Stray Review (Switch)
Summary: Stray is an adventure puzzle game where humans are long gone and the world is governed by robots. Trot around as a cat to find out what happend and if that means getting your claws dirty...then so be it! A rich narrative and creative soundtrack set the pawfect atmosphere to roam in. The Switch's inability to run laborious tasks efficiently are still noticeable, but the lazing strive of a cute feline overshadows all!
3.5
Clawsome
Cats, and robots, and Zurks, oh my! Stray is an adventure puzzle platforming game developed by BlueTwelve Studio, published by Annapurna Interactive and initially released on July 19th of 2022 on various consoles, but now as of November 19th of 2024, has been released on the Nintendo Switch. Stray sees you conquering a desolate and abandoned land as a cat. As a precious orange feline, you can interact with your environment around you in ways that you normally couldn’t in your typical adventure game where you play as a bipedal individual. While playing as an animal has its perks and advantages, it also has its fair share of drawbacks. In a world with no humans, find out how to survive, what it means to be alive, and where to find your next scratching post.
The story in Stray starts out with a group of cat friends huddling in shelter while it rains. After the rain stops, they all go off exploring in an area known as Inside the Wall. The protagonist ginger tabby falls into a deep crevice after slipping due to a faulty loose pipe. After recovering from the tumble, the only way forward is through a mysterious and intense underground society of dispirited robots. You end up saving a small flying machine named B-12 that is missing its memories and the unlikely duo meander around locale to locale to find a way back up to the surface.
The narrative has some deep ideas, but is presented in a very digestible fashion. The civilization of robots is interesting as it is already, but the way it is thoughtfully dispensed throughout your journey is heartfelt and engaging. Playing the game and watching events take place through the eyes and position of being a cat is also amusing, but your drive and mystery of the game sort of shrivels up the further you get into it. The subtext isn’t anything groundbreaking but it is noteworthy of how well motifs, thematic values, and symbolic parallels are done by looking at the overall package of Stray.
As a cat, you can dart around, pick up objects, and jump to high places. Your small body allows you to weave between metal bars and shimmy along banisters making traversing around this metallic zone entertaining. A lot of puzzle solving requires you to do things like picking up buckets to interrupt spinning fans, pulling out power boxes, and using your leaping skills to reach incredible distances. B-12 acts as your flashlight, holds items in your inventory, and helps you interact with the other robots. You can let someone see a notebook you found for a hint or complete sidequests to gain even more items. Scattered around the world are glowing objects that indicate a memory in which you can steadily help B-12 recover.
While it is pleasing to investigate as a cat, the puzzles and more intricate parts of the game are pretty lackluster. There is nothing incredibly inventive or significant in terms of actually participating in playing the game other than the fact that you are playing and traversing these areas as a cat. It never feels rewarding either. Besides moving forward and watching the story unfold, there is nothing to unlock and practically no replay value other than trying to find all of the collectibles.
For all of the cat enthusiasts, you will be happy that Stray’s representation of a cat is highly accurate. There are couches and doors you can scratch to your heart’s content, paint cans and bottles you can swipe at until they fall over, and cozy nooks and crannies you can take quick cat naps in. There is also a dedicated meow button you can continuously press for absolutely no reason if you want. Meowing does serve the function of drawing attention to you when you are up against the bug like creatures known as the Zurks. These little round creepy-crawlers consume absolutely anything and serve as the main antagonists of the game. Coming into contact can almost certainly be your doom if you don’t mash the corresponding button fast enough to shake them off. Meowing will get their attention if you need to herd them in a certain direction so you can finish a puzzle or reach a new ledge.
Graphically, the game looks and runs well enough on the Switch. Running too fast through an area loads some things slowly and the game might have a slight hiccup after reaching a new area, but with how detailed the world is and how well everything blends in with each other, it’s hard to even notice or care about. I did have a fair amount of slowdown during more momentous parts of the game or if there were a lot of enemies running around and while that was expected, it is still cumbersome. The sheen of a fridge or the polish of a window may not be as intricate as in other versions of the game but the meticulous design and inventful artstyle outshine the Switch’s shortcomings.
The game’s sound design is amazing. The pitter patter of the cat’s paws on all of the varying surfaces sounds great. The buzzing and zapping of all the robots and other electronics brings you into this cold forsaken circumstance even more. The soundtrack is stellar, perfectly encapsulates the game as a whole, and is my favorite component of the entire game. There are some really eerie tracks that portray a sense of abandonment and loss perfectly. The music does a remarkable job at expressing wonder and intrigue.
Final Thoughts?
Stray is able to pull some innovative ideas in neat ways. It is creative in how you can run around these levels and interact with your environment. There does seem to be some curing factor in just roaming the world as a cat. Inadequate challenge and reward mixed with the limitations of the hardware may sour your experience, but the attention to detail, fun designs, interesting narrative, and fantastic music lighten these burdens. Save the future by protecting the past in this pawsome tail of a time!
About the Author
Nay Clark Gaming holds a special place in my heart and I never stop talking about video games. I really love all types of games and have an interest in games that have complicated stories and lore because I enjoy untangling the mystery of it all. When I'm not gaming, I unsuccessfully try to control three amazing and incredibly bright kids.
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