Catherina from Metaphor: ReFantazio is not based on Qatherine from Catherine: Full Body, says designer

Any similarities between the two characters are purely coincidence

Metaphor: ReFantazio / Atlus

Metaphor: ReFantazio is the upcoming RPG from Atlus’ Studio Zero, a new developer formed from creators of Catherine and the modern Persona games. While it marks a whole new series for the publisher, it will still have plenty of nods to director Katsura Hashino’s vast library of work. Long-time fans of Hashino-san’s games will have plenty of easter eggs to spot, but Catherine: Full Body’s Rin is apparently not one of them.

One of the first characters revealed for the game is Catherina, a pink-haired bounty hunter who becomes friends with the player's party. She bears a striking resemblance to new love interest Qatherine, better known as Rin, from Catherine: Full Body, and both characters were designed by long-time Atlus character artist, Shigenori Soejima. We sat down with Hashino-san and Soejima-san to talk about Metaphor, and the pair say that any similarities between the two characters are purely coincidence.

Metaphor: ReFantazio / Atlus

“Catherine and Metaphor are set in different worlds,” Hashino-san tells me before passing the question over to Soejima-san to better explain his character design. “I thought pink hair would stand out in a fantasy setting, and look cool. I understand that the hairstyle is similar as well, but there's no relation between Catherina and Rin. I didn't intend there to be,” Soejima-san explains.

Hashino-san further explains that he thinks the misunderstanding comes from the English translations of the names. While Catherine and Catherina are very close in English, the Japanese names have more differences. In Japanese the Metaphor’s Catherina is キャゼリナ (Kyazerina), compared to Rin’s name, キャサリン (Kyasarin). Japanese has a very limited alphabet, and even a two letter difference like this can seem bigger than it would to English speakers.

Metaphor: ReFantazio / Atlus

We know that Soejima-san created the characters and ultimately has the final say on whether Catherina’s design is a nod to Rin or not, but that's not going to stop us thinking of her as an easter egg in our head canon.