What are the Zurks in Stray, the cyberpunk cat game?

Understanding the Zurks in the cyberpunk cat game Stray (Image via BlueTwelve Studio)

With the cyberpunk cat game Stray set to release in a few hours, there has been a lot of community speculation regarding some gameplay mechanics and features that the upcoming title will bring to the table.

The title’s narrative allows players to take control of a cat that finds itself separated from the rest of its family. The cat finds itself in a dystopia underground, not inhabited by humans but by robots who seem a bit paranoid.

While these residents in Stray might seem dangerous initially, they cause no harm to the feline protagonist. However, other creatures inhabiting some of the deepest and darkest corners of the dystopian land called “Zurks” and are out to create problems with the cat’s journey.

Fortunately, the protagonist is not alone as it travels through the densely packed dystopian jungle, as it eventually comes across a helpful drone during its journey named B-12, who acts as both a translator as well as a guide.

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Understanding Zurks in Stray

In the uniquely designed world of Stray, players can make the cat jump, crawl, leap, and cause mischief throughout the robot-inhabited city as it looks for an escape.

The B-12 companion is integral to the journey, as, through it, the cat can communicate with the robots that it comes across as it traverses the urban underground landscape. Through these interactions, players can slowly learn more about the city's history and the Zurks, who inhabit the more harrowing parts of the tale.

From the gameplay trailers, players can get a glimpse of the Zurks, who look a lot like face-huggers, and they are some of the major threats the cat will face along the way.

The Zurks come in vicious forms that will attack and consume anything that it fancies, whether organic or inorganic life. In one of the trailers, they were shown to completely overwhelm the cat after swarming it, which makes them one of the direct threats to an instant game over, where the players will have to once again start from the most recent checkpoint.

Based on some in-game lore, it seems that there was once a corporation called Neco Corp, responsible for waste management, as trash from the upper levels was overloading the slums.

Neco Corp created a bacteria that would dissolve the waste. However, after the humans disappeared from the city, the bacteria mutated. It grew and started consuming everything it was interested in, not just trash.

Fortunately, the Zurks hid within the city's sewer network and are not normally found in the more populated areas. However, this only means that the robot citizens in Stray are safe from the Zurks, and the cat will have to navigate around several enemies' nests to seek its freedom.

When the game starts, the only thing that players will be allowed to do is share these Zurks off by simply getting the cat’s coat wet. However, this only works when there have been a few that jump onto its back.

However, the cat and B-12 will later meed out an interesting-looking robot called ‘Doc,’ who will provide players with powerful weapons to overcome these enemies in Stray.

Stray will go live for a couple of hours across all major platforms and regions, with PS Plus Extra and Premium subscribers able to try the game out for free on day one.