Surreal Landscapes: Catherine

The screenshot I will analyze today comes from the game Catherine. As previously done, I will analyze the picture as if was a painting, focusing more on the power of the image than on the plot of the game.

The main color is the white, symbol of chastity, purity and holiness. White is the color of the marble of the floor, similar to a cloud. Together with the aseptic white, also the lights and the structures create a sense of sacrality. The theme of the church is strong and direct, with benches, candles and the ruined silhouette of a bell tower.

However, the religious theme is parodic, adding a false moment of tranquillity and hope. The illusion of hope is also emphasized by the wooden sign saying “freedom” with an arrow pointing to the sky. A gargoyle is sitting on the sign, laughing devilishly, having fun of who believes in this sarcastic and fake hope.

The most common characters are the sheep, lonely figure stuck between hope and despair. One of them already abandoned every hope, lying empty on the ground. Two sheep are watching a ray of light, coming from the hidden heavens like bright hope; but it is only a lighthouse for wrecked souls, a mere chimera of an abstract hope. Some of them are hiding in the religious meditation, while sitting at the benches.

The main character is also a hopeless thing. He is almost naked, skinny, trying to cover himself with a pillow, the last sarcastic hope that this can be just a dream. He has horns on his head, a symbol of metamorphosis: he will become sooner or later a sheep, like the others. He is adapting to this new and scary reality so he is still in a transient phase. As human being he will probably follow all the others, following the crowd and moving with the most popular opinion of the masses. He will believe in this fake hope and, at the point, he will be a sheep like everybody else.

A red carpet bring the viewer directly to the confessional, religious symbols of hope where even the most horrible sins are forgiven, and focal center of the entire picture.

The reality of this fake oasis of peace is represented by the cages surrounding the area. The white now is washed away by darker colors such as brown and gray, rusty symbols of decadence and despair. The sheep are now totally hopeless, imprisoned in the cage surrounding the false freedom. This is when reality crash with dreams, when the obtuse hope is enough to hide the reality only at the eyes of the believers.

When the religious dogma and fake promises of redemption and forgiveness are just a mere illusion to hide the sadness of reality: that we are all living in cages.

Yomawari Final Boss explanation: rebelling against the fate

The two Yomawari games are little underrated gems with a beautiful atmosphere, a mature surreal plot and an amazing creature design (you can check all the enemies here: Yomawari night alone: the evil spirits).

Especially the final boss of Midnight Shadow is a masterpiece of game design, when the gameplay fuses with a message integrated in the plot.

I will focus on the ending of the game, so of course will be SPOILERS.

For the majority of the game you will follow specific clues and the path that will bring the main character to meet her friend again. The main character will simply go from one location to another, following what her friend previously made. The protagonist doesn’t know the truth, she just wants to see her friend again and will follow every little clues that can lead to her.

Following a pre-made step or a path that somebody else decided for you, knowing or not about it, is not always a good thing. The linear gameplay and the straightforward “follow the clues and find your friend” topic is just a way to throw to the player sand in the eyes. The main character is following a path already built, a path decided by something else, by a hidden and vicious creature. The final boss is the puppeteer of the entire game, described as an old and forgotten God, but he has also another more subtle identity. He is the despair, the sadness and the hopeless of a broken mind. If you follow his voice and the path that he built, there will be only one possible and tragical end. This is what happened to the friend of the protagonist when, what was apparently just a nice day, will be revealed to be the day in which she suicided for the loss of her dog.

The final boss is the embodiment of the tragedy and the despair born from sadness, the hidden voice bringing you toward the suicide. The last battle against him is a pure representation of how to fight these hard and oppressive feelings: ignoring them and trying to move on. The only way to fight such despair is avoiding the path that is building for you.

During the fight, the monster will give you very specific command like “Move!” or “Don’t run!”. If you do as he says, you will instantly die. The only way to defeat him is to ignore what is saying and to do the opposite way. Move if he orders to stay still, don’t attack when he orders you to do it, the only way to fight him back is without giving importance to his voice. If you follow the path and the orders he is giving you, the despair will bring you to a disastrous end.

After understanding this concept, the fight is quite easy, but this doesn’t simplify or erase the meaning and the message of this event. The first time you attempt this fight, you will probably die thinking “what did just happen, I made as he said why am I dead?!”. This  is because we are used to follow schemes and rules, and this is especially true inside videogames, where tutorials and linear path are very ordinary.

Also the theme characterising the final boss is the one of the spider. He makes you follow threads just to trap you in his net, prey of an unforgiving fate. For this reason during the fight, the only way to kill him is to cut his threads, escaping to this delusional fate and getting again in control of your own history. After regaining his own freedom, the player is not more forced to follow the threads of the plot and will gain access to the Free Mode. Yes, it is just a secret mode, but for me is also a psychological reward and a symbol of regained freedom, where the main character can now freely explore all the map.

The final fight in Yomawari Midnight Shadow is not only a powerful symbolism hiding a complex meaning, but it is also a deconstruction of the common rules of the videogames, also criticising its own linear gameplay.