Catherine is flawed, an experience that, with every frustrating stumble, one sighs in response, and each misstep underscoring how close to greatness Catherine was. And how it mostly blew it. And how, despite that, you should probably play it.
Every day of the week, I'd rather spend my time exploring an interesting misfire than the same old thing with a new coat of paint, mulling the lessons we can learn. Catherine is anything but the same old thing brought out for another man-this-feels-familiar trip around the deja vu block. If you're desperate for different, Catherine and Katherine are two gals worth calling up.
For the purposes of this slab of writing, I'm going to pretend Catherine ends a few hours before it does. There's a moment, a very specific moment, where the game embraces the worst tendencies of Japanese video game storytelling. Yes, yes, I know Catherine comes from the Persona team, so to encounter supreme weirdness should be expected, and yet, here I am, trying to erase this particular twist from memory, despite acknowledging we're talking about a game whose central metaphor is block puzzles in a dreamscape full of sheep.
So…let's pretend that moment doesn't exist, or else I'm going to stop writing this. Flame away in the comments, if you must.
Still with me? Okay.
not exactly dropping praise upon the game! it's like the ultimate backhanded compliment. I think the thing that sounds cool is how it's a very "mature" story about the late-20s internal crisis that a lot of men go through. that really appeals to me. but if the actual puzzles and execution is botched, I'm worried it'll lessen the experience.
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xyzzy