Games Need to Stop This.
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- čas přidán 26. 06. 2024
- Stray isn't all the meets they eye. By truthfully examining its gameplay, explaining the story, and honestly reviewing its ending, Stray isn't the cute cate game that was advertised.. For better and for worse. Is stray good? Is Stray bad? Here's the answer.
I want to love this game, but it ends up being a novelty instead of a classic. too many reviews are getting mousey about what's holding it back from being a true masterpiece. pyrolive
Patreon! www.patreon.com/ManleyReviews...
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Twitter! / liam__manley
Timestamps
0:00 Stray
0:50 Something's fishy
1:59 Walking The Cat
3:46 Stray Does This Right
5:32 Stray Does This Wrong
7:55 And This Happens As A Result.
9:20 The "mixed bag" of a story.
12:36 Stray's Clutch Or Kick Ending.
13:40 SONY
#stray #videogames #manleyreviews - Hry
Could this be, dog?
Big shout out to the Patreon broskis: www.patreon.com/ManleyReviews
Yeah fr bro
early 😎
meow
Budder dawg
Teenage Mutant Ninja Doggos
Liam, you can’t just meow for 15 minutes straight and call it a review.
woof
@@ManleyReviews Well played…
THAT'S WHAT IM SAYING
@@ManleyReviews chirp chirp
Who are you? The CZcams rescue police?? Meow ur ass off man last time I checked this is America where you can straight up identify as a cat if you feel like it. Merry belated meowmas
I've been yelled at over the internet for pointing out this exact same thing. Stray is not a good game. Yes you play as a cat, and yes that's neat, but below that it's really just not a good game. It has no exploration, no actual puzzles, no actual gameplay. You're just a cat, and you press the button to cat.
Granted, that button to cat is a good one. It's a great concept and polished impressively so. And that's about it lmao.
@@ManleyReviews You forgot to mention how dope it is you can meow during all of the cutscenes obnoxiously. That was the best part. But otherwise yeah it was a little hollow.
Because you're speaking with a level of finality to each of those things in a way that's entirely subjective. There's a lot of exploration involved if you actually care to interact with things and not operate in basic bitch CoD style. It's fine if you don't like it, but until you watch in agony as someone who is a computer science major with honors and has done special education with NASA spend three hours figuring out that they have to crawl under a barrier to proceed because of everything around them and everything they can interact with, you can't say there's no exploration, no actual puzzles, no actual gameplay.
@@nachgeben They meant there is no reason to explore. Sure you can go to a lot of places but what's the point if you're not drawn to? The only rewards are side quests that give cosmetic badges and useless side memories that don't add much or explain a whole plot point lazily. I don't think you actually watched the video because everything I explained here and the answers to ", no actual puzzles, no actual gameplay." are in the video.
Even Jacksepticeye eventually felt bored with exploring every nook and cranny. He said there wasn't really a point to.
Maybe you should stop yelling for such a petty thing!
Stray is a good walking simulator. It's not a platformer! It's hard to understand that? Is like criticizing Doom for not having deforming tire mechanics!
And I believe many of the criticism are from people who didn't even play the game. I had exactly the same critic. "WTF? You can't jump? What a stupid game." Then I played the game (prompts off), and guess what, not only the movement makes all the sense for a cat but was probably way cheaper to develop from an indie company... so, made sense for what it is.
Now I actually want a game like this that's a proper platformer. Cats are the parkour experts of the urban animal kingdom and they ruined it with prompts.
If you’re looking for extensive movement and parkour, look at rain world. It’s REALLY hard because the guide says “screw you” every time but it’s FUN. So give it a small taste, a small lick.
@@annathecat7679 It looks cool, but I more specifically meant cat parkour in a life-like, 3D environment, where you can actually free jump wherever you think you can land without it being a contextual "press F to jump." How dare they put a cat on rails!
@@GruppeSechs hold on, lemme summon the rain world community here to persuade you… ahem..
Hunter!!!!! Survivor!! Rivulet!a,! (Caffeine monster)gren lizo!,!!,!,,,k!¡
Also, don’t let the looks deceive you, the movement tech in this game is INSANE, let me actually list a few here…:
Sliding, simple base done by pressing down and either right or left from a walking point
Slide pouncing, done by jumping whilst sliding
Rolling, done by holding down and a direction from a height greater than the slugcat’s jump
Roll pouncing, same thing as slide pouncing honestly
Roll pounce chaining, wait… you can chain them?
Side-flips, what.
Side-flip chaining, DUDE STOP.
Quick jump, WHAT MY KEYBOARD IS MELTING
@@Whydoiexisthere- and procedural movements with animals in rainworld act like living organism
@@GruppeSechs maybe like old assassins creed or mirror’s edge parkour with cats? Would be cool to see tbh. Im already imagining the leap of faith as that cat falling reflex thingy
That's a really creative game. Usually Gamers used to be blinded by Graphics and ignored the gameplay but here the Gamers were blinded by the Cuteness of the Cat.
Or most people that played it just like the damn game. How exactly does your explanation make more sense?
@@johndodo2062it's a joke 😐
Playing as a cat that needs a light to see in the dark.
@@secondchance6603cats don't have night vision
Thank god, high quality game analysis that doesnt need 40 minutes of exposition in an hour long video to get a point across. This guy knows whats up
finally. someone who gets it.
How can I possibly enjoy this review without a recap of the entire history of gaming starting with the first video game ever, Mario 64?
_"Before I explain why 1-1 and its jumping tutorial is a masterpiece, we need to talk about Nintendo's multiverse ..."_
those videos always somehow end up explaining the entirerity of Karl Marx manifesto
I was thinking this exact thing after completing my playthrough. It's a beautiful game with so much heart and soul, but it was a bit of a slog to get through. The "game" part of it felt like an afterthought and the world building felt pretty dry for what could have been such an amazing story.
This guy gets it.
@@ManleyReviews no he doesn't, he bought the game like the rest.
innovative as it's a game where you play as a straight up cat.
Exactly what i think too, but it's still pretty enjoyable
@@ManleyReviews hey bro, I really like your reviews and the amount of effort you out into your videos, I was wondering if you could or would do reviews on PS2 classics like dmc, god of war, uncharted, metal gear solid and other classics?
You should check out rain world, it's a similar concept to stray where you are a creature that is separated from its family as a child and are trying to make it back to them, except it takes a much more mechanical approach. It has a very in depth movement system which can be hard to get the handle of at first and probably the most in depth ecosystem every made in a video game.
Finally another rainworld fan
It's kind of funny how it's pretty much the polar opposite of Stray in every way but premise.
rain world fans lurk everywhere
rain world nailed it with the slugcat premise tbh. They're the perfect balance of cute and vulnerable while still being strong in their own right and interesting from a mechanical gameplay perspective. I'd say if anything it has the opposite problem to stray in that it fumbles over explaining a lot of this to new players and a lot of people drop the game before ever realising how cool the gameplay can be.
“Wow, I barely made it out of that lizard encounter alive!”
The pole plant you just grabbed:
Stray 2: battle royale
cant w8 to buy the season pass and get the *cool* golden cat skin
And don't forget to buy the RGB backpack for the robot for just 6,99$
Titanium Claws are 2 OP pls nerf
Honestly as someone who never played Stray (but wanted to) this sounds like the most Cat game ever. Like all these world ending lore and robots and apocalypse happening shit going on and you saved the world, but at the end of the day, you don't care and none of it matters, because you are a cat.
Also, you ever re-unite with the pack, so even if you saved the world there is no emotional resolution to the cat's emotional motivation to go on.
Idk, my cats don't seem to care about anything or anyone unless food is involved. There is some signs of love, sure, but at the end of the day they're not really all that attached if you're not around. I agree that the gameplay should be better, I mean a cat that can't climb on top of doors!?!? But the emotional detachment is pretty spot on.
I've taken to knocking everything off of ledges whenever possible. It helps with immersion.
Y'know what's funny about that first major cutscene? Rainworld did nearly the exact same scene 5 years prior, did it in 2.5d still images, and gave me much bigger feels than stray did.
Rain World is the greatest cat-based platformer survival metroidvania of all time
I was looking for this comment. Stray just copied the Rainworld opening cutscene pretty much frame for frame.
It’s really sad that rain world doesn’t get much attention, but now it has dlc!
@@carsonthompson4260 I wouldn't call it a metroidvania :P, it doesn't have any upgrades you can get to traverse the environment (unless you count glowing after eating a neuron fly (or just knowing more about the game as you play))
You could see the results of the cutscene coming a mile away. You don't make a cutscene about cats jumping, add in a suddenly bending-under-the-weight-of-a-cat pipe, and expect it NOT to break.
I feel like the game had much more potential to be focused around things u can do as a cat and not as a person.
Like... I'm a cat, I don't want to talk to npc's all day. If I'd want that I'd play any mmorpg.
E x a c t l y. Otherwise I just become a talking morph ball.
I was talking about it with a friend, I think the devs are more comfortable with narrative heavy games so they wanted to make one and couldn't make a compelling story where all you do is cat, so they had to turn the cat into a human and have it save the world. I think there's no real fix for that other than completely ditching the whole game and rebuilding from scratch with different mechanics, making an Untitled Goose Game instead of a Final Fantasy.
mouse catching would be fun, a mechanic where the longer you wiggle your cat butt the farther you pounce.
@@rafaelbordoni516 Funny you say that, there's a game like that now.
Stray, the story about a cat that needs a torch in order to see in the dark.
I feel like Stray is a game that oozes the word "coziness" with every vein in it's feline body, every inch of this title's world is the personification of that word even if it has a very dreary cyberpunk-esque feel to it
It's a game that you can vibe to or that's how i feel about it's gameplay, it isn't something that i'll by myself but prefer someone else do it, maybe a stream of it!
Nonetheless it isn't a mind blowing concept or has immaculate execution but what it does it does with enough competence to beat most popular releases from this year and certainly ranks higher in the notable lists of games that we were offered
Agreed. It's not the most innovative game but it's a good one to unwind to.
This game felt like it was made for you to watch a youtuber play and to farm their reactions. Well that's how I felt whilst I watched someone play it because I barely like cats why would I pay $30 to play as one.
EXACTLY. Just reaction farming. "omg that cat did X chat oh my goodness chat look"
Isn't that tho whoooole tactic of sony? '-'
@@kate_vye810 no Sony’s problem is a lot of cinematic moments making it feel like they’d rather be making movies, but the ones in stray felt very much like a “chat react now” cue card
Yep, just like all the walking sims- this one is just hidden beneath one gimmick aka the cat.
Hell, there are walking sims that are at least interesting from artstyle perspective- ya know world that isn't just photorealistic but you play through a painting or some non-standard world
@@slothschewgum
Sony's desprate now if it comes to games- their console has only at best two titles that people go for, the Shadow of the Colossus remake is already 3 years old, most of their other games are randomly swiped indie projects that has been forcefully bloated into AAA size
Thank God, thought I was the only one who felt like every reviewer was soyjaking when they covered this game.
it was driving me nuts too.
Please define soyjaking.
@@castonyoung7514 look in the mirror
@@castonyoung7514 absurd reaction without nuanced reasoning
@@lloydmartel Thank you. (I'm assuming you answered my question, and am not saying that my asking such a question was absurd.)
So basically the whole game is a required tutorial level from early Xbow360 with BREATHTAKING visuals. 😁
you're not wrong.
The main draw of Stray for me was the story and atmosphere, and the cats third.
This hits the nail right on the head. It's okay to like a game and be honest about it, people don't have to hide all their criticisms if they like Stray. Honest criticism will only make future iterations better.
I liked it, but I agree with everything in the video it had very little progress and a lot of unanswered questions, at least we could have saved the little robot guy it's not like their weren't other robots we could have taken B12 to who could have repaired him.
I like the idea of being able to play as a cat as the main character for a video game and not one you had to take care of for once (the same goes for games with dogs). You think an animal you see everyday would make for good platform and open world video games but sadly only a few video games like that actually exist.
I'm so happy you covered this game with THIS take. Feel like every steam game is rated overwhelmingly positive now that it's so niched.
Most of us by now have a pretty good idea of what kind of games we'll like and surprise, surprise: we're usually right.
@@elibeeblebrox1084
Problem is, positive reviews don't usually provide much as far as tangible analysis. When you like something, you can look past its faults.
I think Steam's stupid up/down only system makes ratings more positive than they should be. There are so many games I'd say were okay if I could, and would gladly rate on a 1-5 scale if possible. But it's only up or down and down feels too mean for anything short of awful, so I keep giving the ol thumbs up way more than down. "Absolutely loved it" and "meh" get the exact same "Recommended" choice because you can't be any more specific.
@@Alloveck I think the point of an up/down system is that it enforces a legitimate average rating for the game. If everyone gave 5 or 10-point reviews for a game, some people would vote zero stars on a game that has 5 stars just because they think the average should be 4 stars. This not only makes their vote count more, but confuses people who look at the individual reviews. Of course, sites that do use a 5-star system don't seem to have a problem with this kinda behavior, I suppose Steam doesn't trust their users that much.
@@castonyoung7514 But with up/down only, you're basically saying that every review is either as good as possible or as bad as possible. It's the equivalent of 5/5 or 1/5 only. How does allowing extremes only lead to a more "legitimate average?"
I had the opposite reaction to the purple light weapon thing breaking, that "combat" mechanic was the most repetitive and brain numbing part of the game, the Zurks were much better when you had to puzzle an escape from them, which only happened on the segment to put the radio thing on top of that tower. Everywhere else was "combat" revolving around popping eggs and walking backwards as they pop, and the poor chase sequences where all you did was hold the sprint button and tilted the left stick forward, rarely jumping. Another point to add about the restricted movement: jumping completely halted your momentum as you had to aim to the platform and press X, both done with the right thumb. The devs probably put more jumps on the chase sequences but they played it and thought they sucked ass because jumping sucks ass, so the chase sequences ended up almost jump free. About the movement, I think the moment you held the sprint button the cat turns into a horse, low acceleration, no sharp turns and no jumps really felt like a horse in a game with riding. For a cat game the movement doesn't feel like one, except for the game preventing you from falling or missing a jump clumsily. I don't know about the rest of you, but I had tons of bugs. Broken NPCs, stuff clipping through walls/floor, wonky physics, one game crash... I liked the game, but I guess I expected way more from the reception it got.
You don't have to stop to jump, the cat autojumps of you hold X/A.
I was pleasantly surprised by how well the game could predict where I wanted to jump, most games that do that end up being a mess to navigate. Though I do agree that combat was basic (then again it's really just a one level gimmick so I guess it was ok) and that chases could've been much better implemented. I also felt like running speed was too slow, I guess they found it was too difficult to control otherwise.
Personally, not having read anything about it prior to playing it and buying it just for the premise of "be a cat" in a cyberpunk/post apocalyptic setting, I thought it was competently made and a fun 6 hours for 20 bucks. Now, if reviews hyped it too much, I'd fault the reviews, not the game.
Your editing skills never cease to amaze me, Manleyman.
Haven't played Stray yet, so basically thanks for saving me 30 bucks ;)
Just imagine that some people ACTUALLY thinks this will be the Game of The Year, and actually thinks it was better than Elden Ring
it blows my mind people think this is even a contender.
My boy tunic got robbed, TWICE
@@cart1196 I've been feeling the same way ever since.
@@cart1196 Tunic got undeservedly ignored, it's such a gem.
How does this guy have so few subs? He's honest, entertaining , and his videos are quality!
I'm pretty new to the game and I need to upload more.
Hearing my video game podcasts talk about how stray was contender for game of the year and then seeing it at the game awards honestly left a bad taste in my mouth, it is the most underwhelming game with absolutely nothing in it other than being a cat, you can’t even parkour as a cat you just walk forward, like come on people, I hope this company keeps releasing different animal based games like with a dog, hamster, giraffe. Even the story hardly holds it together, what remains of Edith finch was a walking simulator but had an enthralling story. I think what sucked so much about stray was that as a cat you could do so much and they don’t let you.
Still surprises me that your channel hasn't blown up as much as I think it should. Always excellent editing that doesn't go over the top and become annoying and a good script. In my opinion, you're killin it. Thanks for the uploads dude
Stray seems built for Redditors and "Gaming Journalists"
Finally for fucks sake, i regretted buying this because it was just fetch quest simulator "hecking wholesome 100 kitty" mode. It had its few atmospheric moments but really, really, really, depended too much on "omg cute kitty gameplay".
30 FING DOLLARS TOO.
You play as a cat, what were you actually expecting? A fucking FPS?
It's not hard to extrapolate that there's gonna be quite a lot of cat moments, *when you play as a cat*.
"I think GTA is a shit game. I was expecting more submarine missions, but instead there was just a bunch of driving! What? It's called Grand Theft Automobile, and it's pretty fucking obvious what the game is about???"
That Nikocado Avocado joke came out of nowhere! haha
Anyways, your editing is always top notch man, Great Job!
We need more reviews like this. I’m really glad I haven’t bought it and played it because it looks like a shallow game when it comes to the gameplay and story. Thank you!
The story is really good tbh, it's just the gameplay that's lacking. It's free on the ps plus extra and it's super short, so it's worth playing if you have ps extra.
@@rafaelbordoni516 The story looks heavily flawed and filled with unused potential. Some explanations also just have plotholes, like Manley explained in the video.
@@RealMephres It is, but so is every writing if you look close enough. I think most importantly, it has a message and gives you something to think about other than pure entertainment. I'm not saying it's the best story ever, just that it more than makes up for the game's flaws.
@@rafaelbordoni516 I don't think so, since such stories are very common in *all* forms of media, let alone with the execution being generic, too.
For 20 bucks I'd say it's a solid 6 hours. It isn't groundbreaking in any way, but I don't think every game needs to.
It's cute, plays well and it's beautifully animated and designed, not a small feat for a small indie dev. Music is pretty good too. Story is ok/10.
Personally I felt like it was everything it needed to be considering its context.
Nothing more, nothing less.
I still don't get how this channel doesn't have more subscribers! All these videos are so well made!
Honestly, I think this game is so popular due to how simple it is, I mean you've got a concept that's going to drag a large audience in including people who don't play video games and they're the ones that will be talking up this game like it's fantastic just because its got a cute cat that goes meow on demand.
Is it good? my whole life was a rhythm game for 14 years so i'm a bit burnt out on that idea lmao but i do love a good roguelike
Honestly, I think this game isn't popular to people like you is due to gatekeeping complexity. I mean, you've got a concept that's going to drag people who don't spend 20 hours a day playing video games in, and they're the ones who will whine about how this game isn't a game, because for some reason PvP is their only level of understanding anything regarding games despite not being able to speak without a gaming reference and an energy drink in hand.
See how that works?
@@nachgeben Seems you're the one who is gatekeeping. He gave nothing but valid criticisms and you're here belittling him because you want to believe your favorite game is PERFECT. Nothing is perfect and criticisms are NOT an attack. Grow up.
@@pilotmender043I mean he does have a point. A lot of laid back more idle type games get flak for being just that. Certain people give it shit for just not being up their alley. Same in the opposite direction. Like the QuantumTV Elden Ring review where he criticized the challenge game for being challenging.
@@SnaxMang I get what you are saying but there is a difference between a game being unfairly sh*t on and the flaws simply being acknowledged. I don’t remember this video that well so I might be wrong but doesn’t he say this isn’t a bad game it’s just not game of the year or whatever? My point is that these people who see criticism as attacks instead of just an analysis of the product are annoying.
I honestly still can’t believe your vids don’t blow up. The editing and content are fucking amazing. Can’t think of why you have everything anybody could want out of a funny commentator
Wake up fellow members of the internet conglomerate formally known as CZcams, a gentleman of whom provides an entertaining perspective on thine culture of said entertainment has yet again uploaded another instance of moving pictures
Finally someone spittin some facts, this game is sooooooooooo mediocre and boring.
really wanted it be great too.
Great video as usual! But I do wanna say that even though I loved Stray it definitely does have some faults, the gameplay is very simplistic since all you do for most of it is solve environmental puzzles and talk to NPCs to progress, you only being able to jump to certain areas that are marked for you, it being almost painfully easy since the only sections where you can actually die are the chase sequences which are very easy to get through, as well as its puzzles not being very challenging, I still loved it regardless because of it's narrative and general comfortableness that it has. I'm generally of the belief that a game should be judged based upon it's qualities and compared to how much its worth (i.e. If a game is priced at 60 to 70 dollars, then I'm going to judge it as a $60-$70 game and whether it's worth that price) and for me personally I think Stray gives good value with what it has for it being a $30 experience. I think it's similar to what you said in your gaming masterpiece video, even though Stray does have some faults, what it does well (Storytelling, world design, etc.) make it so good. Regardless though this was still a great watch!
Edit: Also I forgot to mention that I think part of why Stray got so popular was likely a similar reason to why Elden Ring did so good as well. To many people (Myself included) Stray felt like a breath of fresh air similar to ER in that it was a game with a unique concept/take on a particular genre, was pretty well polished on release compared to games like Battlefield 2042 or Saints Row as a more recent example, and that felt worth the price that it was charged at for most people
DUUUUUDE!! You explained my exact thoughts when it came to the blobs and the giant eyeballs, I thought they were the coolest thing in the game but they ended up doing NOTHING with them, it was such a dissapointment!! Also that part when you went on a rant about how cyberpunk games always pull this crap was SOOO funny. Im glad I found this channel, its a GOLD MINE
Stray really is just a game that encompasses the phrase "We have accepted mediocrity"
Anyways Hey Manley! may I suggest you try make a video about the game BPM: Bullets Per Minute? Its the most unique and niche game of its kind.
A FPS, Roguelike Rhythm Game.
Edit: sorry I keep suggesting. But seeing the nature of your videos, you seem to be the type to take on niche games firsr before the popular ones.
at least it's not GTA 5
yup if it doesnt explain it, it wouldve been the best thing ever. i mean curiousity killed the cat, they couldve gone that route. where you dont know anything, dont understand anything but just know primally the feeling. Those moments e.g when the cat was attacked, it was awesome
This is the supreme and actually most accurate review of Stray. Thank you so much. My brother and I kept mentioning most of the things you pointed out and I am so happy that someone addressed them all together in such a good video.
7:21 don’t worry. I remember being stuck in the volcano temple for an entire week as a kid because I didn’t know you could turn while hanging on your grappling hook.
Stray does a lot of things I like with it's atmosphere, soundtrack, and NPCs, in that it reminds me of a zelda hub world where it feels like the place would go on with or without link. That is my favorite kind of atmosphere. I also like how they'll often have shop/town hub music as something that's diegetic rather than non-diegetic. It's just a shame that's all it has going for it. The most insulting thing about stray I think is that you don't get a secret alternate ending for getting all of the scientist robot's memories I hear, which seems like a basic ass replay value add that they just kinda... skipped over. I'd have been pissed if I had to find that out the hard way because if you want those memories, you're gonna do a metric ton of backtracking.
Getting all the logs just give you a generic "capitalism bad" message and a rainbow/pearlacent colloured backpack for the remaining 10 minutes of the game
It's not that bad, you can get all items with level select. That being said I agree it could've easily been used to add something to the story, as you said an alternate ending would've been an easy and sweet option. I guess they were over budget or had to meet a deadline.
I haven't played this game, but I did watch my brother play it for about.... 20 minutes, and it was quite clear to me in that small amount of time, some of the problems with it. Like, I noticed practically RIGHT AWAY that this cat can only jump up on to things in pre determined spots, and that he couldn't do any of the more cat-like things unless he just happened to be JUST IN THE RIGHT SPOT FOR IT. It was a really pretty game (he was playing on PS4), but it just didn't look that *interesting* to me. I remember one part in particular where there was something about a robot who was annoyed that he kept having to clean up paint, and his door was closed. As soon as my brother read that note on his door or whatever it was, I said out loud kind of to myself "I see, so you're gonna have to find some way to spill paint so he'll open the door to come clean it up and you can go inside while the door is open" and that's EXACTLY WHAT HAPPENED 10 minutes later. Zzzzzz.
Awesome videos man. Really dig your editing and sense of humor. Busted out laughing at 12:57 😂
bruh. ive been subscribed for a little bit now. why do you for real not have atleast half a million subs.
dude the quality and humor is such a fresh breathe of air. love yur shit
Review is spot on! A few youtubers I watch played this game and they seemed to have more fun making fun of the game than playing the quests. Also when they got to do things that cats do, but besides that, they seemed not that impressed.
As I've said to you... The second I put the controller done on this game It never crossed my mind again..
But you delivered a well scripted and extremely well edited no bullshit review. Count this as one of the tightest reviews you put up, I'm well impressed
8:48 moments like these in your videos are the reason i subbed in the first place! Also i agree with you and i felt like the gameplay was lacking from the beggining but indeed the Meow mechanic was great ngl.
Bruh! You need more subs!! I get so excited with each of your videos, keep it up
I feel like if they ever make a sequel these issues could definitely be addressed. There's quite a lot to make a sequel out of, story-wise
I loved this game, playing as the smartest cat to ever exist, but it did have quite a few problems that did keep it from being a solid 10/10. The huge eyeballs were creepy and unique and kind of cool and along with those little bug things, they were immediately forgotten about. I think this game could have been a little longer, allowed the story to be fleshed out more naturally and give some character to some of the characters. I wanted more of the bacteria things though. They seemed like such a crucial part of the game. Only to be forgotten.
As a side note: I was really sad that the cat didn't get to reunite with its little coven of other cats.
Amazing video as always, keep it up bro!
9:23
the midnight again!
sorry, discovering your channel mate, listening to some vids while in work lol
very nicely made vids i might add.
This video is absolutely hilarious, thank you for this review! Definitely made my day.
glad to contribute
@@ManleyReviews I'm still surprised you have such a small fanbase, you are one of the few who I hype out when you upload. Keep it up, you're doing amazing!
@@stoneman3800 Absolutely. There are very few content creators out there I go "hell yeah I'll watch this right away" when I see an upload.
haven't even finished the vid but I already know it's gonna be a banger!
I honestly wish someone makes a mode where you can freely jump from places instead of just pressing a button
They have something here but I don't feel compelled enough buy the game yet
maybe if you could change the jump mechanics with an option in the settings or something idk
Also, cat customization. I think that's the first thing they should add.
There's a lot of potential right there. I hope the devs and modders are at it
Can't wait for the new legendary RGB cat skin for just 7,99$ huh?
This is a joke btw please don't hate me
Rain world:
*sits in indie game masterpiece with really deep movement tech*
I really fucking love your videos. you are so passionate about the topic in the videos, and the quality is just insane. keep up the amazing work!
That's probably the highest praise i could get thank you for noticing the passion.
@@ManleyReviews when you hit 100K, have you ever considered doing a Q&A?
i always do them on streams! doing another one in the pm on saturday. i have a discord for any Qs people have.
Man, I just found your channel today and these vids are the funniest shit I've seen since like pre 2017 youtube. Keep it up!
That Mr Kitty vibe thing, nice. I see you.
Also that cat going on an epic journey and then just leaving like it doesn't care in the least seems like a very cat thing to do.
i think a cat just not caring at all would be more cat like
You are the master of making killer vids my brother!!! Absolutely on point and Fk'n hilarious 👊🤣👍 10/10
5 seconds in and that intro tells me this is another banger. You're going to be huge Manley!
To the Moon still makes me tear up, whenever I think back on it.
I think people misunderstand this game and its niche. As i get older and moved my pc to my bed Ive enjoyed walking simulators before bed more often. Cloud punk was the first one to get me into the genre.
Its not meant to be action packed game, its meant to be slow visual feast to lull yourself to sleep too. I think going into these games with the right mindset is necessary to enjoy it thoroughly for what it is.
there's a good amount of people who dig it for sure. I just see a lot of extra potential for something really spectacular like ps2 era platforming action adventure.
litteral sleeper gameplay lol
Just play some farming game then,atleast they are way fun than this game
@@ma_na_gurab you don't decide what's fun and what isn't. Learn what an opinion is.
@@mezdemundi7115 I do decided what is fun and what is not
Man, I haven't enjoyed game reviews and humor mixed together like this since back when Jontron was doing video game reviews. You're basically the new video game era Jontron. Love all the content you put out, mad respect for all the work and talent involved. Keep the videos coming!
I'm trying to bring that back. That early 2010s gaming YT was my biggest inspiration and just like.. no one's doing it these days.
@@ManleyReviews Exactly, seems like all the great content of that type that was flowing constantly back then just vanished. We have some great serious, in depth game reviews nowadays but the humor side is lacking. Side note, I'm also a metal musician and a big fan of your drumming, it's inspiring and motivating to see how much success you've had already.
0:48
That "Mental Stealth" packshot made me wheeze irl. fantastic work
Lol love your work Man still don't know why you don't get even more veiws 😂 stuff is great and your edits and personality are hilarious. Keep it up man 🤣 youtube needs to notify me more when ya post new videos.
I'm really hoping that the developers make some sort of sequel or spin-off and come out swinging with a much more advanced version. All the pieces are there, but like you said, they probably just need more time. They definitely got the money from it, so let's hope they put it to good use.
I can agree to this. Had a lovely experience with Stray though it did feel very surface level.
9:18 Sick song reference bro. I love Remind Me. Heard it in a Geico commercial and couldn’t get it out of my head lol.
I love your videos! My only complaint.. Make more! I know video making is hard (Im a small creator that hasnt made a video in months) you could be giant if you pumped out the weekly content. im excited to see where you go bro! Keep up the great work!
I played this game for about or over 20 hours. Iam for sure biase for sure. The levels, the atmosphere, I dig that. The control is restricting, its like realizing link cant jump after playing sm64. In Zelda Ocarina of Time, Majoras Mask you cant jump, you have to walk to a certain spot to jump of a ledge. It feels a bit like that, but actually a bit better. When I speedrun Stray I realized, that constantly pressing jump is kinda boring. You almost do nothing else. Only if you explore the world and take time its not that abvious. It more blends in.
Also if you try to play really fast, the game gets buggy. When I sprint, activate a door and went into a barrel the drone disappeared and never came back. Sometimes jumps dont get recognized. Its not rewarding, because their is no consequence and its not at any moment difficult. I like games with difficult controls like for example Quake 3 Defrag. But Quake 3 Defrag isnt that popular for a reason. If a game has difficult movement, its frustrating and an avergae person dont like frustration that much. Comparing very hard controls and Stray is extreme. But you have to hit the sweet spot, in the middle. In many games you cant concentrate on the scenery, in Stray you can, because you are not occupied to be careful. I dont say Stray is perfect. Not a single game is perfect, besides sm64. But Stray a novelty and stands out. For me its a very fluent little point and click like adventure.
I absolutely loved this game, but I completely agree with your review. It had so much potential and fell short in so many ways, but just being in this world oozing with storytelling and charm and exploring it as a cat was enough for me. It's so rare to see games that explore the world from an animal's point of view, I can't think of much outside of Okami and maybe Twilight Princess if you count it. I took it for what it was and enjoyed it but it's shortcomings are definitely a shame ;_;
I need to be filled like a cream donut
This is the 4th vided of yours iv watched over the last 2 days specifically talking about direct games and holy fuck bro your videos are insane, I thought I was over the drawn out lame "documentary style" video about games but these are amazing to watch and you put SOME BLOOD N TEARS into the edits and memes, thanks for being unafraid to be funny and keep em rolling chief
Some people in this comment section with their massive insecure ego trying to pretend like they're superior for not liking a popular game. Good to know that even the commenters on smaller channels are pathetic. Anyways great video as usual.
Buy the next game to know the rest of the lore.
ugh
I once had a dream where there was a game that was basically GTA but with a cat, an insane open world where you did cat stuff and had fights with other cats and gangs of dogs. This is what i hoped stray was
these just keep getting better and better liam
How else will this game become successful? It is cutesy, edgy, braindead and shallow just like the target demographic, gen z.
Great video, you and Dunkey are the only people I’ve seen so far actually critiquing this game, rather than going braindead when they see cat. I’m not sure how you could even do a true critique of this game without pointing out it’s flaws. All the praise and obsession that I have seen over this game has been on social media websites, etc. which are places that aren’t conducive to long-form videos like this.
Finally, a Stray review i can stand behind!
"The walking simulator isn't any more fun when you are a cat" is not a concept casual npc's are unable to understand.
Well, each to their own. I've had a lot of fun with it, I loved the lore, loved the gameplay, explored every nook and crany and I didn't feel hollow. Some things as far as story goes, were not develovepd enough as stated, but other than that, it was really well made. I do not agree about puzzles with you and nothing ever really got old for me.
And you have to apreciate the whole cat act thing and the small details. In the ending scene, when cat slowly blinks at the player and all the subtle hints throughout the game. I'm sad it's not longer and I enjoyed those few hours more than I did probably every major game that came out this year. Having fun with Gow right now, but stray left something in me, that no game to this day did.
To be fair i think this might be the first objective review that talks about the game itself and not the OH MY GOD THE KITTY IS PURRING
What was i saying?
DAWWWWW
I found my new favorite channel. Funniest stuff i've seen in a while
excellent review. What's the Song at 9:18? I remember it but forgot the name!
I like the game unpacked though…
:{
miawnley still on point, th'at exactly what i think of this game after i completed it
Something I really like about your videos is that when you watch them you can tell what show or game or whatever you're going through at the moment.
10/10 video as always, Manley.
Sopranos is so good
@@ManleyReviews ikr
Have you seen House MD? It's a good show to get on the couch and watch, at least for me.
man my mom used to watch that show back in the day. All I rember is that Dr. House plays metroid zero mission in one of the episodes and I used it in a prior video.
I Appreciate the techlinked backdrop XD
So this is basically Balan Wonderworld's philosophy of oversimplifying the controls, but with *CATS!*, QTE and great graphics? Sign me up for five hours of anything else.
Some people just want to explore the world for five hours. Nothing wrong with that. So much people acting superior just for having a different opinion.
Yo is it finally cool to say the game is extremely shallow? I feared for my life whenever I'd so much as hint that cat game isn't a 10/10 just because it has a cat in it
Quality again. Great job man. Keep putting in the effort. It's worth it. Both for you and the viewer. Also this was exactly what I was thinking about this game. It looked like all you did was walk to the next button prompt. Get railroaded.
hey thanks man.
I watch all your videos somehow this one didn't show up in my subscriptions. Glad i found it because it's a certified hood classic.
I thought it was clear the plague hit after they entered the shelter, though. The Zorks too. I also never felt hindered by the way the game played. It's more RPG than anything else, and cats don't randomly jump in the air. They don't usually jump where they're unsure, but can fail jumps, which is possible in the game. There's also the insinuation that all the robots were once human. There's the fact that this is Walled City 99. Where's 1-98? We're also given the information that in the lower levels--if we're to believe the Companions are just AI--that they were so loved and respected by humans, they live in their image. Meanwhile, the upper Companions are still just... robots. Implying either the control room elites left, died without uploading their consciousnesses, or left to the lower levels.
For the record, I prefer the theory that the lower level Companions are AI living in the image of the humans that created them and loved them so greatly.
Unfortunately, the Companions never bothered to learn about that hivemind because they're afraid and too slow to travel through, investigating. B-12 never knew about the hivemind since he was uploaded early on, before it spread so severely. Little Outsider (yes, that's the name I stick with for kitty) is a cat of probably 7,000,000 years of mental evolution, but still doesn't give a shit about that. Friends and family is all Little Outsider wants.
There's so much, including side quests. Could there've been more? Absolutely. But I think you're definitely suffering from 'pro gamer syndrome' here. The only failing imo is that they made the mistake of not showing Little Outsider reuniting with his family.
Still a good video though, you aired your grievances well even if I disagree lmao
EDIT: For those who don't get the 7 million year thing, there is a piece you can find that states the city has been operating for over 2,500,000,000 days.
first stage of the game you have to run away from the enemies, then second stage you can kill them with the uv lamp Great, after that you lose it and have to run again, then the thirdstage you have to hide, they had to do it like this in this order to be just, and honestly im grateful for it and
i still think that stray is a great game for getting into gaming because its simple,
but isnt it too simple at that point, i wouldn't show that to a beginner gamer tbh, i think what lies in the multiverse would be a good beginning game, decent story, interesting concept, pretty good puzzles to figure out and its relatively simple, its just the movement buttons and the button to change dimensions, i think something so meh wouldn't be a good first impression.
0:39 I love you man 😂😂😂
i almost took that out made me think of my own grandma lol
Yo what was that song at 9:19. Gave me some weird ass nostalgia from somewhere lol
Alright, time to unsubscribe.
Jk, but I loved Stray just for the visuals alone
Boy do i have the hyper specific video about graphics for you! but hey the game does look insane.
@@ManleyReviews I saw all your videos so far. Really dig the fast paced humor
I liked Stray's simplistic nature. The only thing that kind of rubbed me the wrong way was how the cat was turned into an errand boy that could function as a intelligent human being. But that's to be expected from this sort of game and i can suspend my disbelief to a certain point.
The "chores" criticism is one i find harder to agree with, because you can level that one at basically any modern videogame, as are your gripes with the story. I for one thought the story was gripping enough because it was wrapped in a level of mystery from start to finish, like a B-movie the meaning of which you have to figure out for yourself. The lore doesn't really matter, the outside world doesn't really matter, it was the cat's journey in those few hours, when he got to meet weird characters and a whole world it was unaware of, that really counts. The fact that it was a really polished game helped it too.
It was easily one of the best games of the year, totally deserved the GOTY nomination in my opinion. Of course a lot of people just liked it for the cat, and it is a selling point, but i got something else out of it beyond the cuteness factor. I got to immerse myself in a world for a few hours and had an experience that will stay with me longer than a lot of other games with 60 hours worth of, as you put it, "chores".
This was dope! Nice criticism and also very entertaining, that 100k is getting close!
The _SHADOW_ on the _DROPDOWN..._ uh..
_PICTURE IN PICTURE.._
hm..
_EFFECTS_
(Too unsure of technical terms to sound smart but, once again, I freaking love your editing man)