Earlier this evening I attended a live stream event where Atlus demonstrated their quirky upcoming puzzle game, Catherine, due July 26 for both Xbox 360 and PS3. The presentation started with a quick explanation of the story, which stars a man named Vincent who must choose whether or not to commit to marriage to his girlfriend of five years, the titular Catherine. The very idea of commitment gives Vincent nightmares, which lead us straight into the gameplay. The first level looked so much like the old arcade title Q*Bert that I actually made comment of it to Atlus' PR, which they took understandably took offense to. After a few more minutes of seeing the game in action it was clear that I had made a hasty judgement. Vincent's nightmares involve climbing towers of blocks arranged in various patterns to impede his progress. He can push blocks, pull them, and hang from ledges to help reach his goal. He has to think quickly, the blocks quickly disappear in his wake. In between levels you are treated to short sequences involving talking to Catherine, or answering text messages, giving the player choices that effect the outcome of the game. Don't think of it as a morality meter, despite its appearance, it is actually more a reflection of whether Vincent is self centered or truly cares for Catherine.
Click "read more" to find out how things get really interesting...
Click "read more" to find out how things get really interesting...
After Vincent completed the second nightmare level was where things really started to get weird. Here he comes across a sort of hub area, where he discovers several sheep, all of which think they are men and everyone else is sheep. This leads me to believe that Vincent is also a sheep, believing the very same thing. Maybe the rest of these men are also struggling with the idea of commitment. Throughout later levels you can see them toiling away on their own towers, putting themselves through the ultimate test to determine whether or not they are ready for marriage.Outside of being interesting social commentary, it is also incredibly creepy. If you are connected to Xbox Live or PSN Catherine also has a neat poll system, asking player questions like "Does life begin or end at marriage?" and showing how other player answered afterwards.Yes, the bulk of Catherine is a puzzle game, but it also offers RPG elements like uncovering the truth behind Vincent's nightmares and making decision that alter how the game ends. Not only that, Catherine also has a very human and interesting story focusing on relationships, something that is rarely tackled in an industry filled with bald space marines. Catherine looks like it will be a great break from the norm and I highly suggest checking it out.