![]() ![]() “Stray” adds more stealth elements toward the finale, and this is where the campaign becomes more difficult. Video game companies mark April Fools’ Day with events and faux products Often, there’s just one solution and the developers make it fairly obvious by an interaction. The puzzles aren’t too difficult to figure out and involve finding ways to enter a closed shop or distracting a shop owner long enough to steal a jacket. ![]() ![]() ![]() The main missions involve this cadre and they feature heavier puzzle and action elements. (Annapurna Interactive)Īlthough it’s enjoyable to play as a stray, BlueTwelve endows the campaign with a sense of urgency as the cat and B-12 find a group of robot rebels called the Outsiders who tried to venture beyond the walls. The cat in “Stray” meets a bot called B-12, which has a fascinating history. They’ll even knock pots and other items off shelves, a devilishly fun activity in a video game but a huge annoyance in real life. They’ll find rugs to paw at and nooks to nap in. Players’ natural curiosity will let them discover that doors and couches can be scratching posts. That in itself is an appealing part of “Stray.” The rich environment is conducive to letting players imagine life as a cat, turning the game into a cat simulator of sorts. These activities aren’t complicated or hugely rewarding, but it gives players an excuse to venture around the exquisitely detailed world. Those simple tasks reward the cat with badges that are displayed on the harness the cat wears. They’ll uncover side quests such as finding sheet music for a guitarist or collecting flowers for a gardener. As the cat, players have to help the robots who have managed to build a semblance of society underground. Traversal isn’t free and easy instead, it’s built for a methodical approach that dovetails with the more cerebral gameplay. Players can use the cat’s preternatural balance and agility to prowl the maze of pipes or hopscotch across air conditioners jutting out of walls. The alleyways, railings and balconies in the enclosed city are a perfect feline playground. “Stray” sucks players into its hypnotic cyberpunk world. Walled City 99 offers a perfect playground for the cat in “Stray.” (Annapurna Interactive) It’s a six-hour adventure, but the developers at BlueTwelve Studio pack so much care and style into the environment and storytelling that players won’t mind the short length. With the spritely bot’s help, they’ll uncover the secrets of Walled City 99, and the fate of the people who once lived there. It’s a bizarre situation that the cat has to navigate, but as players venture through the campaign’s 12 chapters, they’ll have help in the form of a drone named B-12. All that’s left are robots, which have sentience and act almost like people, and cute but voracious creatures called Zurks. The cat’s goal is to return to its friends, but it will have to venture through the dilapidated streets and apartment buildings of the seemingly deserted city. Robots in “Stray” accept the cat as a matter of course, and they take the little creature in stride. It’s a third-person - or perhaps I should say third-kitty - adventure game, where players take on the role of a nameless feline that’s separated from its friends after making a bad jump and falling into a mysterious underground facility called Walled City 99. “Stray” has captured players’ hearts and emerged as the game of the summer. Projects starring cats are few and far between, and those games haven’t really stood out - until now. But in the world of video games, felines have been criminally underrepresented. They’re the subject of memes, card games and even have their own day. ![]()
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