not only that, but extra lives are so common and easy to get. It's so easy that even a first timer at video games may even be able to complete this game in full. The rather low gameplay rating comes from the extreme lack of challenge in the game causing it to be a bit boring.
One plus side to the game is the apparent lack of bugs. Despite playing through it about 30 times or so, I have not encountered a single bug.
Graphics (7.9 out of 10):
The graphics in Felix the Cat are good, but the backgrounds' lack of detail lowers the rating. Landscape textures and enemies are good for their days, but the backgrounds in the higher areas and some worlds seem to lack detail.
Sound (8.6 out of 10):
The music of Felix is the high point of the sound in the game. The sound effects are decent as well, but not quite as good as the game's music. It's the sound effect from collecting Felix head emblems that is not only highly repetitive, but it sounds mediocre in quality.
Value (5.7 out of 10):
Due to the fact that Felix lacks challenge, the value is rather low. However, it is a good game for trying to figure out how you can get 5 million points or going through the game without losing a single life (or even getting hit), two self-made challenges that make the game more worth getting.
Tilt (8.1 out of 10):
Felix the Cat is one of my favorites for the NES, but I wished that it was much more challenging. The story should be a bit more in depth though.
Other comments:
This game is much more suited toward young children around age 5 rather than adults due to it's cartoon-like nature and entire lack of adult content and huge lack of any challenge. It's good for a first timer at video games, but just wished the game was more difficult. I'd recommend the game only if you have young children or if you're very new to video games or platform games.