You probably remember the cover. A giant, bug-eyed kitten staring at you from a shelf in GameStop or a dusty Wii bargain bin. Most people see the title Petz Catz 2 Wii and immediately think "shovelware." They assume it’s just another shallow pet simulator where you brush a digital kitten until a "happiness meter" fills up.
They’re wrong.
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Actually, they’re incredibly wrong. This game is a legitimate RPG. It has a plot involving a magical hat, an ancient evil, and a quest to save the world. It’s basically The Legend of Zelda but you're a tabby cat. Ubisoft and MTO pulled a fast one on us back in 2007. They took a serious adventure game, slapped the "Petz" brand on it for the Western market, and watched as millions of kids accidentally stumbled into a high-stakes fantasy epic.
The Weird History of Catz 2 and The Dogz 2
To understand why this game is the way it is, you have to look at Japan. Over there, the game wasn't part of the "Petz" franchise at all. It was released as Wanko de wa naku, Niwanko de mo nai, O-inu-sama de mo nai: THE DOG ISLAND—well, specifically for the cat version, it was Catz (or Nintendogs competitors). In Japan, these were part of the The Dog Island series.
The Western release of Petz Catz 2 Wii is actually a rebranded version of Catz (Japan) which was a sequel to the THE DOG ISLAND mechanics. Because Ubisoft owned the "Petz" trademark in the US and Europe, they decided to fold these Japanese adventure games into their existing casual brand. This created a massive disconnect. If you bought Petz Catz 2 on the DS, you got a boring pet sim. If you bought it on the Wii or PS2, you got a sprawling open-world journey with a soundtrack that honestly goes way harder than it has any right to.
It’s kind of wild. Imagine buying a game called "Cooking Mama" and finding out it’s actually a 40-hour soulslike. That’s the vibe here.
The Plot: More Than Just Yarn
So, what actually happens? You start by picking your breed. Whether you're a Siamese or a Maine Coon, your life begins in Paw Paw Village. You have a best friend (or a rival, depending on your choices) and a family. But things get dark pretty fast. Your father falls ill with a mysterious sickness that can't be cured by normal means.
Enter the Wolf, Ivlet.
Ivlet is the primary antagonist, a literal wolf who steals a magical hat that controls the balance of the world. He wreaks havoc, turning peaceful animals into aggressive monsters with glowing purple eyes. To save your father and the world, you have to leave your village and travel across multiple continents—deserts, snowy mountains, and haunted forests—to find the legendary Magic Hat.
It's heavy. The game deals with themes of loss, responsibility, and the corruption of nature. It’s not "feed the kitty." It’s "save the planet from a magical apocalypse."
Gameplay Mechanics: Zelda for Felines
The core loop of Petz Catz 2 Wii isn't about grooming. It's about exploration and scent-tracking. You use the Wii Remote to sniff out items buried underground. When you catch a scent, a bubble appears over your head, and you have to follow the trail.
Combat is... unique. You don't have a sword. You're a cat. You "bark" (or meow aggressively) to stun enemies and then throw stones or use items to defeat them. There are stealth missions. There are boss fights. One of the boss fights involves a giant gorilla. Another involves a literal dragon in some versions of the engine.
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Exploration and Side Quests
The world is surprisingly big. You have to manage your "Paws," which act as your health and stamina. If you run too much or get hit, you pass out.
- The Zoo: As you travel, you meet animals who have been displaced by Ivlet's magic. You can help them and invite them to "The Zoo," which acts as a central hub you build up over time.
- Customization: While it’s an RPG, they kept the "Petz" DNA by letting you dress up your cat in hats, glasses, and capes. These aren't just cosmetic; some provide buffs.
- Fishing and Bug Catching: There are mini-games everywhere. They feel a bit like Animal Crossing, but with more urgency because you usually need the materials for a quest.
The music deserves a shoutout. The score was composed by Yuzo Koshiro's team (of Streets of Rage fame) and it’s genuinely beautiful. The "Lullaby" theme that plays in the quiet moments is haunting. It’s the kind of music that stays with you for twenty years.
Why It Still Holds Up (And Why It Doesn't)
If you play this today on a Wii or through an emulator, you'll notice the graphics are... dated. It’s very 2007. The textures are blurry, and the draw distance is short. The Wii's motion controls for the sniffing mechanic can be finicky.
But the heart is there.
There's a sincerity in Petz Catz 2 Wii that you don't see in modern "cash-in" games. It wasn't trying to be a microtransaction-filled mobile game. It was a complete, weird, experimental adventure. It treats the player with respect. It assumes you can handle a complex inventory system and a world map that doesn't always hold your hand.
The biggest hurdle for new players is the "kiddie" aesthetic. You have to get past the fact that you're playing as a kitten with an oversized head. If you can look past the "Chibi" art style, you'll find a game that has more in common with Okami than with Nintendogs.
The Legacy of Paw Paw Village
Surprisingly, there is still a small but dedicated speedrunning and modding community for this game. People have found glitches to skip entire sections of the map, and there’s a deep lore-dive community that tries to connect the events of the "Dog" and "Cat" versions of the game.
It’s a cult classic in the truest sense. It’s a game that was marketed to the wrong audience and somehow found its way to people who appreciated its quirkiness.
How to play it in 2026
You have a few options if you want to experience this fever dream.
- Original Hardware: Snag a Wii disc off eBay. They’re usually cheap because most people still think it’s shovelware.
- Emulation: Using Dolphin emulator on a PC allows you to upscale the resolution to 4K. This actually makes the game look surprisingly decent, as the art style scales better than realistic games of that era.
- The PS2 Version: If you prefer a traditional controller over motion sensing, the PS2 version is nearly identical but lacks the "point and sniff" mechanics.
Actionable Steps for New Players
If you’re going to dive into this, keep these tips in mind to avoid frustration:
Don't ignore the side quests. Many of the best items and "Paws" upgrades are locked behind helping random NPCs in the various villages. If you just rush the main story, you'll find the late-game bosses (especially the final encounter with Ivlet) incredibly difficult.
Master the sniffing early. The game doesn't explain it perfectly, but the color of the scent bubbles indicates how close you are. Blue is cold, yellow is warm, red is "dig here."
Talk to everyone. The dialogue is surprisingly witty. There are jokes in here that definitely went over the heads of the seven-year-olds the game was sold to.
Manage your inventory. You have limited space. Don't hoard every flower and rock you find. Focus on healing items and "warps" that let you travel back to the village quickly.
Petz Catz 2 Wii remains one of the most misunderstood games in the Wii library. It’s a reminder that sometimes, behind a generic title and a corporate logo, there’s a developer trying to build something genuinely magical. It's a weird, cat-filled epic that deserves a second look from anyone who loves a good RPG.
Next Steps for the Interested Player:
- Check local retro gaming stores for a copy of the Wii or PS2 version (avoid the DS version as it is a completely different, inferior game).
- Look up the original The Dog Island soundtrack on YouTube to hear the production value for yourself.
- If using an emulator, enable "Widescreen Hack" and "Internal Resolution: 3x" in Dolphin settings to modernize the visuals.