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Purrfection: How video game ‘Stray’ transfixed cats

Daniel Hoffman (AFP)
Paris
Mon, August 8, 2022

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Purrfection: How video game ‘Stray’ transfixed cats Sleeper hit: Computer and mobile phone displays show scenes from the video game Stray, a third-person cat adventure game, in Arlington, Virginia. (AFP/Olivier Douliery)

Featuring the adventure of a cat, video game Stray has sparked fasination among cat carers and their feline companions.

Cat-lover Enzo Yaksic was instantly taken by the recently released video game Stray, which allowed him to explore a bright, kaleidoscopic underground world of puzzles as a feline avatar.

He was surprised to find that his own cat was just as fascinated.

"My cat, Hobbes, was taken by Stray from the minute I loaded it on the screen. He watches every move the cat makes," Yaksic said.

Thousands of cat owners have taken to social media to post videos of their pets reacting to the game, and the Twitter account Cats Watching Stray now has more than 37,000 followers.

The phenomenon has delighted the developers, who say they had no idea it would spark a craze.

"When the cats in the studio started to react to what was happening on our screens, we thought we were going in the right direction," Swann Martin-Raget of the French studio BlueTwelve told AFP.

"But we never imagined that so many cats would try to jump into the TV."

Stray is far from the only game to feature an animal as its central figure.

From Dog's Life and Goat Simulator to the wild wolf in Okami, there are plenty of examples. But cats have rarely featured, and Stray is proving to be the surprise hit of the year.

Transfixing: A cat looks at a screen showing the video game Stray in Los Angeles, California.
Transfixing: A cat looks at a screen showing the video game Stray in Los Angeles, California. (AFP/Chris Delmas)

'Real passion'

The game's feline protagonist was modeled on Murtaugh, a stray cat adopted by the BlueTwelve cofounders, and Oscar, the beloved pet of another member of the team.

Many team members own cats, including Martin-Raget, whose two housemates are known as Tao and Litchi.

He says creating a realistic animal was a huge challenge, but the team managed to get the computer cat to purr, meow on demand, curl up for a nap and of course, take enormous pleasure in defacing furniture.

"We couldn't make a cat game without also making a couch for it to scratch its claws," says Martin-Raget. "We made this game with a real passion for our companions."

It is the best-reviewed game of the year on gaming platform Steam, and enjoys an 83/100 rating on Metacritic.

Some critics have marked it down for its simplistic adventure, but most praise the graphics, the dreamlike atmosphere and the feeling of freedom afforded by the feline protagonist.

And feline reviewers seem to be universally approving.

"Every time I play, the silhouette of his two ears blocks the bottom of the screen," says Curtis Amrein, from Houston, Texas, of his short-haired companion, 17-year-old Bebe.

Yaksic, a researcher from the American city of Boston, tells AFP that 8-year-old Hobbes reacts to the danger and hides from the bad guys, just like his computer counterpart.

"I do wonder if I am stressing Hobbes out, as he does tend to look around thinking there is another cat in the house before he sees the cat from Stray on the screen," he told AFP.

Feline foray: A person plays the video game Stray on Aug. 2 in Los Angeles, California.
Feline foray: A person plays the video game Stray on Aug. 2 in Los Angeles, California. (AFP/Chris Delmas)

'Very natural'

Animal behaviorist JoAnna Puzzo from British shelter Battersea Dogs and Cats Home told United States website GameSpot that the realism of the animated cat was key to sparking reactions among real cats.

"They really picked up on a lot of very natural cat behaviors," she said of the developers, flagging the grooming, squeaking and scratching habits of the virtual animal.

"They've also included some nice subtle behaviors, like the pupils dilating when he's quite vigilant, those ears turning and the defensive posturing."

Another sign of the enthusiasm for Stray is that fans have created "mods": modifications that allow players to change the appearance of the main character.

For a laid-back approach, players can choose to be lasagna-munching, ginger cartoon cat Garfield.

For those seeking maximum sugary sweetness, Marie, the gray-and-white kitten from Disney's Aristocats, is also available.

More controversially, enthusiasts have strayed where felines famously fear to tread: The world of dogs, with canine lovers able to transform their avatar into a cute puppy.

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