Parents' Guide to

Stray

By Paul Semel, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 10+

Clever cat climbing game set in futuristic city.

Game PlayStation 5 , PlayStation 4 , Windows 2022
Stray Video Game

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this game.

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age 9+

Based on 7 parent reviews

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Normal Parent of 11-year-old
July 20, 2022
age 7+

Dystopian adventure game, starring a cat.

I just finished the game and had a blast. I was in part evaluating the game for my step-daughter who is an avid cat lover. My wife was a little concerned about some of the instances where the cat gets briefly injured, but it’s back on its feet in no time. So aside from a little tugging at the heartstrings as the cat limps for a minute or two, it’s fine. The story does get a little dark mid-to-late game. There’s some possibly scary environments that you make your way through. As well as some light “combat” and stealth gameplay. But nothing that would be out of place in a PG Disney movie, so I feel that it’s appropriate for the kids. There are a few scenarios where the cat can die, but it’s just the screen going red before a quick reload from the auto save. There’s no blood or gruesome imagery. The gameplay and puzzles can potentially be frustrating. There’s some light hints in-game (via the robot/drone companion), but you’re often left to figure things out on your own. Some objectives aren’t very clear and rarely the controls can feel a little awkward. There are a lot of contextual clues however and it helps to remember that you’re small and nimble. Optional side quests can be time consuming, but do reward adorable little badges for your cat’s harness in-game. Some of the trophies/achievements are quite challenging. The “memories” for your drone companion can be fairly well hidden and provide plot points. So if those are missed, some of the story is left vague. All in all, I think it’s a great game and with small studio expectations, I was very impressed. I spent about 6-7 hours during my play through and still missed a few things. You are able to go back and replay the various chapters of the game to pick up the things you missed or just replay part of the game that you enjoyed.

This title has:

Easy to play/use
7 people found this helpful.
ContentFlag
ContentFlag Adult
July 21, 2022
age 8+

Rated PG (mild threat, fantasy violence).

MAIN CONTENT ISSUES - There are moments of mild threat throughout the game, mainly when blob-like enemies chase and attack your cat character. There is also some mild fantasy violence, such as when the blob-like enemies jump onto your cat character, the screen slowly turns red indicating that it is being harmed, as well as moments where your character can eliminate enemies by shining a light on them, causing them to explode into dark liquid. | OTHER ISSUES - None. | RATED "PG" - Parental Guidance, some moments may be unsuitable for young children. Contains content generally suitable for children aged 8 years and over.
1 person found this helpful.
See all 7 parent reviews

What’s It About?

Set in a futuristic city populated by humanoid robots, STRAY casts you as a cat who is separated from their family and trying to get home. That's why you spend most of this game jumping, climbing, and wandering the streets, rooftops, and apartments of a largely abandoned city. Occasionally, you'll need to avoid blobby creatures that attack you, and solve situational puzzles that keep you from where you need to go. But you also spend time with your new robot friends, one of whom, a drone, helps you figure out where to go, and why this city is full of clothes-wearing robots instead of humans.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (7 ):
Kids say (6 ):

Though it becomes less interesting as it becomes more involved, this cat exploration game still manages to be clever and compelling. In Stray, a cat is separated from their family, and must make their way through a largely abandoned city to get home. To do this, not only do you (as cat) have to jump from ledge to ledge, and onto beams that might then move into more convenient positions (thanks, inertia), but getting around this intricate urban environment also requires you to solve clever situational puzzles in cat-like ways. For instance, you might knock over a board to create a bridge, or knock a can into a skylight or exhaust fan so that you can make your way inside. The kicker being that this city is in the future, and while there are no humans (or other cats), there are lots of hat-wearing robots, including a drone-like one who follows you around and helps you out.

The thing is, neither the cat nor this game needs that drone's help, and even after it gets involved (about an hour in), this clever title gets relatively less compelling. While exploration is still paramount, and inventive, and the drone's door-hacking ability can be used to trick and trap some blobby creatures that really hate cats, the game also has you doing such un-cat-like things as searching for the combination to a safe. The drone explains why the city and its robotic residents are the way they are, but this worked better when we were as oblivious as the cat. Which isn't to say the drone ruins this game, not at all -- the puzzles are engaging, especially where the cat-hating blobs are concerned -- and the bulk of this game is still about you, as a cat, figuring out how to navigate the city. But it's hard not to see how Stray would've worked better if it had lived up to its name.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about families. In Stray, a cat is trying to get back to their family, but are they related, or are the other cats just a found family? Does this matter? What would you do for your family? And what would you do for your friends?

  • Pet ownership isn't to be taken lightly. Are you ready for that kind of commitment? Even though cats can be independent, they still rely on people for food and safety. Do you feel like you could care for an animal?

Game Details

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