Producer Stray talks about cats, contrasts and finding the “sweet spot between fun and good looking”

Nintendo Life: First, congratulations on the release of Stray! The game had a hugely successful first year, achieving the highest user ratings on Steam, going viral with cat reaction videos, and winning several awards. Was this the reception you envisioned and how do you feel about it two years later?

Swann Martin-Raget, BlueTwelve Studio: Thank you very much! It’s been an absolutely amazing experience to see such positive feedback from both cats and humans, and we’re still not over it! Having worked so long on the game before release, it was hard to know whether people would like it or not, and we were completely surprised and ecstatic to see so many people having fun in the world we had created. .

The game seems to draw from a variety of sources, from iconic pop culture touchstones such as Sword runner-up with real environments like The walled city of Kowloon. Are there any games that you also look to for inspiration?

The entire team is made up of passionate gamers who are truly passionate about the medium, so we’re constantly drawing inspiration from a wide variety of games as well as movies, books, and all kinds of art in general. . There are a lot of little Easter eggs and homages we’ve hidden around the game that more or less consciously reflect this.

The idea of ​​contrast was fundamentally important in Koola and Viv’s original vision for the game.

Stray provides a very realistic depiction of cats, but it is not a full-blown cat simulation game. Can you tell us how you found the balance between realism and engaging gameplay?

It is an iterative process. We had to test a lot of potential ideas and features to find ones that were really fun and compatible, but also kept the realism of what real-life cats are capable of. . From the beginning, we made it very clear that our hero is just a normal cat without any superpowers, but we also knew that we didn’t want to add ‘survival features’ more classic like hunger, sleep, etc. Visions from Koola and Viv [the founders of BlueTwelve Studio and former artists at Ubisoft] First, create an adventure game, not a simulation game. But the great thing is that cats are amazing animals so there are so many incredibly cool things that can be done thanks to their natural abilities!

The cat protagonist opens the door to unique platforming and level design challenges. How do you feel about trying to design things from a cat’s perspective?

It was a great challenge and an extremely interesting subject to work on as a creative team. The perspective this character brings to the classic level design process is very fresh and offers many opportunities for interesting perspectives, interesting paths and creative choices about who is who block or not. But at the same time, it’s hard to find a balance with level art because every decoration, pipe, or air conditioner added to a level by artists is a potential new avenue for the player. play. So we had to go back and forth a lot between designers and high-class artists to find the sweet spot between fun and handsome.

…the great thing is that cats are amazing animals, so there are so many incredibly fun things to do with their natural abilities!

Stray is a refreshingly non-violent game, especially compared to other games that adopt a cyberpunk style. Was this always the goal or was there a time when tools like the B-12’s UV Lamp would play a larger role?

The aim has always been to create an action-adventure game, and in this genre, rhythm and variety of progression are key. UV lights, like many other features in the game, are another way for us to vary the rhythm between more relaxed moments where you have to explore and look around and a more fast-paced sequence. We had to iterate a lot on how long each scene would be and what the right progression order would be to keep the pace interesting and engaging for the player while still being able to tell the story of this world and its characters you meet in the game. game.

Without revealing too much, Stray has a surprisingly gloomy background. However, it also has a dedicated ‘meow’ button and spots for napping. How important is it to you to provide moments of lightness in the darkness?

The idea of ​​contrast was fundamentally important in Koola and Viv’s original vision for the game, and it’s something we’ve been using in a variety of ways as a team. There’s really a contrast between the gloomy setting and some of the lighter characters, but there’s also a contrast between supposedly dead man-made machines and a lively and organic cat, a contrast between very bright and colorful places and darker environments, contrast in gameplay with action paced chases and slow paced exploration etc. We feel that this is a very important part of Stray as well as our creative process and thinking like This is always very inspiring.

What was the biggest challenge in bringing the game to Switch?

We’ve worked hard to find the right balance between visual fidelity and smooth gameplay for Switch, and we’re excited for players to be able to experience this world on the go and make every things become worth it.

Finally, can you share any details about the upcoming Stray movie and what plans do you have for the award-winning kitty in the future?

We can’t share anything at that time but definitely stay tuned as the team is still working on a lot of exciting things!

Please note that some external links on this page are affiliate links, which means if you click them and make a purchase, we may receive a small percentage of the sale. Please read ours FTC Disclosure for more information.

This interview has been lightly edited for clarity.

In addition to the questions above, we also asked about the team’s experience working with Annapurna Games — following news in September that The entire staff at the publishing house has resigned – but we were told “There are no responses to share” at this time.

Thanks to Swann at BlueTwelve Studio and Hannah at fortyseven for setting it up. Stray is available now on the Switch eShop, with physical version from Annapurna and Skybound Games are available from online retailers.