Off the AppStore: Bounce that cat in A cat named Venus Shorttail

• Become the bouncy cat you never knew that you could be!
• This endless jumper has you bouncing precariously from shelf to shelf
• Shoot high, grab shinies, and avoid the fall

Welcome to Off The AppStore, a weekly feature with a twist. Namely, that while these - as with all the games we cover here - are games that you can play on your phone, they're ones that operate outside of the realms of the big two ways to play: The Google Play Store and the Apple AppStore.

That means that there might be a bit of work required in downloading alternative AppStores or APKs, or that the games can simply be played in your phone's browser. We'll make sure to detail that for each game, though. Anyway, read on to find a new game or experience to play Off The AppStore.

This may be surprising, but if you've been following my writing, you know this isn't the first time I've mentioned Doodle Jump. It's either the second or third time, but what's more important is the impact that that little app made on the mobile market. Although it was a constant on early iPhones, it helped pioneer what would become the endless runner genre. Ever since then, there have been many takes on the idea of playing a character who only has the desire to see how far they can go. By going into the Sproutforge, we come across the endless jumping adventure that joins Doodle Jump as a peer: A cat named Venus Shorttail.

Cats are not of this realm and can be considered creatures that more or less choose to ignore physics when it's inconvenient. As the titular Venus Shorttail, you are using your cat-like bounciness to bounce to new heights. You're a bit too hefty to jump in the old-fashioned way, but your rubber bones and cushy body are more than enough to help you travel vertically. Even with these strengths, it won't be an easy climb as all the shelves have been placed in strange positions and elevations, but you must bounce for them with all your might.

As if it were that simple. Not only are some of the shelves far apart and quite narrow, but you've also got moving shelves with balloons that are thankfully strong enough to support the platform and a large bouncing cat. Then there are the airborne dangers since these shelves stretch endlessly upwards, inviting birds to fly across. You'd think that this large mass of cat power would be able to crush or consume any birds, but these ones are a bit more vicious. It's not all bad, though, since there are shining treasures to collect and rainbow balls of energy to send you blasting to new heights.

A cat named Venus Shorttail is a 2D endless bouncer about a cat who just wants to keep getting higher and higher. It's cute and clear fun, where all you've got to do is keep your cat aloft. Whether they fell or get pecked out of the sky, there's always more chances to make your way up. Perhaps the name "Venus Shorttail" is a sign that this cat aims to get to Venus and will keep bouncing to do so.

A cat named Venus Shorttail is available to download and play from its itch.io page!