Preview: Catherine

Many people complain that the video game industry is growing stale as it continues to "borrow" concepts and ideas from popular franchises like Call of Duty. However, certain, more innovative games have been greatly overlooked, despite the fact that they bring a sense of "freshness" to the table, for better or worse. For instance, games like Madworld and Demon's Souls received critical acclaim, yet made a minimal amount of money in comparison to many of the "clones" of Call of Duty. Yet, in order to prove that originality can be just as successful as familiarity, some companies are always willing to take risks, as Atlus is with their upcoming game Catherine.

Catherine is an "erotic horror puzzle-platformer adventure game" being developed by Atlus, the studio behind such "cult" favorites as the Megami Tensei and Trauma Center series. Catherine is a game that earns its mature rating through its plentiful demonstrations of sexual themes throughout its story, yet manages to portray a unique look into how relationships ultimately play out. The story follows a 32-year-old man named Vincent who is in a relationship with a woman named Katherine. Katherine acts as a source of anxiety for Vincent when she brings up the idea of marriage to her companion. Shortly after this incident, Vincent meets Catherine, a girl with a virtually opposite personality of Katherine's. Vincent must then choose which he would prefer: a stable, peaceful marriage with Katherine, or a sexually active, commitment-free partnership with Catherine. While it is clear that Catherine is a story-driven game, Atlus assures they are focusing on an innovative style of gameplay to coincide with their unique presentation.

The gameplay itself is split into daytime and nightmare stages, which will be alternatively played after one another. During the day, Vincent goes to the Stray Sheep Bar where he discusses the progression of his situation with his friends, confers with other individuals present at the bar, and interacts with his phone, the main gameplay aspect during this phase of gameplay. However, when Vincent eventually drifts off to sleep, the nightmare stages begin, in which a more traditional style of gameplay is introduced. Vincent must climb his way up a large "staircase" of blocks before being killed by varying creatures following closely behind. Blocks must be rearranged by pulling, pushing, or climbing them to advance further up said staircase. Once Vincent reaches the top, the segment ends, and the following daytime phase begins.

Catherine is being marketed rather heavily on the fact that it often deals with sexual themes; yet, because of their purpose and depth, this aspect is considered far too heavily by its skeptics. Catherine uses sexuality to explore an essential element of relationships and to offer a view that is virtually never explored to this level by other video games.

Catherine is a game that certainly is unafraid to push any boundaries, as it risks both a new style of gameplay that is unorthodox to any typical style of gameplay and a story that hides its true depth within the theme of sexuality. Catherine has already hit stores in Japan and is coming to the United States on both the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 on July 26. A demo will be available for both Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 on July 12.

Short version: Catherine is an incredibly unique platformer-puzzle game heavily driven by its risky, potentially unsettling story.