1. Boku to Wanko: Doggie Collector
This game is exactly what it sounds like: Neko Atsume, but with dogs! Buy toys and food to attract a total of 42 dogs to your yard, and then keep them coming back so you can eventually collect their “treasure.” What’s nice about this app is that each dog’s profile lists how many more minutes they need to spend in your yard before they will bring you their treasure, so you don’t have to inwardly groan when Tubbs eats up all of your Ritzy Bits for the 86th time without leaving a memento. What’s not so nice is that the interface is pretty clunky in comparison to Neko Atsume’s, and the English translation is definitely not top-quality. Still, if you like cute dogs and catchy background music, or want the added excitement of chasing away thieving stray cats from your yard, Boku to Wanko is a solid choice.
Note: The English version of Boku to Wanko appears to have not yet reached iOS as of the publication date of this article. Stay tuned!
2. KleptoCats
But why would you waste you hours staring at pixelated images of inferior dogs when you could be basking in the glory of more cute cats? Or, even better, sending out such cats to do your evil bidding steal random stuff to fill up your room? This is the basis of KleptoCats: send your cat out to steal a random object, such as a taco or a Pokeball, collect coins and gems from your cats and mini-games, and use them to buy accessories and new cats. With 100 cats and 162 objects to collect, KleptoCats is sure to provide countless hours of kitty kleptomania. Just be warned: the amount of time it takes for the cats to steal a new object grows exponentially each time, so you’ll want to find something else to do while you wait for your favorite little thief to come home.
3. Hamster Collection
Like Boku to Wanko, Hamster Collection is more or less Neko Atsume with hamsters. Buy toys and hamster food to attract hamsters to your cage, then pet the hamsters in order to raise their affection level. Hamster Collection also includes a “Behavior List” for each hamster, humorously detailing their interactions with different toys. Unfortunately, if you want to add more hamsters to your cage, you have to play “Hamster Gatcha,” putting seeds left by visiting hamsters into a vending machine in order to receive a new hamster. The English translation is the same low-quality of Boku to Wanko, but the animations and illustrations are a significant step-up, so if raising hamsters is your forte, consider adding this game to your collection.
4. Alpaca World
Alpaca World is probably the game on this list that marks the most significant departure from the mechanics of Neko Atsume. In this alpaca collection game, you take your alpacas into the wild in order to battle wild alpacas, resulting in level-ups and items such as colored wool that can be sold in the game’s town. You can also use rope to “catch” new alpacas for your farm, buy alpaca accessories, and breed baby alpacas using two alpacas of the opposite gender. Basically, think Pokemon, but with alpacas. It’s a fun and addicting game, and worth it if only to watch cute little animated alpaca butts flopping up and down as your colorful friends run through the hills.
5. Notice Me Senpai!
Marking a return to the tried-and-true Neko Atsume formula, Notice Me Senpai! finds you running a cafe designed to attract cute and eccentric senpais with high-quality coffee and a variety of pastries and decorations. Notice Me Senpai uses a Harvest Moon-esque hearts system: after a random number of visits, your senpai will gain a “heart,” for a total of five. At 2 hearts you can choose a nickname for your senpai; at 3, senpai leaves you a cute little note, and at 4 or 5, a special memorable event will occur between you and senpai. With quirky boys (and a goat?!), fun anime references (gourmet club senpai is named Souma), and a relaxing atmosphere, Notice Me Senpai is this author’s favorite Neko Atsume knock-off. (Though that might just be my inner otaku speaking.)
6. 10 Billion Wives
And, last but not least, we have 10 Billion Wives, for those who would rather collect waifus than senpais. In 10 Billion Wives, the goal is to get hitched to as many women as possible. After you wed a new wife, she will take her place endlessly marching across your screen, thus generating more “love.” (That’s how treadmills work, right?) Once you have attained a certain amount of love, you can level up your wife or buy her accessories, thus increasing her love-production levels, or purchase a new wife. The more wives you get, the more love you make! Yeah, please don’t try this in real life. But if you’ve ever had a burning desire to try out polygamy and marry a CEO, Oni, or Tsundere, then this game was made for you!
Well, that’s it for now, folks! There are certainly other games like Neko Atsume out there that the author has yet to try, and if you have any more recommendations, please comment below! Happy cat/dog/hamster/alpaca/senpai/waifu collecting!
