I've actually been dreading to write this review for a while now, since I feel like Catherine's overall reception is... not so good for the most part (from what I've read atleast). That didn't stop me from having a blast in my time with it though and here's why.

As for the gameplay, the puzzles are fun, controls are simple and responsive. Once you learn a bunch of techniques as you play through the game, you can really feel how your skills improve (like in a fighting game) and this knowledge will carry over to each of the puzzles you do. Getting the hang of the mechanics just feels very satisfying and being able to master dealing with certain blocks you once had problems with is great. Overall it's genuinely some of the most fun and unique gameplay I've experienced (...Final Boss aside, but more about that later).

Catherine doesn't only excel in the gameplay department, it also has a great art direction and a very fitting soundtrack. It's really cool when the main menu reflects the characters' personalities already without actively spelling it out to the player. Katherine is being shown sitting in the shadows with Vincent being chained to the wall by her side, while Catherine herself appears in the foreground in the menu and changes her position depending on your navigation through the menu, presenting her "freedom" and being able to do what she wants. Maybe I'm interpreting too much into this and it wasn't the intention of the developers at all, but the fact that a menu even allows me to make those theories is good enough to me. Main menu aside, the entire game has a gloomy mood overall that's conveyed really well. I don't know if it's the lighting in the bar, the soundtrack, or the characters Vincent meets along the way. It's hard to describe and yet it feels like everything's at the right place somehow.

The story itself is actually pretty simple, but it was also intriguing enough for me to always look forward to what would come next. As a semi-Megaten game, Catherine features a "morality meter", and it basically works just like the alignment system in the Shin Megami Tensei games in a way that your answers to the characters will affect Vincent's morality and the further course of the storyline. However, you shouldn't just worry about how Vincent's doing, because other familiar faces are having the same nightmares as him and if you're not willing to listen to their problems properly, they might meet a sudden end...

Everything I said has been quite positive so far, but I'd also like to address some aspects that bothered me and... could just have been left out entirely. Let's start with the boring complaint first - I didn't like the Final Boss. They were too RNG-based for my likings and the sudden random homing attacks and the move that pauses you mid-movement (really great when you're standing on a trap block!) got somewhat frustrating after a few tries. In defense of the game, I could have just used the provided checkpoints to make it a little easier for me, but I wanted to get the Gold Prize for the level, so I had to do it without any checkpoints at all. This resulted in the final stretch before the last goal being one of the most intense parts in gaming for me (the music really elevated that feeling). Skill issue? Maybe.

My second complaint is the use of absolutely unnescessary transphobia in two scenes. This is an issue many other people are also having with the game, so I think it's really important to address this problem. Erica, one of the characters in Catherine, is a trans woman who has been friends with Vincent's gang since high school and works as a waitress at the bar. I don't even want to go in detail about what exactly is said, since I feel that's rude, but basically one of the scenes in Katherine's True Ending (which is a good ending by the way) has a character suddenly deadname Erica and making a rude remark about her. Got me rolling my eyes and pretend the scene just never happened (since it bears no importance on the story anyways), so I could just blank it out and not let it affect my overall enjoyment of the game I love so much for all the other reasons I mentioned.

Anyways, I just picked up Full Body on an eShop sale yesterday and am really looking forward to experiencing this game again in a new coat of paint (and especially to see how Rin is integrated into the story). Persona 3 Reload is also coming along nicely, almost done with it now. Speaking of Persona, did you know Catherine was originally a tech demo for Persona 5? That would make it the best tech demo I've played since Portal. In any case, thanks for reading.

I mostly played this game for my past self. I remember seeing the game when it came out and watching Let's Plays, however, I was too young to actually buy the game. It wasn't until a year or so ago that I found myself actually being able to play it. It is...an interesting game to say the least. It is definitely something I'd expect from a game developer like Atlus. Those devs are a bunch of horny fools. I enjoyed the game. Can't say I was amazing at it, struggled on some nights. However, I got through and got the true good ending! Was proud of myself with that one.

I know they came out with another version of the game. Catherine: Full Body. However, I probably would never play that. It doesn't sit right with me. I can't trust Atlus with anything concerning trans or gay people.

hardest smt game

change the sound settings to this so you can actually hear what's happening in game without everything being too loud
Master Volume: 10
Sound FX Volume: 7
Music Volume: 9
Dialog Volume: 10
Cinematic Volume: 8
Environment Volume: 8

So let's break my thoughts up into a few sections. Firstly let's get the "game" aspect out of the way. Satisfying when it goes right, but incredibly punishing too, I had to switch to easy not too long afterwards. Maybe it comes with practice, but right now it's the only thing stopping me from playing the game over and over again.

The story, and the moral interactions. On closer inspection it does seem to follow the Hashino persona mechanic of having a couple of timeslots to interact with people in, however I think it's done in a very natural way that makes you want to play the game naturally. The texting mechanic is also a great way to allow you to really shape Vincent's actions, as indicated by the mysterious meter.

I think the one issue I have is that morality and feelings are muddied a bit.
I answered mostly because I felt Vincent was the dick here by not fessing up sooner, and I think it was entirely fair he got the Katherine ending. But a lot of why I ended up leaning towards her ending were just the good dialogue choices- like trying to stop people losing hope during the nightmares- it doesn't necessarily correlate with the character Katherine especially, but the game decides that hopeful dialogue corresponds to stability, when I don't think it does.

I do like the idea of Catherine representing hedonism, Katherine representing stability, and Vincent representing freedom, just a tad disappointed that some of the options didn't always correspond to that. In my opinion it might have been better to only have the mysterious meter be affected by decisions directly correlated to law/chaos. Of course, I might just be missing the nuance to some interactions.

That aside, I think this game was extremely successful in exploring love, lust and freedom, and if it weren't for how tough I found it, I'd be going back for more.

Went incredibly hard. I've been playing a lot of puzzle games lately, and this is probably the most fun and well-designed one I've played so far. I'd be lying if I said that I was stoked to get on it, because the gameplay just didn't seem fun whatsoever, but surprise surprise it's really REALLY freaking good. Even putting the gameplay aside, this game is just such a vibe dude. All the characters, the bar, everything just oozes so much style, and the nightmare designs were genuinely kinda scary(a few aside). So yeah, love it👌.

Also I'll check out Full Body as soon as I can.

Fiz uma apresentação deste jogo, para uma cadeira da universidade. A cadeira era "Narrativas Multimédia Interativas". A professora mandou o "pensava que vinha uma coisa péssima, mas depois percebi algo a mais. O Japão é realmente um sítio especial do mundo.". Dica para os universitários: Falem de merdas obscuras e acrescentam camadas a elas. A techer pensou que era uma visual novel? Pensou, mas também percebeu a crítica ao homem herbívoro japonês e como o jogo obriga ao jogador a tomar uma decisão de vida, sendo essa uma solução para o problema e que ele é efetivo, pois usufrui de elementos deste público para apresentar a mensagem.

Catherine tem uma ótima história, com conceitos interessantes, personagens carismáticos e uma gameplay muito original. Porém falta um pouco em cada aspecto pra ser realmente excepcional.

A gameplay do jogo é inicialmente muito boa e fluida, porém quanto mais você avança e o jogo exige mais da sua coordenação, você nota que faltou polimento nos movimentos e por várias vezes você vai morrer por algum click que não foi como o imaginado. Além da mecânica de rodar em volta dos blocos que é frustrante de desfuncional para movimentar em pilhas grandes de blocos, além da câmera não conseguir te acompanhar nessas partes tornando ainda mais confuso.

A indecisão constante do personagem também pode irritar, pois por mais que você já tenha decidido totalmente o quê quer e tome escolhas a partir disso, o jogo só vai realmente levar elas em consideração na reta final. o quê tira o peso das escolhas feitas antes de cada desafio.
Algumas coisas também ficam em aberto sobre os personagens, mas esse é um ponto até que entendivel visto que os focos do protagonista estão mais em seus problemas próprios que já sufocam ele até demais.

No geral eu gostei muito do jogo e como sua história se desenrola apesar de ocasionais momentos de stress.
O que me faz querer jogar ainda mais o "remake".

p.s. A Katherine é muito irritante e mesmo nos enganando a Catherine ainda parece uma melhor escolha pra mim.
provavelmente a maior parte dos problemas já foi resolvido na versão FullBody, então só leve em consideração da versão clássica

This game uses its gameplay idea of a puzzle game about pulling and pushing boxes to climb on them and wholly embraces it. There is a lot of creativity and variety in the block puzzles, there would be spike blocks, bomb blocks, blocks that move on their own and so on. It keeps things interesting and fun each night in the nightmare world and I always wanted to see what challenge would be awaiting me. However, even with that said, I’m not very good with puzzle games, and this game puts a timer when doing the block puzzles to sort of keep you on your toes, but just gives me unnecessary pressure, so when I’m trying to go for the Gold trophy, one little mess up could mean my death and me needing to start right over.

The best part of this game is the story, it might seem like a generic story about a guy cheating on his girlfriend, however by putting YOU in charge of the main character, suddenly these are all your decisions and makes the game much more personal. I love the theme of Love in this game and how it teaches you about the commitment and responsibility of being in a relationship, it also makes you consider what you value in a relationship which I thought was very interesting. There’s also a very chill and relaxing vibe whenever you are at the Stray Sheep with your friends, in contrast to the intense and exciting block puzzles, it creates a sense of relief like after you finish getting through the block puzzles in the nightmare world, you can now just watch some cutscenes and chill with your friends.

Overall, this is one of the most unique games I have ever played, even if I didn’t really enjoy the pressure pinned on me during the block puzzle in the nightmare world, it’s a game I’m glad I tried out. This isn't a game for everyone, but give it a try if it seems interesting!

Have yet to finish it at the time of writing due to its Baba is You approach to difficulty, but I think it’s safe to call Catherine one of the most unapologetically auteurial video games I’ve played. It’s absurdly unique— pretty much the only piece of media I can think of to cross block pushing with girlfriend cheating, and in that regard it’s extraordinarily well realized. Tense, mind bending escape sequences are so masterfully woven together and juxtaposed with chill, Yakuza style bar crawls. But just as Vincent’s nightmare towers crumble below him during his climbs, so too are his reprieves brief. When hanging out at the Stray Sheep, time passes as you talk to each character, check your texts, even take a hard earned slug of beer. A mantra of Persona 5 (for which Catherine was a tech demo) is “take your time”, but here alas you are afforded very little— it’s keep moving or die gruesome after all. But where our tragic protagonist has to suck this up with a pit in his stomach, his journey is hardly grueling from the player perspective (though it is REALLY fucking hard at times). Gameplay is tight and snappy, challenging but fair, so much so that it even attracted a small yet dedicated corner of the FGC. Combine that with its brilliant excellently paced writing and you’re in for a treat, just keep in mind one with both a high skill ceiling AND floor.

Why do tech demos always hit so hard?

Played Catherine Classic! I guess you could say it really is a classic.. Catherine Classic is a modern release of the 2011 title "Catherine" By Atlus.

I really enjoyed this video game. I feel it's because it has such a strong identity and core it holds itself to. The core of the story is in relationships and trials, choices, and growing up. It's the particular way that Catherine expresses these themes
that makes it such a fun experience. It has a visual style that feels uniquely distinct. A kind of hot pink, black, and white for its UI and official art. This feels to me in contrast to its gray, brownish, muted in tone colorwork in the nightmares. The
contrast works wonderfully. Its morality system is quite interesting too leaving us with 3 endings each playing into that system. Whether you go with freedom, order, or an in-between choice all depends on your communication with all the characters and important questions in the confessional booth before going into the next level.

The game sees its protagonist, Vincent, go through these nightmares as a trail, a trail to see what the hell he's going to do with his future. Because the time is now that he makes
an important choice, it's a turning point. I think the way the nightmares/the climbing is a really cool way to fuse the gameplay and story elements together in a cohesive way. I like that the sheep we talk to in the nightmare sections later are able to be talked to again in their actual human form. Because of that, it ends up never feeling separated from each other. The game is really well put together in ways like this. Also switching between gameplay, interaction adventure game-styled events, 3d model animation cutscenes, 2d animated cutscenes makes the game all the more dynamic.
Even other elements such as the arcade game can be explained as being prepared for further nightmare-level beating. It feels that elements such as the sheep having real-life counterparts to talk to ends up making you try all kinds of options and availabilities in front of you, because you have been provoked to do so, to play, to try and to indulge. It's so good in awakening the players curiosity, mine especially.

Other games will also have choices, but I think because of the particular matter in which Catherine provokes you through its construction that you are able to follow through so heavily and in such a natural way. Well, I sure did anyway. I really felt like fiddling with all of it, reading through as much available dialogue as i could each night.

Catherine also has a really amazing soundtrack, which will have you at the edge of your seat as you solve these climbing puzzles. Classical remixes really never fall out of style.

I'm grateful that the game never felt the need to be too indulgent with its side characters or friends of Vincent. I think we might have lost the focus of this bullet of a game if we would get even more dialogue to bite on from them. The game finds a perfect balance between making the characters interesting with the amount of spotlight they get in the game itself.

The two main female characters, Catherine and Katherine are really lovely too. Being complete opposites of
each other and representing either side of the morality system. For who I love the most well.. ;)

Anyway, the game is absolutely full sassiness and you should totally play it. I really like it when a work goes about difficult themes like this in a completely unique way.

Good game! That's all I had to say. Might edit later.

Horny game that talks about adulthood and relationships. How they can be corrupted, talks about responsability and CHAOS WITH THE SUCCUBUS YES, it can be a Megami Tensei game just for the alligment system alone, right?

Let me explain. You take the role of this man Vince, Vincent. And he's having trouble with his actual couple, Katherine; with a "K". Thing is, she wants to get married, but our man isn't ready to take the big step forward yet. It's very relatable in that sense.

And then it appears this girl Catherine; with a "C" which wants to be with you too. You met her at the Café Vincent visits regularly with his friends. "Stray Sheep". She, uh gets in love instantly with our alpha male.

And here is the main conflict. Who would you rather choose? Take responsability for your acts and mature? Be alone? Stay with the pretty lady of the cover? It's yours to decide. There are more endings too. But I won't spoil anything.

It's a puzzle game. You'll be moving blocks to climb to the top. I won't say more because that's mostly it about the game. It's simple but it gets the job done.

Yeah, yeah...I played this game three times. I guess I must like it, right?

Rin may be best girl but I think this is probably the better version of the game. It's very tightly constructed around the original premise and I think a lot moodier overall? I feel like sometimes the Golden version of Atlus games are too into celebrating themselves retrospectively and lose sight of delivering their original thesis; Rin feels a lot like Marie in Persona 4 Golden in that respect.

The Catherine True ending is the best one I think. And it makes the Rin endings later on in Full Body seem less weird, too.