STAY is a really fun and immersive indie game about trust, bonding, depression, and anxiety. If you’re like me, as soon as you hit ‘connect’ on the main menu, you won’t want to leave Quinn alone for a second without you there to watch over him. However, if you do leave the game via any means other than ‘rest mode’, try not to stay away too long or Quinn may get a little upset. The majority of the game revolves around visual novel style gameplay with a hint of Telltale in the conclusion screens, with the rest of the gameplay consisting of rather tricky puzzles to complete. These puzzles aren’t the usual mindlessly easy ones either, some of them will really make you think in order to work out the solutions. 

Stay is not a game for all audiences. Most of the time we will be reading and a small part making occasional decisions and solving puzzles. However, it is a game that captures and transmits that feeling of isolation and restlessness like few others. It is difficult not to recommend trying the experience that Stay offers, because soon we empathize with Quinn or get into his story we will be trapped and we will want to know more and more until we complete it. Once again, a great work that reinforces the palpable reality of the good state that Spanish video game development is going through.

With a great focus on the relationship between someone who can help and someone who needs help, STAY has more rights than wrongs, showing responsibly a very sensitive topic. Although the final result is positive, STAY certainly is not a game for anyone, but it should be at least tested by everyone, especially for addressing such a current theme of our society.

Stay’s compelling lead character and gripping dialogue ensures you’ll want to see Quinn’s journey through to the end. It’s just a shame it spends a bit too much time testing your patience with irksome puzzles and some needless waffling.

All in all, we enjoyed our time with Quinn. It was a deep and meaningful story that made us think, and we considered our actions and our words carefully. The main part of the action is well-crafted, and the fact Quinn makes mistakes and corrects himself is a neat touch. He's a loveable and well-designed character, who is witty and charming, which makes it all the more disappointing that the controls during the puzzles, and the difficulty of them, detracted somewhat from our experience. It's a very different game, that will give you lots to think about, but truth be told it felt like a mouse would have worked better than a controller. With a better controller layout, the score would have been higher.

STAY has an interesting storyline that is very relatable and can teach individuals about emotional intelligence, human psychology and mental health. The puzzles are quite frustrating at times but this can be simply overlooked once completed and you continue with the original storyline. The soundtrack of the game leaves areas for improvement and the pixel art could have been created at a better quality however this is my personal preference as I set the bar quite high due to the other pixel artists. The developers are actively on hand to assist with issues and if you hit a wall (no pun intended) with any of the puzzles. I’m excited to see how the developers Appnormal will improve and release another unique pixel art game. 

STAY is designed in a retro pixel look - you may like it or not. The German text output is flawless and the background music was never annoying at any time. If it weren't for the unfair puzzles and reset points, STAY would be a lot more satisfying - especially since the topic of depression is praiseworthily and carefully brought closer to the player.

And so with Stay, what you ultimately have is a flawed, missed opportunity. Its premise does a great job of hooking you in and engaging you from the off. You care for Quinn, you want to help him and learn about his past. And then you’ll come up against a ridiculous puzzle and you might want to throw in the towel. Or if not then you’ll probably die repeatedly, and have to re-read the same text multiple times until you pick the correct response. Had there been a way to skip text you’d already read before, and just gotten rid of the puzzles altogether, this would have been a much more complete experience. And had you been given more guidance at the beginning, and more of a story reveal at the end, it would have book-ended an experience that would be truly memorable. As it is there are too many sticking points to make this a solid recommendation, even though this title made me feel things few games have for a long time.

Quinn is the one who explores the game, each nook and cranny and the one who is a threat from a ticking clock. For the most part you are just a passenger in his story, it’s a great concept but a few creases need ironing out to make STAY an truly unmissable game.

STAY can't be faulted for its aspirations and the attempt to make a believable character in Quinn, to create an individual that the player will want to help. However, the result is a near endless stream of lacklustre dialogue that made it incredibly difficult to stay to the end.

Stay cuenta con una de las mejores inmersiones a nivel de experiencia que he probado este año por lo que no puedo más que recomendar esta historia para todos los que puedan dejar a un lado sus defectos y quieran sentir la sensación de ser, junto a un amigo virtual, los protagonistas de una aventura de intriga y desesperación.

STAY son buenas intenciones que no han sabido llegar a buen puerto, una obra a medio gas que no termina de arrancar. Las ideas están ahí, pero la ejecución las empaña demasiado. Sin embargo, es un juego que puede enamorar a la persona adecuada. Tiene sus problemas, pero si los aceptas y empatizas con nuestro protagonista, Quinn y tú viviréis una hermosa historia juntos.

Stay es un título muy disfrutable si eres un amante de las aventuras gráficas o conversacionales. El punto destacable es el trabajo de guion y la inmersión que consigue si se logra superar ese punto de monotonía de un juego de estas características. Los puzles más complicados rompen el equilibrio y pueden desesperar haciendo que perdamos las ganas. A pesar de esto, descubrir a Quinn y la trama resulta placentero.