Catherine: A New “Katherine” Appears

Today an update on Atlus’s upcoming HD title Catherine appeared exclusively on Famitsu.  The update introduces us to Vincent’s ex who we met at the end of the game’s trailer.  We learned a good deal about her from the Persona 3 Portable crossover, but this article does bring some new facts to light.

First of all her name: it’s Katherine. That’s right, Vincent’s ex and new lover share the same name, at least phonetically.  The only difference being that Vincent’s ex’s name is spelled with a “K”.  In addition to her name we learned that Katherine is 32 years old and works for a major clothing maker.

Vincent and Katherine were both born in the same town and are old childhood friends.  Later they met at a high school reunion and their relationship went to the next level.  Katherine developed a strong love (bordering on obsession) for Vincent, becoming familiar with his favorite foods and other creepy facts.  Later Katherine makes a shocking confession to Vincent:

"For us, how many years has it been?"

I do just want to note that the article and the screenshots do not directly come out and state that Katherine is pregnant, but this can be inferred from the context and the Personal 3 Portable conversation with Vincent.

After this, Vincent spends the fateful night with Catherine (with a C) but neglects to mention to her that he has a sweetheart (man, I feel like I am writing a soap opera here):

"That's a relief. If you ever cheat on me I will never forgive you, right?"

The article also reveals some facts about the game’s mechanics.  There will be multiple endings based on Vincent’s actions made by the player throughout the game. Honestly, this is something we have come to expect from Atlus but I am still glad to learn this.

Next, the article points out a large knife-wielding-wedding-dress-wearing monster which appears in Vincent’s nightmares.  Could this shed some light on the game-play we can expect from Catherine?  Might the game come close to the survival horror genre?  We will probably need to wait until Tokyo Game Show to confirm anything like that.

If I were Vincent wearing nothing but some boxers and armed only with a pillow, I would definitely run from that thing.

This update doesn’t reveal much and created more questions for me. I plan on writing a speculation piece in the near future as well as hopefully translating some of the new screens.  Look forward to those!

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For a complete collection of Kotowari articles concerning Catherine click here