Ever since I first saw Gori: Cuddly Carnage, I’ve been dying to get my hands on the game. Even from the trailers, I fell in love with Gori, an incredibly badass cat ready to avenge the decimated human race by killing hordes of enemies with his badass hoverboard. To be honest, that’s Gori: Cuddly Carnage in a nutshell – you have to fight the unicorns – yes, you read that right. Unicorns – and their creator.

There’s a bit more to the game though, particularly because Gori’s hoverboard FRANK talks to you, and it’s safe to say he’s a pretty smart guy. I knew I’d enjoy the gameplay on offer. I’m a huge fan of skateboarding games, and to me Gori is a fast-paced, chaotic take on various Tony Hawk games – yes, there’s a lot to recognize, but you get the point – but I wasn’t prepared for the humor, and Cuddly Carnage has plenty of that.

Even the loading screens have some funny sayings for you to enjoy. I get so excited every time I see a new one. They’re also informative, with hints and information about the different types of unicorns you’ll encounter. Everyone thinks they’re all sunshine and roses. But that’s not the case with Gori: Cuddly Carnage. The unicorns are literally out for blood. Gori, as the lovable cat’s name suggests, is a bloodthirsty experience.

When relying heavily on a single source of enemies, it’s important that you have some distinct traits between them to create unique enemy types that pose their own challenges. While there are other enemies besides unicorns, I must point out that the variations of unicorns are good, and it encourages you to look at the upgrade options for FRANK, as there are various weapons you can equip the hoverboard with.

For example, you’ll encounter shield-wielding unicorns early on. To take them down, you’ll need to equip your trusty sidekick with a wrecking ball, while the blades you start with are great for taking down regular unicorns, like those with scythes for arms or those that use guns. While I like these pesky mythical creatures, I have to give a shout out to the bosses in Gori. They’re a lot of fun to fight, and many of them encourage you to get creative with the board and use the environment to your advantage rather than constantly hitting the attack button.

Combat in Gori: Cuddly Carnage is a lot of fun and similar to hack-and-slash games in its approach. When you’re in a fight, you’ll mostly be facing hordes of enemies that can slice, smash, or shoot you to pieces, depending on what weapons you’re using. You can even perform badass finishing moves on individual unicorns to restore some of your health. It’s pure chaos.

As you progress through the game, you’ll be able to access various upgrades and utilities, all of which are well worth your time and money as they can help you beat a particularly difficult level. Speaking of money, you’ll need to have as much of it as possible, and not just because of those awesome upgrades. There are customization options for Gori and FRANK, and I’m a huge proponent of Gori’s pink and purple fur; it gives him some real Cheshire Cat vibes. You can also change his clothes, and for your trusty hoverboard, you can change his deck.

Although the customization options are purely aesthetic and don’t provide any gameplay benefits like the upgrades, I prefer to buy them. Sure, it makes the levels trickier, especially because I took too long to invest in my health, but hey, Gori looked cute getting pushed around by unicorns. I even captured some precious memories using the photo mode. I wasn’t expecting to stumble upon a photo mode in Gori: Cuddly Carnage, but boy am I glad it exists. Switching to photo mode at the height of a chaotic battle yields some very interesting images.

Another thing that helps you get some good snaps are the levels themselves. The level design is good, each one featuring its own bosses and unique aspects that make it special – for example, I still can’t forget world two, where you can actually go inside an arcade machine. Of course, like any game of this type, you can glide around and drive along walls, which helps you progress through each area. However, I must admit that the controls feel a little loose at times due to sensitivity. The buttons are all responsive, but if you want to move slightly in a direction, it’s not uncommon for Gori to dash away, causing you to slightly miss your jump and even miss the landing by millimeters.

I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention that Gori: Cuddly Carnage’s soundtrack is great. The music fits the game’s theme perfectly. It even gives me the little energy boost I need and is especially effective during boss fights. Your blood will be pumping (and splattering all over the place) as you shred FRANK and maybe even cum as you take the fight to the enemy.

While I enjoy the gameplay, appreciate the charm, like the humor, and love the chaos, I can’t deny that Gori: Cuddly Carnage is far from perfect; unfortunately, in terms of performance, it doesn’t even come close. On Nintendo Switch, you can expect frequent framerate drops, and with a game as fast-paced as Gori, you can imagine how annoying that can be. Granted, the framerate stays a little more stable in docked mode, but that doesn’t eliminate it completely.

Then the part that hurts me the most. I fell through the second level and plummeted to my death several times; this was especially a problem in world two, which is a shame as I love the arcade aesthetic on offer there – but I can’t overlook a problem like this. It really ruins your progress and is an all-round frustrating experience. Gori is a fun game, and frankly I enjoy it, but that makes bugs like this all the more problematic.

All in all, I have to say that Gori: Cuddly Carnage is a fun game that is full of charm, humor, and most importantly, it lets you zoom around as a badass cat, all with a great soundtrack playing in the background. However, until there is a patch for the Nintendo Switch version of the game, I recommend you try it out on another platform.

If you fancy more adventures with some feline friends, check out our picks for the best cat games for Switch and mobile, and maybe read our review of Little Kitty, Big City Switch if you want to learn more about this particular game.