'The World of CD-i' reviews a copy of the unreleased CD-i title 'Felix the Cat' - a kids title from 1995

 

Did you know you can play the unreleased CD-i title 'Felix the Cat' in the Home Computer Museum in Helmond? It is another CD-i title that never saw the light of day, but a few prototypes are available. In September 2020, CD-i member Michiel Roos took a look at it here. But today, CD-i member Omegalfa (Luis Mota) made an extensive review of the game for his site, The World of CD-i. That means we can enjoy a lot of high quality screenshots, as you can see here.

 

Felix the Cat was an interactive cartoon /storybook, including small activities/minigames. It was developed in 1995 by David Armstrong and he actually used original Felix the Cat comics as a source. The title was published by EMG Publishing, there is no Philips label on the box. Until now, we have seen two blanc CDR (original) prototypes of Felix the Cat, dated 1995, as well as a white label demonstration disc, which indicates that the game was indeed finished. The reason why EMG Publishing never released the title or why Philips never picked it up, remains a mystery until now.

 

The date, 1995, might indicate that if it was developed in USA, it reached the end of life cycle of CD-i. When we look into the history files, EMG Publishing is credited for publishing the Windows game 'Atmosfear: The Third Dimension', based on the boardgame. EMG Publishing seems to work with partners to distribute their titles, so it is possible Philips planned to distribute the title, this has often to do with licensing. We have a copy in our archive, building up a unique collection of original CD-i prototypes.
 

 

 

In the end, this Felix the Cat title was only published on CD-ROM, also by Philips Media. Around 1995, this was a more important pillar for Philips Media as CD-i was already declining: