Launched initially as a PlayStation exclusive, Annapurna Interactive’s Stray took a simple premise and ran with it. In a post-apocalyptic world, what happens to the animals we love? In the case of one orange cat central to the game, the answer is that you transcend a stray’s life and solve mysteries about a world similar yet unrecognizable to our own. Now arriving for the Xbox Series X, Stray tells a story that relies little on dialogue but packs quite the punch.

Stray opens with a heartbreaking scene of the player’s cat getting separated from its herd of strays. It’s your job to help our orange friend traverse the neon-lit streets of a city seemingly deserted to robots and victim to an infestation of bug-like creatures. In the course of my six hours playing through the story, I found that this seemingly minimalist premise and setup allowed for satisfying gameplay and great story beats, all without much dialogue.

Stray’s controls feel tight (as they should) while controlling the cat. Things feel responsive when you’re given the option to jump or interact with objects in the world. You’re never struggling in this game to do what you know you’re supposed to do. For that, the development team at BlueTwelve Studio deserves praise. I’ve played one too many games where you’re simply moving around environments to progress the story and you feel as if you’re fighting to get from one spot to the next due to clunky controls.

Visually, Stray also succeeds in hitting its mark by giving you elements of a futuristic world that seem like ours but clearly has different implications and elements. As you unravel the story of this city and its isolation from the outside world around it, you’re seeing world-building take place in subtle yet strong ways. It’s storytelling at its finest without the actual act of being told a story. Anyone enjoying the latest wave of cozy walking simulators will definitely feel at home in Stray‘s neo-urban world.

That said, you’re not just walking in Stray. Creative yet easy-to-solve puzzles keep you moving through the story in a way that doesn’t provide much challenge but still holds your interest. Stray isn’t meant to push your abilities to the brink. Rather, puzzles serve as a way to explore rooms, alleys, and spaces that give you insight into what sort of world you’re exploring. It’s a clever way to extend the game’s mission of figuring out what’s going on in this city by simply having you see more of its finer details.

Visually, Stray isn’t offering jaw-dropping set pieces that make you grateful for the powerful console on which you’re playing. Instead, the art direction is so precise that everything about this world feels like you’ve been in it before in the best way. There’s a certain welcoming feeling when you emerge in the heart of this cyber city. Not because you’re home, but because there’s seemingly everything you need to find your way through this journey within reach.

There’s a lot to love in Stray, and other than its short duration, there’s so much to love here. From the simple details of being a cat like meowing or scratching rugs, to the way in which your ability as a cat allows you to do things other city inhabitants can’t, Stray is a wonderful immersive experience that provides you with curiosity and calm from start to finish.

An Xbox Series X|S review copy of Stray was provided by Annapurna Interactive for this review.

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Stray

$29.99 USD

8.5

Score

8.5/10

Pros

• Immersive sci-fi world
• Tight controls and great game direction
• Small touches make the game feel very purposeful
• Visuals look stellar on the Xbox Series X

Cons

• Short experience