And this game, one of my new favorites if you will, features some of the most messed

up people in video games: those with realistic problems. Love is a moment in life, a dream,

and at times, a painful dream. This is Catherine, on the Xbox 360 from Atlus!

Catherine spins the tale of Vincent Brooks, a 32 year old engineer who’s been dating

the career focused, no-nonsense Katherine for about 5 years. Vince is pretty happy with

the way his life is, and would love for it to stay the same, but that stuff doesn’t

always happen the way you want it, does it, Vince? After a night of drinking at his favorite

bar, Vincent meetings Catherine…with a C, who is the embodiment of everything Vincent

wants in a woman; a free spirit, and a cute perky…uhh…personality. After cheating

on his girlfriend with this bothersome blonde babe, Vincent begins having horrifying nightmares

where if he dies in the dream, he dies in real life, rumors are floating around that

this is happening to other young men in his community.

The main gameplay takes place in Vincent’s nightmares, 9 stages in all, where Vincent

must push and pull blocks in order to scale a huge tower. The blocks that make up this

tower are constantly collapsing, forcing the sheep, the men who are also trapped in this

nightmare world, to scramble for the top, sometimes pushing others out of their way

in their desperate move to survive. There’s all sorts of different kinds of blocks that

will get in Vincent’s way that he must overcome in order to reach the pinnacle.

Mastering how to move the blocks and scaling the tower quickly is necessary to grab a high

score, which unlocks bonus stages in the games challenge mode, as well as songs at the bar.

While awake, Vincent’s discuss his own inner conflict with his friends Orlando, Toby, and

Jonathan, who, for no reason what-so-ever, I assure you, is the coolest character in

the game. Really, no reason! These characters, I felt, were very well crafted, Vincent especially.

You really do kinda feel sorry for this sap. Depending on the texts you send to the two

lovers in his life, Vincent’s inner monologue will change throughout the game, resulting

in his desire to be with one Catherine or the other, or to be free of them both.

Others join Vincent in his dreams, namely patrons from the bar. Appearing as sheep who

have been herded from the local watering hole, these sheep trade block-pushing techniques,

and it doesn’t take long to realize your friends are sharing in the same hell as you

are. Between a woman constantly appearing in his

bed who threatens to kill him if he cheats on her, and learning his girlfriend is pregnant,

Vincent’s got problems, and Catherine’s story is all about owning up to your problems

and your mistakes, pursuing what makes you happy while also being responsible for own

actions. It’s a really well written game that deserves your attention, because if you

don’t give Catherine what it needs, it will toss you into a nightmarish tower and turn

you into a sheep. It’s the truth!