A new PlayStation charity initiative is using animal reactions to Stray to help real-life animals. The cat game released earlier this summer, and since then Stray has received rave reviews and fan praise alike. Part of the game's appeal stems from its realistic cat protagonist and the silly cat behaviors fans can do in-game, and the authenticity has led to many pets becoming invested in the game as much as their owners.
Stray stars an unnamed feline protagonist who falls into an unfamiliar city and must work to escape and reunite with their loved ones. Players work with the city's robot inhabitants to make their way up through the different levels of the city, and the cyberpunk environment is home to many small spaces to explore that would only be possible for a cat-sized protagonist. The game contains many ways for players to participate in beloved idiosyncratic cat behaviors in Stray like scratching furniture and knocking items off ledges, and the game even has a dedicated meow button. The realistic nature of the game has intrigued many players' pets, with fans posting videos online of their animals watching the game intently.
A new post on the PlayStation Blog (via Push Square) has announced a new Stray-inspired charity initiative to help the ASPCA. PlayStation announced it'll be donating $25,000 to the animal charity, inspired by the love for the game, and the company will be creating a digital photo book of fan submissions alongside the donation. The new initiative is called "Stray Reactions" and encourages players to send in footage of their pets watching Stray, sharing a funny example from the PlayStation TikTok account. Through September 23, players can use the hashtag #StrayReactions to share their pets with Sony for the chance to be featured in the book.
Playstation's Stray Charity Event Is The Perfect Crossover For Animal Lovers
As soon as Stray released, fan videos of pets intrigued by the game flooded the internet, with the game seemingly making just as big of an impression on the animals as it did their owners. Clearly, Stray has made a big impression on PlayStation as well, inspiring a large donation to a good cause. The Stray Reactions campaign is a great way to get fans of the game involved with charity, and will likely inspire many donations from players alongside the adorable footage.
While Stray is not a very long game, it certainly has factors that contribute to some amount of replayability, particularly in terms of collectibles and achievements. For those who were sad to finish the cat game, this new request for footage may inspire players to revisit Stray to capture footage of their pet, with fans perhaps discovering a few new things in the game along the way. This PlayStation campaign is perfect for Stray's audience, and will hopefully lead to many donations for a good cause.
Source: Playstation Blog (via Push Square), Playstation/TikTok