Meet Murtaugh, the Real-Life Cat, Hero, and Very Good Boy, Who Inspired ‘Stray’

It took me about 3 seconds of gameplay to understand that Stray—the indie game which is taking over the internet—is made by cat people. It took me the same 3 seconds to decide that I love Stray very much. My suspicions about BlueTwelve Studio turned out to be correct—Stray’s website lists the studio as comprised of “a small team from the south of France mostly made up of cats and a handful of humans.” This statement really gains weight when you look into it. The two human co-founders of BlueTwelve are known only as “Koola and Viv,” but—of course—we know much more about the BlueTwelve team’s cats. Including the one who served as the inspiration for Stray’s protagonist.

Such a good kitty

Everyone, please meet Murtaugh. He is the inspiration for Stray’s protagonist. BlueTwelve’s co-founders, the aforementioned Koola and Viv, adopted him when they found him as an actual stray on the streets of Montpellier, France. He was under a car. His nickname is “The Boss.” You can surely see the resemblance. Although, I really want to draw attention to the spots on Murtaugh’s nose and lower lip. Look at him! What a good, immaculate, excellent boy. What a friend. Stray’s producer wrote in a blog post that “he was a great support during [Stray’s] development.”

But wait—there are more cats behind this game, of course! We simply must acknowledge the hard work of Lala, the voice actor behind Stray’s protagonist. Lala’s human companion is a French musician known as JANKENPOP. Here she is, in the break room, demanding the most of her five-minute break after getting her touch-up. What a treasure. What a pal.

And please do not forget Oscar. Oscar is BlueTwelve’s community manager, as well as the main actor + model behind Stray‘s cats. Oscar comes into work with the humans almost every day. Which, of course, he does, he’s a beautiful, lovely, sweetie-pie Cat Overlord. Oscar served as a constant reference for the Studio’s main cat animator, who goes simply by “Miko.” (Cat names and human names really blur together at this studio, huh?) Oscar is the main reason all the subtleties of the cat’s movements—the way he runs, scratches, etc.—really sell. Oscar is a Sphynx cat and a very, very stately boy.

Lastly, taking one of the highest-ranking positions at BlueTwelve, is Jun, the “executive chief general president commander director officer.” Jun also came in every day to help keep everyone’s morale up while the game was being made. Jun is also a cat. Heroes. Heroes, all.

You can tell that Stray has succeeded in making its protagonist as realistic as possible because it’s likely your real-life cats will react to the game. So thank you, Murtaugh, Lala, Oscar, and Jun. I hope your humans lavish you with many treats and pets. Given the care taken into this purrfect game, I’m sure they have.

(featured image: BlueTwelve)