9 Lives (video game)

Lore & Background

9 Lives was developed by ARC, an independent developer working with U.S. Gold as publisher, and was released for Amiga and Atari ST in 1991. Bob Cat was named after Bob Katz, an ARC staff member. In 1992, the Atari ST version of 9 Lives was included in the compilation Discovery Xtra.

Reader's Guide

9 Lives received mixed to positive reviews, with critics praising its cartoon graphics and sense of humor while noting the game's difficulty. Amiga Format criticized its difficulty, noting the game's jump mechanic as a 'nice idea' that is 'almost impossible' in practice due to the precision required, and Datormagazin said that the game was 'rather difficult' to the point of being 'utterly impossible' and 'tiresome'. Power Play called the game 'antiquated', summarizing the game as a whole as 'a wasteland of ideas combined with amateurish technical execution'. Raze noted the game's 'impressive' graphics, and ST Action stated that it has 'originality, inventiveness, and great playability all in one game', and noted its 'large variety' of animations and sprites. The One compared 9 Lives to 'mediocre' games based on licensed characters, stating that the game is 'what [they] should have been', praising its visuals and gameplay, calling it 'an exciting platform game which guarantees hours of absorbing fun'. Amiga Format expressed that the game 'captures that Tom and Jerry feel' and praised its 'big and bold' graphics, but criticized the game as shallow, stating that 'great graphics are no substitute for gameplay'. Several magazines praised the game's sense of humor; ST Format praised its Looney Tunes-style humor, and Atari ST User called the game 'a delight' that 'oozes charm and humour'. Multiple critics from Amiga Action reviewed the game, with Steve Merret calling the game 'an excellent platform romp', praising its variety and visuals, calling it 'extremely well animated' and expressed that the game's humor 'add[s] to its character'. Doug Simmons from Amiga Action was more critical, stating that he 'didn't enjoy it in the slightest', describing its gameplay as 'very awkward'. Amiga Joker praised the game's visuals but criticized its gameplay, calling it a 'neat platform game ... ruined by imprecise controls and stuttery scrolling'. Aktueller Software Markt criticized the game's 'imprecise' controls, expressing that the game 'performs badly' and that the game is too expensive. ASM and Power Play criticized the game's music, with the former comparing it to a charivari, and the latter stating that 'the music is half of a professional standard'. Zero expressed that the game 'falls slightly flat', criticizing it as unoriginal, stating that 'there's nothing outstandingly new here, just a fairly well put together platform game'. Pelit criticized the small color palette of the Amiga version.

Did You Know?

• The game has five levels, with the final level being the mad scientist's warehouse.
• The player has nine lives, and loses a life when they run out of energy, fall onto a spike trap, or fall too far down.

Gameplay & Core Mechanics

Players step into the paws of Bob Cat, a plucky feline tasked with liberating his girlfriend Claudette from the clutches of a deranged scientist. The core loop revolves around a charge-based jump system: the longer the player presses the joystick, the greater the power behind the leap, making both height and horizontal distance a matter of timing and feel. Navigating each of the four levels—which collectively contain well over a hundred rooms per stage—demands constant attention to this mechanic, as mutant creatures lurking in the corridors will sap Bob's energy on contact. A simple ball of wool serves as his only offensive tool, temporarily stunning foes rather than destroying them. Progression hinges on a cage-and-key structure: six caged cats per level must be freed using scattered keys, and those same keys can also pry open hidden chambers stocked with powerups, extra lives, or the mad scientist's dubious potions, some of which carry harmful side effects. Food replenishes energy, jewels pad the score, and temporary abilities like flight, invisibility, or damage immunity keep the pace varied. Should Bob exhaust his energy, hit a spike trap, or plummet too far, one of his nine lives is forfeited.

Development & Creative Vision

9 Lives emerged from ARC, the in-house software arm of Atari Corporation, and shipped for both the Amiga and Atari ST in November 1990. Designer Graham 'Kenny' Everett has spoken about the project's motivation: he felt that cartoon-styled games had been conspicuously absent from the computer gaming landscape, a gap he found puzzling given how naturally the medium lent itself to animation. His goal was to marry slapstick, comical characters with a fast, responsive gameplay loop—something he believed prior cartoon attempts had failed to deliver. The protagonist's name, Bob Cat, was a nod to Bob Katz, a colleague on the ARC team, grounding the project in the studio's own culture. The game's visual language was deliberately bold and expressive, favoring exaggerated character animation over photorealism or pixel-art restraint. Beyond its initial retail run, the Atari ST edition found a second life in 1991 when it was bundled into the Discovery Xtra compilation, extending its reach to players who might not have purchased it standalone. For a mid-tier studio title, 9 Lives carried a clear authorial voice and a specific design philosophy that set it apart from the licensed-character platformers dominating the era.

A Divided Critical Consensus

Reviews of 9 Lives split sharply along the axis of presentation versus playability. On one side, publications like ST Action lauded the game's originality and inventiveness, while The One drew a pointed comparison to licensed-character platformers, arguing 9 Lives set the standard those titles ought to have met. Amiga Action's Steve Merret called it a superb platforming adventure with painstakingly crafted sprite work, and Atari ST User described it as a treat that radiated charm. The game's Looney Tunes-style comedy and Tom-and-Jerry energy were recurring highlights. On the other side, the same charge-based jump that gave the game its identity was panned as nearly unplayable. Amiga Format called the mechanic almost impossible in practice, Datormagazin labeled the game utterly impossible and tiresome, and Power Play dismissed it as antiquated with amateurish execution. Amiga Joker cited sloppy control response and choppy screen scrolling, while Aktueller Software Markt found the handling clumsy and the price unjustified. Even within a single outlet, opinions diverged: Doug Simmons of Amiga Action found the gameplay extremely clunky and did not enjoy it at all. Music drew particular scorn from ASM and Power Play, and Pelit flagged the Amiga version's limited color palette.

Cartoon Aesthetic & Animation

From the outset, 9 Lives was conceived as a visual statement. Designer Graham 'Kenny' Everett explicitly set out to prove that cartoon-style animation could coexist with tight, fast-paced platforming in a computer game—a combination he felt had been overlooked. The result is a world of exaggerated, bouncy characters whose movements carry the rhythmic slapstick of classic animated shorts. Critics repeatedly invoked the language of mid-century cartoons: Amiga Format saw a Tom-and-Jerry sensibility, ST Format recognized Looney Tunes-style humor, and Atari ST User felt the title radiated charm. ST Action highlighted the breadth of animations and sprite work, while Amiga Action's Merret singled out the painstaking care given to character animation. The art direction favored bold, readable shapes and expressive poses over subtlety, giving Bob Cat and his caged companions a distinct personality that set them apart from the more generic heroes of contemporary platformers. Even detractors acknowledged the visual polish; Amiga Joker called the graphics neat, and Raze found them impressive. The one consistent visual criticism was the Amiga version's constrained color palette, which Pelit felt held back an otherwise lively presentation.

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