Little Strays review

I had high hopes when I installed Little Strays. There is something pleasant about helping little animals complete almost impossible tasks. Additionally, taking the role of a scared kitty as it becomes a hero makes you smile. Sadly, there was anything but smiles as I plodded across many lifeless levels searching for boxes of cat food and finding scared kittens. In short, it felt painfully lacklustre, and I sighed as I experienced Groundhog Day repeatedly.

COMMANDO PANDA developed this 3D adventure platform title. It has some minor puzzle elements, and it can be played alone or couch cooperatively via a split screen. The latter option should be applauded as this makes gaming a fun, family-friendly affair. Unfortunately, my children failed to see the fun side of this arduous and hapless game.

Become a kitty hero in Little Strays.

The biggest disappointment was how well the developers sold the story! On paper, Little Strays sounds fantastic. You play the role of a fearless stray who owns the streets. The dark corners are their playground, and nothing strikes fear into their heart. Therefore, when helpless kittens need their help, they don’t think twice. The ability to go from a nobody street cat to a hero is something that cannot be ignored.

This underdog story with a cute and wholesome edge should have been great. Sadly, it unravels very quickly as the core action is extremely repetitive and lacks any layer of challenge. Moreover, as you progress, you realise that the game is paper-thin. Although the developer has created DLC, very little has changed. The result is a game that leaves you unfulfilled and wanting much more.

Cute cats and annoying worlds.

Little Strays has a protagonist who will melt your heart. After all, if you are cold enough to hate cats, there is something wrong with you. The hero should have been a joy to handle. However, things soon turn sour as you begin kitty parkour.

Trying to find each of the levels’ objectives in the allotted time wasn’t particularly challenging, but overcoming each platform was a little tricky. Judging gaps and leaping chasms was unnecessarily annoying. Moreover, working out exactly where each kitten or item of food was located quickly became tedious. This was disappointing because it could have been much better.

Had the developer used different senses to create pathways to follow, it would have added an animal skill edge that was missing. Furthermore, had each stage used different areas of the city, it wouldn’t have been so repetitive.

I hate Little Strays’ third-person perspective.

Little Strays suffers from many visual issues. Frame rate drops, bugs, glitches, and poor camera angles make exploration nauseating. Additionally, depth perception is hard to judge, and this makes the platforming elements particularly tough. Split-screen action makes matters worse as you become distracted by your partner’s screen. The result is a truly sickening experience. The audio wasn’t much better. Strange sound effects exaggerate the protagonist’s movement. Although this could have worked, it was unnecessary and poorly thought out.

Clunky controls ensure that you’ll be enraged throughout. The on-screen layout doesn’t match the button mapping, and this causes initial confusion. Furthermore, the inputs are not responsive, and you’ll fall, fail, and become annoyed as you explore the seedy environment. If you can somehow overlook every issue, Little Strays will keep you playing for a few hours. I had 20-plus levels to play, but the DLC adds more stages if you wish to extend your cat adventure.

Little Strays wasn’t for me.

I desperately wanted to enjoy Little Strays. It had the ingredients to be a fun, family-friendly game that burned up a few hours. In reality, it was tedious, badly optimised, and annoying to play. Accordingly, it’s a no from me, but more information can be found here!