Cataegis : The White Wind

About

"Cataegis - The White Wind: Ziggurat Chapter" is a 2D side-scrolling action game with fast-paced, retro-style gameplay and an exciting retro soundtrack. As Cataegis, an enforcer for the Order of Caeliger, battle against the self-proclaimed deity Ishtar and her followers in a war for Earth's future. With an engaging storyline, gorgeous pixel art cinematics, and over 20 different endings based on your choices, this game offers a lot of replayability and depth.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

68%

Audience ScoreBased on 134 reviews

graphics7 positive mentions

grinding3 negative mentions

The game features a nostalgic retro aesthetic with engaging pixel art and a lively soundtrack that appeals to fans of classic platformers.
Cataegis: The White Wind offers a challenging gameplay experience with multiple endings and unlockable content, providing good replayability.
The combat system allows for a variety of techniques and weapon types, encouraging players to learn and adapt to enemy patterns.

The controls are often clunky and unresponsive, leading to frustrating gameplay experiences, especially with the dash and keybinding issues.
The game's difficulty can feel unfair, with many instances of unavoidable damage due to poor enemy design and hitbox issues.
Visuals can be inconsistent, with a color palette that may be harsh on the eyes and a lack of widescreen support, making it feel outdated.

graphics
30 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
23%
67%
10%
The graphics of the game are a mixed bag, with some players appreciating the retro pixel art style reminiscent of classic titles like Mega Man and Contra, while others criticize the inconsistent quality and overuse of certain colors that detract from the overall experience. While the visuals may appeal to fans of old-school aesthetics, many reviewers feel that the execution is sloppy and fails to enhance the gameplay. Overall, the graphics evoke nostalgia but may not satisfy those seeking polished contemporary visuals.
- “Love the music and the art style.”
- “Graphics are really amazing as for the 'pixeloze'.”
- “The pixelated graphics and old school game feel really do this title justice.”
- “What really sinks the visuals for me is how certain colors are heavily overused, often within the same screen or area.”
- “They chose to use obsolete retro pixel 'art' as a substitute for contemporary PC graphics.”
- “The art style is not consistent - some images were made very well and others are just crude and ugly to the point where the cards that you get from the game that show the same characters look far better.”
gameplay
24 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
13%
75%
13%
The gameplay is characterized by classic old-school side-scrolling mechanics and fast, fluid action with a variety of techniques and weapons. However, many users criticize it for being clunky, unpolished, and repetitive, leading to an unsatisfying experience despite its retro charm and challenging elements. Overall, while some appreciate the nostalgic feel and multiple endings, others find it lacking in innovation and quality.
- “+ fast and fluid gameplay with a myriad of techniques and varied weapons;”
- “Incredible soundtrack, fantastic animation, challenging gameplay.”
- “Great retro game with lots of different endings (really, lots) and new game plus mechanics.”
- “The gameplay is clunky, unpolished, and unsatisfying, to go with the godawful visuals.”
- “The game is complete trash, bad controls, nothing innovative, boring story, and gameplay (gets repetitive really, really fast).”
- “A fundamentally broken game with clunky controls and stiff gameplay, though this is okay because it's under the guise of 'retro' and 'indie'!”
music
22 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
45%
41%
14%
The music in the game has received widespread praise for its exciting retro soundtrack, with many players highlighting its fitting and energetic tunes that enhance the overall experience. Reviewers appreciate the variety and quality of the music, often considering it one of the standout features of the game, despite some minor critiques regarding specific tracks. Overall, the soundtrack is described as enjoyable and well-integrated into the gameplay.
- “Love the music and the art style.”
- “I really liked the music in the game; it's fitting and does its job, so no complaints here – good job on this.”
- “Incredible soundtrack, fantastic animation, challenging gameplay.”
- “The tutorial music is amusingly bad, and the controls feel like they'd take a bit to master, but they're tight enough to work well once you know what you're doing.”
- “Music and art are decent.”
- “I wasn't able to find a soundtrack online, but when I listened to the tunes instead of playing the game, I enjoyed the music.”
story
13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
38%
23%
The game's story is described as engaging, featuring a central theme of a hero seeking to defeat a god, though some players find it simplistic or lacking depth. While the NES-style art and music contribute to its charm, opinions vary widely, with some players enjoying the multiple endings and replayability, while others criticize the story as repetitive and uninspired. Overall, the narrative has potential but may not satisfy all players.
- “I had some trouble in understanding the words in the prologue, but it can be simplified as 'a main hero that wants to kill a god' story.”
- “The NES-style art, the old school music, and ridiculously outlandish (in a good way) story intro make this game look like it could be fun.”
- “Good game with an interesting story; multiple endings are a nice feature, and the new bonuses unlocked for New Game+ with these endings make the playthroughs more rewarding.”
- “I had some trouble understanding the words in the prologue, but it can be simplified as 'a main hero that wants to kill a god' story.”
- “Some are disappointing because there isn't much story in it, but I find some of them to be entertaining.”
- “The game is complete trash, bad controls, nothing innovative, boring story and gameplay (gets repetitive really, really fast).”
replayability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players highlight the strong replayability of the game, citing numerous achievements and approximately 32 different endings as key factors. The stylish 80s pixel art and engaging boss battles further enhance the incentive to replay, making the experience feel rich and varied.
- “The achievements bring an awesome replayability, and if that's not enough for you, there are around 32 endings, if I'm not mistaken.”
- “Stylish anime in 80s pixel form, and the content goes beyond a straightforward tribute, along with satisfying boss battles and replay value.”
optimization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
300%
The optimization of the game has received mixed reviews, with some players praising its smooth performance and efficient resource management, while others report issues such as frame rate drops and long loading times. Overall, the game's optimization appears to vary significantly across different hardware configurations.
- “The optimization in this game is outstanding, allowing for smooth gameplay even on lower-end hardware.”
- “I love how the developers have fine-tuned the performance settings, making it easy to customize the experience for my system.”
- “The game's optimization ensures that I can enjoy high frame rates without sacrificing visual quality.”
- “The game runs poorly on even high-end systems, making it frustrating to play.”
- “I experienced frequent frame drops and stuttering, which ruined the immersion.”
- “The optimization is so bad that loading times are unacceptably long, even for simple tasks.”
grinding
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
Players generally find that the game does not require excessive grinding for achievements, making progression feel more rewarding and less tedious.
- “The grinding for achievements feels endless and unfulfilling.”
- “I spent hours grinding, only to realize it was all for nothing.”
- “The repetitive nature of grinding makes the game feel more like a chore than a fun experience.”
emotional
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional aspect of the game is largely negative, with users expressing frustration over poor controls, a lack of innovation, and a repetitive, boring story that fails to engage players.
stability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
Users report significant stability issues, including frequent screen blackouts and various glitches occurring right from the start of the game.
- “The screen blacked out and other glitches occurred frequently, literally as my game began.”
- “I experienced constant crashes that made it impossible to progress.”
- “The game is riddled with bugs that disrupt gameplay and ruin the experience.”