Puss in Boots is a game based on the computer-animated film of the same name. The film in turn is a spin-off of the Shrek series as it stars one of minor characters as the protagonist; the feline hero Puss in Boots. The story is set before the events of the film Shrek 2 before Puss meets Shrek and Donkey. Puss is a wanted outlaw and discovers that the couple Jack and Jill have found the magic beans he has been looking for all his life, a reference to fairy tale of Jack and the Beanstalk . The beans are said to lead to treasure in a giant's castle, which Puss intends to use to repay the debts he made to his home town of San Ricardo.
The gameplay follows the events from the film. As Puss, the player controls the cat from a third-person perspective and must defeat many bandits. The game is an action game where movement is controlled through the player's movements using a Wii Remote for the PlayStation 3 , Kinect for the Xbox 360, or Move for the PlayStation 3 . Puss can wield a saber, block incoming slashes, kick enemies to make room, and attack with claws. The latter two are activated through a gauge that is filled up by attacking enemies. Kicking opponents into certain pieces of scenery containing traps often rewards coins.
The gameplay involves exploring a linear 3D environment, climbing ladders, jumping, dodging, breaking objects, hanging from ledges, balancing on ropes, and gliding on rails. The cut-scenes between missions are in 2D. In other sequences, Puss has to sneak around without being spotted, do a dance battle with the masked cat Kitty Softpaws who is also after the beans, ride a piece of luggage tied to a stage-coach through a canyon, and glide over a beanstalk. Players can collect nine wanted posters and nine golden eggs throughout the game.
In the end, each level ends with the player being rated with a bronze, silver or gold medal, and there are nine missions in total, set in different locations. Next to the main adventure mode is a challenge mode for up to two players with five mini-games based on gameplay mechanics from the adventure mode.