by The air of the city is thin, dirty . The remnants of a previous civilization occupy the narrow streets filled with eggs of strange creatures that are contaminating everything. The starlight (?) Is reflected in the eyes of an injured kitten , struggling due to a bad fall that forces him to take refuge from threats. Thus begins Stray , the adventure of a cat with an orange fur left without company and deprived of the rays of the real sun. Annapurna Interactive gives us an unprecedented adventure , simple in the plot but at the same time built with great detail, some interesting, others very funny. Having said that, follow us in our review!
Stray, nine lifetimes business
It is immediately clear that the cat shown several times during the marketing campaign is just a means, a means to discover the world that the developers have built. But, in the strictest sense, there is a real protagonist (whom we will give you the pleasure of discovering) whose events are deeply linked with those of the City , which can be explored far and wide, above and below. Stray ‘s storyit tells itself, linear and unpretentious, but at the same time interesting and mysterious. The events unfold in several open area sections, for a period of time ranging from 2 to 9 hours. Yes, the short duration rumors were correct but we can assure you that you will enjoy every single moment. You will not only have to climb with feline agility, but also interact with the NPCs , explore and solve puzzles and assemble very special mechanisms.
Solid gameplay net of specific improvements
The developers of Annapurna have devised a movement system and a super-simplified control scheme. The cat climbs and descends from obstacles and walls with the push of a single button and this will be at the center of 90% of the actions to be taken. That said, we would have preferred greater control of the cat’s movements, perhaps separating the commands for ascent and descent and not limiting these interactions to specific highlighted surfaces.
In the second line there will be the interactions with the NPCs of the game world, which will not occupy more than two buttons in total. In this regard, Stray offers us little variety: we will mainly have to recover hidden objects in the surrounding environment or sell the correct ones based on contextualized requests. The good thing is that, given the (justifiably) short duration, the little variety mentioned above will not weigh on the player at all.
Stray’s world
Annapurna ‘s art direction of the game has nothing to envy to productions with a much higher budget. The city comes to life thanks to the neon signs, graffiti and the robots themselves that populate it. There will be two macro areas that can be explored plus all the secondary ones, each of them unique and unforgettable. It comes almost natural to notice how, at least in appearance, the quality and density of the settings drops slightly as you progress through the adventure, but nothing too serious.
Everything is enhanced by an impeccable level design : each tube, machine or box is placed in a specific point. The paths to be taken are highlighted but never in a clear and invasive way. Last but not least, the point about animations. We would like to praise the work done on cat movements . At first glance we were struck by the natural way the cat moves, giving incision to the shoulder blades that alternate, or to the tail that sways or stands up when frightened. Sprints, jumps and landings are produced in an equally remarkable way to give our beloved kitty everything it takes to look real!
Raise your ears
Stray ‘s music is beautiful and inspired. Without going into too much detail, we can tell you that in the early stages of the adventure you will find yourself literally immersed in music . Interesting melodies, particular ones or simply that refer to easter eggs . All this will happen, we would like to say it, only if you have the desire to explore and extend your stay in the City and explore every corner of it. As if that were not enough, the same Dualsense of the Playstation 5it was programmed to surprise us with the cat’s meowing, or complaining; or, again, with simple contextual vibrations that help to immerse yourself in the game world and in what it wants to tell.
In conclusion
Stray is a great Annapurna product . Fresh , refined and at the same time simple and never boring, thanks to the short duration. The city is artfully built, between claustrophobic alleys and neon signs that come to life under the whiskers of our feline. We recommend the game to all those who prefer linear games or simply to cat lovers.
We remind you that Stray is available from 19 July on Playstation 4 , Playstation 5 and PC . The game is developed by Annapurna Interactive . At our command will be a cat who, separated from the rest of his fellows, will have to face the threats of a dangerous City left in the hands of the droids. Will you be able to learn all its secrets?
And you, what do you think? Will you try Stray on your system?
