Endless vertical-descent arcade

One thumb. Endless floors. A different face of abandonment every run.

In the Forgotten City, every stray has heard the same legend — at the very bottom there is a Door, and beyond it, a place where every stray belongs. So they descend. Through Neon Ruins, Flooded Metro, Forgotten Foundations. Floor after floor. Faster than the chase that follows.

Free to play. Soft currency only — every character unlocks through play.

Four strays above a ruined neon city with the Strayward logo

How the descent works

Strayward is a one-thumb arcade run: move, drop through floors, time your jumps, and stay ahead of the rising chase. Each run picks one danger that drives both the pressure behind you and the obstacles on the floors ahead.

Drop, jump, survive

Descend floor by floor with forgiving jump timing — coyote time and jump buffer keep the controls readable while the pace ramps up.

One threat per run

The Flood, the Cold, Traffic, Hunger, Illness, Loneliness, and more — each night names the chase and the floor hazards you will face. In Normal, every Restart rolls a new danger.

Biomes deepen the myth

Neon Ruins, Flooded Metro, and Forgotten Foundations shift the palette and atmosphere as you go deeper toward the Door.

Pick your stray

Ash, Patch, Nix, Pip, and Lai each carry a passive and an active skill tuned to a different survival fantasy — extra life, safety, economy, precision, or weight.

Modes

  • Normal — the core descent loop and personal-best chase.
  • Daily — a pinned threat for everyone tonight.
  • Living — survive on the clock.
  • Boss — race the Door Boss for your fastest kill.
  • Creative — author a challenge, share a code, or browse what others published.

The Forgotten City

Bittersweet lore surfaces as you descend — not cute-for-kids-only, but mythic and spare. The strays remember what the city forgot.

They say the strays came first. Before the lights. Before the doors.
No one remembers who built the city — only that they left in a hurry.
Water found its own level here. So did the desperate.
A conductor's whistle still echoes, though the trains never move.
Below the foundations, the world remembers every name it was given.
The Door does not open for the worthy. It opens for the willing.

Biomes

Neon Ruins

Where the descent begins — ruined neon, warm edges, and the first whispers of the myth.

Flooded Metro

Transit tunnels swallowed by water. Green ambient light and the echo of a stalled city.

Forgotten Foundations

Deep stone and rust. The air turns heavy long before you reach the Door.

The strays

Five launch heroes. Ash is free from the first run; Patch, Nix, Pip, and Lai unlock with coins earned in play.

Ash the orange cat

Ash

Orange cat · Survivor

Ash learned early that the city does not keep promises. Left behind with a collar that no longer rings, the orange cat kept walking anyway — alley to alley, floor to floor. One more chance is all Ash asks.

Passive
+1 free life
Active
Slink — freezes the chase in place for 4 seconds
Patch the Shiba Inu

Patch

Shiba Inu · Safety

Patch never ran from the rising water. The cream Shiba planted four paws and made space for whoever was behind. In the Forgotten City, safety is rare — Patch carries it like a bandana: faded, stubborn, still theirs.

Passive
15% slower chase
Active
Guard — 2.5s invulnerability with a visible golden aura
Nix the raccoon

Nix

Raccoon · Economy

Nix treats the descent like a night market. Bottlecaps, coins, scraps — if it shines, it belongs in the satchel. Double the haul. Double the hope of buying a way down.

Passive
2× coins
Active
Scavenge — converts nearby traps into coins + 3s magnet
Pip the pigeon

Pip

Pigeon · Precision

Pip does not flap in panic. Wings tucked, eyes sharp, the blue-grey pigeon times every drop. Wide wings catch the draft — steer hard mid-air, choose the next ledge, keep descending.

Passive
+40% move speed
Active
Plummet — drop through the current floor and land safe on the next
Lai the yellow bipedal cow

Lai

Yellow bipedal cow · Weight

Lai walks where the city forgot to build roads, two steady legs at a time. Every landing sounds like a promise: the ledge may hold for now, but nothing below is meant to last.

Passive
+20% fall speed; long falls crack floors
Active
Stamp — turn the current floor fragile so it crumbles after a short warning

Rising threats

Every run names one danger before the chase starts. That same danger shapes the rising pressure behind you and the lethal obstacles waiting on the floors.

The Flood

Rising water. Nowhere dry.

Chase: FLOOD · Obstacle: PUDDLE

Hunger

Empty bowls. Empty streets.

Chase: HUNGER · Obstacle: BAIT

The Cold

Night wind through thin fur.

Chase: COLD · Obstacle: ICE

Traffic

Wheels that do not stop.

Chase: TRAFFIC · Obstacle: CAR

The Dark

No collar. No light. No name.

Chase: DARK · Obstacle: SHADOW

Illness

A cough no one treats.

Chase: ILLNESS · Obstacle: SICK

Loneliness

The quiet after the door closes.

Chase: ALONE · Obstacle: EMPTY

The Rogue

A stray with no master. Only teeth.

Chase: MAULED · Obstacle: ANIMAL

The Quake

The city trembles. Floors crumble early.

Chase: QUAKE · Obstacle: CRACK

Vertigo

The descent spins. The chase surges when you falter.

Chase: VERTIGO · Obstacle: DIZZY

Frostbite

The cold drains you without killing — until you can't move.

Chase: FROSTBITE · Obstacle: FROST

Take the descent with you

Strayward is out now on the App Store. Descend on your iPhone or iPad, play in the browser, or catch the Android release soon.

Free on iOS. Android coming soon.