Last year, Alex Tudor reviewed Stray for the PlayStation 5 and found an intriguing adventure that was mainly driven by playing a cat in a larger-than-normal cat video game experience. It’s a sentiment that most of us can agree on wholeheartedly. Playing as a cat is something you don’t get to do too often with a story-driven game. Don’t get me wrong, I love playing Catlateral Damage from Manekoware but having a heavy-hearted story like Stray puts it above all other video game cat experiences.
I can’t believe I typed that last sentence. It was so satisfying.
Anyway, BlueTwelve Studio and Annapurna Interactive probably knew what they had with Stray before it was even announced. It’s a game that puts the player in control of a cat that is adventuring through a bleak and robot-populated world that survives on distant memories of what was rather than what could be. It’s a cautionary tale of sorts and one that echoes the sad sentiments that we’re living through right now with climate change and possible extinction. The bright spot is the cat carries hope and is potentially the last human as a robot companion. Surely something good comes out of this, right? Dibs on being the robot with a cat when the world goes to shit. Called it.
Stretch those claws, scratch that post, and let’s mosey into this review.
The story is the cat’s meow
While Alex has a great point about the story being nothing new and improved, it’s still overwhelming with this sense of dread and destruction that is difficult to ignore. While journeying through the story of Stray, I never found comfort in what is assumed to have happened in the world once cybercities started showing up. There are remnants of the past everywhere, and it just adds to the entire ambiance of separation that the story perpetuates around every corner. The underworld of cybercities seems separated from the world above. The robots inhabiting those cities are continually looking for someone they have lost. The main character, our wonderful cat, is separated from his family at the very beginning which just piles this reoccurring notion higher and higher. It’s such a heavy theme of separation that the story forces you to watch, look, and emotionally attach yourself to the experience. It’s haunting as it is breathtaking.
But Alex’s point is valid. The game doesn’t do anything special that we haven’t seen in other stories of its type. Your hero is separated from friends and family, and they must go through a series of trials before they can potentially make it home. This screams The Odyssey on so many levels that it’s easy to compare it to Homer’s magnum opus. It’s a journey for the cat with a series of trials and puzzles laid before them, and they must overcome it all before they can even hope to see their clowder. Having said that, the shoe fits with the story structure and you walk away from this game feeling that you went on a worthwhile journey.
I enjoyed the story as far as I could. There was a heavy amount of sadness and dread that came with it, and a hearty amount of sorrow for all the robots left behind or mistreated. Being the cat in this story was the safest and happiest bet you could make to finishing the journey when compared to everyone else involved with it. Because of the dread, the sorrow, and the little bit of hope from the cat, the story built from those bones easily became attached to me – the good, the bad, and the ugly. Anyway, this story is good, yet it is nothing special, but that journey is wonderful, even in its clouded sadness.
Gameplay that purrs
The gameplay in Stray is easy in its design. You walk around like a cat, try to figure out how to get places, and you encounter puzzles and danger when it calls for it in the story. The additional robot buddy acquired at the beginning of the game helps to connect the cat to the cybercities and its inhabitants, which also helps build a solid bridge between the feline adventure and the robot interactions.
Starting with the basic gameplay, moving the cat from place to place is not at all difficult. You jump with the cat, you navigate through tight spaces, and you basically do whatever a cat would do given the sci-fi scenario. The cat’s actions are ground-level and easy to pick up on. The maneuvering is simple, and nothing is particularly questionable about ‘if a cat can do ‘whatever it is the game asks you to do. You’re a cat through and through. This does include knocking shit off shelves and scratching up floors, walls, doors, and even furniture. Again, you’re a cat. The game simulates this well.
Basic cat controls aside, what makes the cat complicated is when they find their robot buddy, who brings a few tricks to the table. The robot translates robot text and talk, scans hidden secrets that seem to lie everywhere, and can even go as far as repel baddies with UV rays when the time calls for it. The robot also collects items, can reveal and store memories, and can barter with robots. The robot truly does all the work when it comes to interactive moments or resolutions to perilous situations. That’s not to say that a cat running and jumping isn’t going to save both their butts, but for the most part, the robot buddy is your key to success with a lot of the puzzles, and trials and tribulations. Both characters balance each other out beautifully during gameplay, and both connect like you would want them to connect. I loved this about the gameplay and felt like the balance complemented both character designs as it relates to the gameplay.
As for the puzzles, the game doesn’t try to stump you. It wants you to experience what it is like being a cat and doesn’t want your gameplay to be brought down by overly complicated puzzles or mysteries. It also has a story to tell and a journey to complete, so you’re not going to find any stumping moments in the puzzle portion of the game. For example, there is a sewer stage early on, where the cat must traverse a nasty sewer while repelling Half-Life-like creatures. The puzzle is to find an exit to create an entrance to allow for another robot to progress. While the puzzle is somewhat time-consuming, it isn’t so complicated that it puts the brakes on the journey. It might feel a little difficult, but it never truly blooms into frustration. When this portion of the gameplay was wrapped, it did feel just a tad too long, but the progression of the story was a solid reward for the time and effort spent on the puzzle. That stage was gorgeous as it was horrifying, and also respectful of the journey.
The gameplay with Stray is simple and satisfying. The story leads it, but the immersive experience of being a cat in a worn-down world pushes it all along at a good pace. The addition of a lovely robot buddy helps to bring purpose and connection to the game’s world. The puzzles in that world and along that journey create road bumps but never formed roadblocks. Overall, this is great gameplay that delivers an Annapurna Interactive expected level of intrigue and entertainment.
Xbox version
Just as good as the PlayStation 5 version. The petty console wars that go on nowadays take away the joy of seeing such an amazing game finally make it to Microsoft’s struggling console. It needs great games like Stray and the gamers who side with the Xbox deserve it. We should all hope for more games like this on all consoles.
Anyway, the game looks spectacular on the Xbox Series X. You get all the ray tracing that you want with it, with solid neon lighting that reflects off the buildings and characters, as well as wonderful reflections you’ll find consistently in the water. This looks like a current-generation game, and it pulls that personality off without blinking an eye.
The environments that are in Stray are equally as gorgeous, as most of the cityscapes and underworld lands you explore contain depth and life, and put you there. It has everything you would want with visuals in the landscapes, and you’re only missing the smelliness that most of the areas the cat and robot explore give off. It’s all quite visually impressive.
Anyway, the Xbox Series X is a powerful system, folks, and that power is on full display with Stray. You shouldn’t miss this one.
On that note, let’s wrap this up and curl up under a window somewhere.
Conclusion
Even though Stray from BlueTwelve Studio has been out for a year, it’s still a joy to play on the Xbox Series X. The story is still a wonderful journey, the gameplay is still easy-peasy, and the visuals are still out of this-world gorgeous.
