While it is truly amazing what the Switch has been able to, and mostly continues to, pull off visually, there’s no question that it is feeling long in the tooth. When Stray came out a few years ago, and was partially praised for its incredible visuals, I think most people wrote off the chances of it coming to the Switch almost completely. Then, in a surprise announcement, it turned out that it was Switch-bound after all, and cat lovers (and I suppose even dog lovers) everywhere rejoiced. So now that it’s on this mighty, but aging, console, how does it shape up?

Well, if you’ve played quite a few titles that were visually impressive on other systems and have come over, you’ll likely know most of what you can expect. While it performs admirably overall, even in handheld mode, there’s no question that in terms of detail and visual clarity the game has taken a hit. In particular, since one aspect of the visuals is dealing with furry animals, the figures get that somewhat odd look that’s somewhere between bespeckled and hazy around the edges. Perhaps it isn’t ideal, but given the other option being sluggish and inadequate performance the developers made the right choice. I will say that I had it crash twice on me, seemingly at somewhat random times, but hopefully that’s not a serious issue for everyone.

In terms of the gameplay, it makes for an interesting mix. One part exploration, one part puzzle solving and working out traversal, one part bursts of action as you’ll try to run to escape threats, and one part outright weirdo cat simulator, it has many faces. While not everything works equally well, I am happy to say that for the most part the time you’ll be spending feels worthwhile and rewarding. There’s just enough variety to keep play from feeling stale, there’s just enough quirk and cat humor to keep things pretty light, and there’s just enough emotion extracted from key moments that it feels rewarding throughout. Perhaps your overall mission to save the day is a bit unusual in concept and execution, but who doesn’t like being able to knock every random thing off of edges everywhere they go?

For those who haven’t had the opportunity to play this title yet, and are wondering if it lives up to the hype, for the most part I’d say it does. It’s just different and unusual enough that it feels fresh, and despite the fact that it’s obvious that the Switch isn’t the ideal platform to play it on in terms of getting it to look its best, it works respectably enough that this doesn’t feel like a simple lazy cash grab. Whether you’re a cat lover, or just someone looking to enjoy a few hours of gameplay that is just different, it’s a well-made title with plenty of appeal all around.