Filly's Psycho Summer: Catherine Edition

While seemingly every other gamer this side of the internet is lapping up their "cream of AAA," I've been taking a walk on the wilder side of things when it comes to gaming.  This Summer is packed with quirky titles, from the creepy to the ethereal to the delightfully weird.  By my own measured diagnosis, they simply aren't getting the attention they deserve, so I've taken it upon myself to share my thoughts on each game as I play through it.

Katherine (left) or Catherine (right)--who will you choose?

To many, Atlus's entry into the HD era, Catherine, is a surprise success story.  It was recently reported that the combination puzzler/romantic-horror/dating-sim had the most successful launch in the company's 20-year history.  One has to wonder if the triumph comes despite the game's super-sexy marketing or because of it.  It likely wasn't helped by the fundamentally odd gameplay or the "anime" feel to it.  Whatever the reason, Catherine is July's sleeper hit.  But is it worth your precious, remaining hours of Summer?

You play as 32-year-old Vincent, who's been dating his girlfriend, Katherine, for years.  When she brings up the subject of marriage, he panics, and ends up having a drunken one night stand with a mysterious and sexy stranger, Catherine.  What ensues is one messy love triangle that quickly goes from bad to worse.  Vincent's troubles follow him even in sleep, as he begins to have terrifying nightmares of climbing towers and being chased.  Local rumors that cheating men die in their dreams and, in turn, die in real life, aren't exactly quelling his fears either.  Players will get to watch the story unfold through an attractive mixture of anime-style and cel shaded cutscenes.

One of the game's many "oh shit" moments.

Let's go ahead and get this out of the way:  Catherine is not a game about sex, like you may be inclined to believe based off first impressions.  It's a game about relationships, men, women, cheating, commitment, responsibility, and growing old.  There are some sexual situations, but the game doesn't just throw around its sexuality in a sleezy manner.  The game is mature in all the right ways, and deals with adult issues, which is part of what makes the story so engaging and interesting, and unlike most games out there.  Will you choose the stability of married life, or the excitement of being single?

You are given numerous opportunities to shape Vincent's fate and inner monologue through your interactions with a number of characters.  This isn't your run-of-the-mill "karma meter"; it's much more ambiguous than a simple measure of "good vs. evil."  If you're after a specific result, you'll feel compelled to carefully mull over your responses and how it will affect those around you, and just like in real life, you'll sometimes be surprised by how others react to what you think is a harmless statement.  There are a whopping eight different endings to be seen.  Whichever path you choose, the plot is suspenseful and thrilling up until the very end, due in part to the ambiguity of the many choices you make.

You don't "have" to do anything, Vincent.  Catherine's player choice system is spot on!

Like the protagonist's darkest fears, the thrills and suspense carry over to the game's Nightmare sections.  These stages involve pushing, pulling, and climbing your way up a tower of falling blocks, and make up Catherine's core gameplay.  What seems like a potentially bland formula does become more complex; the game regularly introduces you to new techniques to tackle the towers' increasingly difficult puzzles, as well as different block types (from slippery ice blocks to deadly spike traps) and items.  Especially later in the game, the stages do a phenomenal job of recreating the tension of being chased, and the feeling of relief when you've finally made it to safety.  The game's "colorful" bosses add more welcome variety and challenge.

Speaking of which, unless you're "that" masochistic, punishment-hungry gamer or you simply have a knack for these kinds of games--swallow your pride and play on Easy.  Catherine's Easy mode feels fair for the average player, and the bosses still offer a considerable challenge.  Even if it's only to learn the ropes and become better at the game before taking on the higher difficulties, I highly recommend starting with Easy.  The one gripe I have with the gameplay involves climbing around the back of the tower.  Once you reach the back, controls reverse and un-reverse in a finicky manner, making this tactic incredibly awkward.  You're supposed to be able to turn the camera and see the back of the tower, but the controls do not allow the camera the "flexibility" needed to make this option useful.  Thankfully this strategy can be completely ignored, and is not required at any point to complete the game.

It's perfectly normal to dream about this stuff... right?

Nightmare sections aside, you'll spend your days at a local bar, the Stray Sheep, with your buddies.  Here you can order drinks, use the jukebox to listen to the game's soundtrack, and play one damn hard mini-game on the arcade machine.  But by far the most important thing you'll do here is converse with many of the game's characters.  Your interactions will not only determine what ending you get, but which characters survive the length of the game.  You can also reply to text messages from the two ladies in your life with a series of branching options for what to say or not say, and these can also alter the ending.  Sending carefully constructed text messages and watching the scale tip is a lot more enjoyable than it looks on paper.

Completing the game once unlocks an interesting local multiplayer mode, and Babel Mode is always there to test your block-climbing skills.  Because the game scores you based on your completion time and the coins you collect, it's especially friendly to "high score junkies."

Perhaps the most delightful thing about the game, though, is its surprising replayability.  This gamer really is not one for multiple playthroughs of a game, especially after having just completed it.  I feel that most games are a complete chore to play again and again, but Catherine is a nice exception to the rule; I beat it twice in the first week it was out, and intend to do so many more times.  The various endings, the intriguing storyline, the addictive and quirky gameplay, the challenge of the higher difficulties, the scoring system, and the distinct feeling that you've never played anything else like it, will keep you coming back for more--and to me, that is the hallmark of a truly special game.

10 Carrots

*A 10-Carrot score does not necessarily denote a flawless game, but rather a game that exceeds the criteria for a 9.*
Stay tuned for the next installment of Filly's Psycho Summer!