Things You Need to Know About Stray

GamesRadar

Who doesn't love cats? Who doesn't love games? Who doesn't love cat games? But there's more to this cat simulator than it seems and here's 4 reasons why.

Transcript

00:00This is Stray, a beautiful, bold indie that is part platformer, part puzzle game and all

00:13sorts of perfect, especially if you're somewhat familiar with felines. Here's what else we

00:18learned during our preview about Stray's story, gameplay and it's astonishingly realistic

00:22feline protagonist.

00:28Stray puts you in the paws of a cat who has been separated from his family and somehow

00:32ends up in a neon-soaked world inhabited only by robots. Martin Rege purposely avoided telling

00:38us any real story details aside from the fact that this protagonist is a stranger in a strange

00:43land and is trying to make his way through it to be reunited with his feline family members.

00:49There are several levels that players will make their way through and although Stray's

00:53story progression is linear, there's room to explore and discover. It'll take about

00:577-8 hours to finish at what Martin Rege calls a normal pace and closer to 9-10 for more

01:02curious exploratory players.

01:05Think of Stray as yet another one of publisher Annapurna's brilliant linear storytelling

01:09feats that superbly blends tight and simple gameplay, sort of like last year's The Art

01:14of Escape. There's platforming but here it's more feline focused than about pulling off

01:19well-timed jumps. You can't really mess up as Blue Twirl felt doing so would be decidedly

01:24un-cat-like. Players can use the tried and true cat method of knocking stuff off shelves

01:30to help with simple puzzles and jump in a can attached to a rope as an elevator of sorts.

01:35Later on in the game you'll get an adorable backpack outfitted with a drone called B-12

01:39who can translate the alien language scattered around the environments, shine a light wherever

01:44it's needed and remind you of your objectives.

01:49In one sequence the cat slides down a swamp water filled reservoir on a cart, steering

01:54his way through it to avoid hitting walls and these weird little bug robots that can

01:59kill you. I asked for clarity from Martin Rage on this specifically but I'm only told

02:04there are several places where you can be killed by enemies but the cat, thankfully,

02:09instantly respawns.

02:10We're not aiming for a hard game, he reassures. Expect the story to progress with a nice,

02:15steady rhythm.

02:19Rage is a gamified love letter to cats, one that I reckon cat owners worldwide will flock

02:24to just to find out how impressively real this little cat is.

02:28During our preview we watch the protagonist push paint cans off ledges, lap up water,

02:33nap on a robot's chest, sleeping forms the majority of a cat schedule so that's obviously

02:38something you can do in the game, and do a sleepy stretch post nap.

02:42During the preview Martin Rage assures us that you can still be a cat and be very annoying

02:47to everyone, as he jumps up onto a surface where robots are playing some kind of tabletop

02:52game, sending chips flying everywhere. They beep angrily in response and over a minute

02:57later they're still picking up the chips as the little orange tabby trots on.

03:01There's even an opportunity to use the triggers on your controller to pull on the back of

03:05a couch, something every cat owner knows is a cat's favourite pastime.

03:09When playing on the PS5, the cat's purrs will emanate from the speaker in the DualSense

03:14controller, which will also gently vibrate so it feels like you have a cat in your hands.

03:21And the cat itself has been designed and animated with attention and affection by a sole animator

03:26at BlueTwelve known as Miko. Miko's sphinx cats served as inspiration for their animations,

03:32which are so lifelike and detailed they will amaze you, from its adorable little trot,

03:36to the very specific tip of the tail twitch that all cat owners know so well.

03:41The attention to detail is so impressive thanks to BlueTwelve's universal love of cats, not

03:45only are many of the team cat owners, but there are even office cats who wander around

03:50during production. Thanks to their incomparable in real life references, the team can see

03:55small details that aren't working properly to ensure this cat is like no other game cat

04:00you've ever seen.

04:01Having cats around us is really helpful because we get so used to seeing them move around

04:05we can instantly see when something is a bit off with the animation, or if a sound is not

04:10really convincing, or if a certain situation is too unrealistic for an actual cat, Martin

04:15Roger explains. When asked if they're paid fairly for their efforts, he quips, they're

04:20paying us, they're the boss of the studio.

04:22Stray releases July 19th for PS4, PS5 and PC.

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