Announced recently by Atlus, the Japanese RPG developers of Shin Megami Tensei: Persona are creating an HD title, called Catherine. This game will have an action-adventure slant, and be aimed at a more mature market than previous games in the franchise.

Catherine is centered around a character named Vincent, who wakes up every night from his dreams. Players may remember Vincent, as he first appeared in Persona 3 Portable. In this game, Vincent is a 32 year-old salaryman lacking ambition, who is charmed by Catherine, a 22 year-old mysterious beauty. At night, Vincent is plagued by nightmares where he climbs a never ending staircase. He can wake up if he reaches the top, but he is hindered by a link between the dream world and the real world.

In the effort of full disclosure, I am not the biggest JRPG nut out there, and I have never played the Persona series before. However, I think Catherine looks very intriguing for many reasons. For one thing, let’s get clear what they mean by adult. They do not mean salacious or overly violent, this game will simply have adult themes.

In an interview, character artist Shigenori Soejima says the game’s raw terror is intended to startle adults. Although this is not a horror game, it does sound quite scary and weird. Also, in a departure from the series, this is an action-adventure game, not an RPG. Thus, this game will not be a direct sequel to Person 3. However, Katsura Hashino, the director of Persona 4, is the producer/director of Catherine, so there will still be continuity in the story and mythology of the series.

Atlus stated in an interview:

“Before we storm the hi-def consoles with one of our RPGs, we wanted to try making something new, these are the results, and it’s pretty weird...or, I should say, pretty neat!”

Neat indeed! I think this one is definitely worth a look:

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cExya15jYWg&feature=player_embedded

Well there, Ranters, what do you think of the upcoming title from Atlus, Catherine? Will this game give you nightmares, or just put you to sleep?

According to promotional materials, Catherine is set to be released for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in the Winter of 2010.

Source: Kotaku, Siliconera