Stray is an adventure game where you play as a cat. I enjoyed the unusual perspective, which re-contextualizes environments as places to jump, knock stuff over, and scratch. However, the game suffers from several major problems.
The game sets itself up for failure by refusing to commit to its central motif of "you are a cat" by quickly giving you a drone helper. The drone's kitty backpack immediately obscures the cat I actually wanted to play as, and the drone itself translates the speech of other characters, mangling any attempt at individual personalities as the dialog all appears to come from the drone.
The game is at its best when highlighting your abilities as a cat: scratching can be done for fun, 'cause you're a cat, but also acts as a mechanic to strategically ruin certain machines to advance the plot. This is unique and interesting, so it's surprising how often the game relies on your drone companion to perform adventure game cliches that a cat cannot do. If I wanted to trade someone a drink for a lever, I can play literally any other adventure game. I wish it stuck to its kitty appeal far more.
The design of the bacterial antagonists is generic and uninspired, seeming to come from a different game entirely. Your metal allies, and enemies, are virtually identical and are neither grounded in a realistic design, nor charming caricatures. It's not sure if it wants to be Astrobot or Blade Runner and doesn't have the imagination to stand on its own.
The narrative plot beats are similarly unable to string together any kind of meaningful development, for either the cat, the city you are trapped in, or any of the "antagonists." One character who you have a single bland conversation with is betrayed by another who you have a single bland conversation with, and the game tries to play the moment for dramatic effect with gaming's least-earned cutscene.
I am really surprised at the near-universal praise this game has gotten, as to me it is pretty mediocre and forgettable.
