Cat cyberpunk game Stray will soon be here, and developer Blue Twelve Studios reveals that the feline star of the most-wishlisted game on Steam is actually based on a real-life moggy called Murtaugh – the stray cat that inspired the Stray cat.
Without further ado, here’s Murtaugh the stray ginger cat. According to a PlayStation blog post from the team, he was “found in the streets near the city of Montpellier, France under a car.” Studio co-founders Viv and Koola now look after him, and he is a “huge inspiration” for the look of Stray’s lead kitty.
The team wanted to create a cat protagonist that “feels really believable, especially for cat owners” and aimed to try and “capture the cuteness but also the liveliness and playfulness of a cat” when making the game.
Other notable cats in the production include the “executive chief general president commander director officer” Jun and hairless Sphynx cat Oscar, who helped the animators create realistic jumps and runs. “Having real cats under our noses during the whole development was of course extremely helpful in many ways,” Blue Twelve adds.
Stray releases on July 19. Here are the system requirements so you’ll know if you can give your PC a treat when it arrives.
