Stray is better known as "the cat game". A game that was showcased at a Sony State of Play and left people confused because it just showed a cat walking around a cyberpunk-ish world filled with robot people, and not much else.
Now the game is out on Playstation and Steam and it's....well you play a cat. Just a cat. Not a talking cat, not a cat with super powers of any kind, a literal house cat. As a result the game plays a lot like it looked in that original trailer, you walk around, jump on stuff, and general do cat-type things.
Essentially you are a cat in a post-apocalyptic/cyberpunk type world living with your homies when an accident has you fall into a city behind the sewers. You are stranded and alone suddenly in what appears to be an abandoned city. As you explore a little you're first encounter with anything in the game is actually headcrabs from Half-life, little alien fuckers that chase you into a safe part of this underground city. Here you'll meet the robot people living out their lives much the same way people would. They run bars, laundrymats, make clothing, play guitar in the street, etc. There is an aura of oppression to what they do as well as an aura of futility as it seems like they are going through human-like motions out of habit rather than any kind of need. It's an interesting set up.
As the cat, you will walk around, jump onto things, solve some minor puzzles, and escape the headcrabs throughout the game. The first puzzle segment is you downloading consciousness into a small robot companion who serves as the voice for both the cat and the player. This robot is how you interact with NPC's, get quests, gather items, etc. Ultimately Stray plays like a point and click adventure with free-roam to it. You see, there is no jump button in the game, despite you having to jump onto things for puzzles jumpping is only possible at specific points throughout the world and done automatically. Apparently the devs didn't want the awkward movement of a cat to frustrate players by them missing a jump do to strange positioning or whatever. So you can't miss jumps.
That's about all there is to it. OF course there are some nice little cat things you can do like nuzzle the robot people's legs (which they react adorably to), scratch up couches and carpets, and there is a button dedicated to meowing. But ultimately you are a cat and that limits where the game can go and what it can have you do. There is no combat, but there is a little bit of stealth.
That being said, the game doesn't outstay it's welcome as it's only about 3-4 hours long or much less if you b-line through the missions. At the end of the game I felt disappointed that there wasn't more to it. I mean I'm just a fucking cat so what could they realistically do? But still it feels like a little novelty game with a pretty world but the plot is predictable from the moment you see the headcrabs so I didn't find the story all that satisfying.
Thankfully the game is free on PS+ because otherwise it is NOT worth $30 bucks imo, unless you REALLY REALLY like cats and are okay with a point and click adventure that's very short and not super replayable.
Now the game is out on Playstation and Steam and it's....well you play a cat. Just a cat. Not a talking cat, not a cat with super powers of any kind, a literal house cat. As a result the game plays a lot like it looked in that original trailer, you walk around, jump on stuff, and general do cat-type things.
Essentially you are a cat in a post-apocalyptic/cyberpunk type world living with your homies when an accident has you fall into a city behind the sewers. You are stranded and alone suddenly in what appears to be an abandoned city. As you explore a little you're first encounter with anything in the game is actually headcrabs from Half-life, little alien fuckers that chase you into a safe part of this underground city. Here you'll meet the robot people living out their lives much the same way people would. They run bars, laundrymats, make clothing, play guitar in the street, etc. There is an aura of oppression to what they do as well as an aura of futility as it seems like they are going through human-like motions out of habit rather than any kind of need. It's an interesting set up.
As the cat, you will walk around, jump onto things, solve some minor puzzles, and escape the headcrabs throughout the game. The first puzzle segment is you downloading consciousness into a small robot companion who serves as the voice for both the cat and the player. This robot is how you interact with NPC's, get quests, gather items, etc. Ultimately Stray plays like a point and click adventure with free-roam to it. You see, there is no jump button in the game, despite you having to jump onto things for puzzles jumpping is only possible at specific points throughout the world and done automatically. Apparently the devs didn't want the awkward movement of a cat to frustrate players by them missing a jump do to strange positioning or whatever. So you can't miss jumps.
That's about all there is to it. OF course there are some nice little cat things you can do like nuzzle the robot people's legs (which they react adorably to), scratch up couches and carpets, and there is a button dedicated to meowing. But ultimately you are a cat and that limits where the game can go and what it can have you do. There is no combat, but there is a little bit of stealth.
That being said, the game doesn't outstay it's welcome as it's only about 3-4 hours long or much less if you b-line through the missions. At the end of the game I felt disappointed that there wasn't more to it. I mean I'm just a fucking cat so what could they realistically do? But still it feels like a little novelty game with a pretty world but the plot is predictable from the moment you see the headcrabs so I didn't find the story all that satisfying.
Thankfully the game is free on PS+ because otherwise it is NOT worth $30 bucks imo, unless you REALLY REALLY like cats and are okay with a point and click adventure that's very short and not super replayable.
