One of the most fascinating things about Stray‘s neo-dystopian world is the unique language that your robotic colleagues use to communicate. It turns out one fan has managed to translate the obscure cypher-style language into English, giving us a window into what’s really going on in the now-iconic RPG.
Set amid the dreary, rainsoaked streets of a blossoming Cyberpunk 2077-inspired city, BlueTwelve’s animal adventure, Stray, has become Steam’s highest-rated game after having initially been the platform’s most wishlisted game of the year.
With a plethora of puzzles to solve and objects to knock off of tables, players communicate in meows (and can earn an achievement for doing do) while the world’s robotic inhabitants have their own, bizarre language.
Entirely symbolic in nature, to the naked eye the written script simply looks like a collection of shapes, but one fan made it their mission to uncover its secrets – and they’ve succeeded.
After hours labouring over cryptic combinations and bizarre symbols, Half-Glass Gaming’s Josh Wirtanen has managed to crack the code – Enigma style.
Starting out by using the game’s chapter titles, he used the English written below to work out which letter corresponded to which symbol. He coupled these findings with the titles of songs retrieved for The Slums’ local musician, Morusque, who translates the song names on the sheet when you give them to him.
Below are Wirtanen’s findings, showcasing the letter with its corresponding symbol:
So, for example, the headline on the newspaper below reads ‘Droid News,’ using Wirtanen’s alphabet.
While the translations aren’t 100% accurate (some words are also flipped versions of other ones, or are the same sequence of letters repeating but with different meanings), this fun little insight adds another element to the game, truly allowing you to explore the bowels of this fascinating new world.
Throughout your journey you’ll likely be looking to pick up the worker’s jacket and hat to break into the factory, as well as recover Elliot’s poncho and fix the broken tracker – thankfully, we’ve got guides for both.