| White Cat Project | |
 Cover of the 2015 official fan book, featuring the three main characters (Hero, Iris and Catra) alongside event-exclusive characters | |
| 白猫プロジェクト (Shironeko Purojekuto) | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Adventure,fantasy[1] |
| Video game | |
| Developer | Colopl |
| Publisher | Colopl |
| Directed by | Ryōji Tsunoda |
| Produced by | Hiroki Asai[2] |
| Genre | Action role-playing game |
| Platform | iOS,Android |
| Released | July 14, 2014 |
| Video game | |
| White Cat Tennis | |
| Developer | Colopl |
| Publisher | Colopl |
| Genre | Sports |
| Platform | iOS,Android |
| Released | July 31, 2016 |
| Manga | |
| Shironeko Project Hikoujima Kouen | |
| Written by | Colopl |
| Illustrated by | Tsurujirou Matsudaira |
| Published by | Kodansha |
| Magazine | Comic Clear |
| Original run | July 2017 –July 2018 |
| Volumes | 3 |
| Manga | |
| Zero Chronicle | |
| Written by | Yuichi Tobiyama |
| Illustrated by | Fuku Kitsune |
| Published by | Kadokawa Shoten |
| Published | April 1, 2020 |
| Anime television series | |
| Zero Chronicle | |
| Directed by | Masato Jinbo |
| Written by | Masato Jinbo |
| Music by | Taku Iwasaki |
| Studio | Project No.9 |
| Licensed by | Crunchyroll |
| Original network | AT-X,Tokyo MX,BS11 |
| Original run | April 6, 2020 – June 22, 2020 |
| Episodes | 12 |
| Video game | |
| Shironeko New Project | |
| Developer | Colopl |
| Publisher | Colopl |
| Genre | Action role-playing game |
| Platform | Nintendo Switch |
| Released | TBA[3] |
White Cat Project (Japanese:白猫プロジェクト,Hepburn:Shironeko Purojekuto) is afree-to-playaction role-playing game developed and published by Colopl forAndroid andiOS. It was initially released in Japan on July 14, 2014. An English version was released internationally under the titleColopl Rune Story and operated from July 23, 2015, to October 7, 2016.[4] A spinoff title,White Cat Tennis (白猫テニス,Shironeko Tenisu) was released on both iOS and Android on July 31, 2016, while the upcoming sequelShironeko New Project will be released on theNintendo Switch at a later date.[5]
Ananime adaptation of the game's third anniversary event produced byProject No.9 aired from April 6 to June 22, 2020.
A long time ago, there is an ancient legend revolving around two figures, the White Maiden of the Sky; represented by the White Cat, and the Black Prince of Darkness; represented by the Black Cat. At the same time, a war between the demons and the guardians of light took place, with the demons led by the Black King of Darkness attacking the lands in the sky. The Black Prince however, despite the wishes of the Black King, defied his orders and falls in love with the White Maiden, in hopes that their union would end the war. Both were not meant to meet and love each other as the war ravaged the world around the land and the skies.
Several millennia after the war, in a world consisting of numerous isles, a young hero from the Astora Isle encounters the adventurer Kyle and follows him on an expedition on the isle. They meet a mysterious girl named Iris and a talking white cat named Catra, and together they make their way to the isle's ruins, where they find a flying island. Kyle becomes consumed by darkness there, and the party resolves to travel to the ends of the world on the flying island in order to find the seven "Great Runes", following Kyle's words before he disappeared.[6] Upon their adventures towards finding the Runes, both the hero and Iris start to fill the pieces, meeting friends and enemies and discovering their true identities.
White Cat Project is anaction role-playing game withtouchscreen controls, where the player controls the character by dragging the finger across the screen (a mechanic Colopl calls "Punicon") and tapping to attack. Special abilities can be activated by holding the finger on the character, which opens up a selection menu of abilities. All of these actions can be done using one finger only, which facilitates one-handed gaming.[7]
The characters also have their own classes corresponding to weapon types, for example swords, bows, and mage staffs. In general, most characters are gained via a "Summon" tab which works on agacha system. Runes are spent on randomized characters, with some characters being common and other characters being rare. Some characters can be gained for free by completing in-game missions. While the game is fully playable as asingle-player experience, it also supports up to four-player co-operativemultiplayer. There is also atown-building mode where players can build and upgrade structures that generate in-game currencies and provide combat bonuses to their characters. Unlike many free-to-play games,White Cat Project has no stamina system.[8]
White Cat Project was released in Japan on July 14, 2014, on iOS and Android platforms. The theme song for the game is titled "Stand Up!", performed byYui Horie.[9] An international English version operated from July 23, 2015, until its closure on October 7, 2016. In January 2015, Colopl released aVR version ofWhite Cat Project for theOculus Rift. NamedShironeko VR Project, the game can be controlled with a gamepad, keyboard and mouse, or on a smartphone.[10] A spinoff tennis game featuring characters fromWhite Cat Project was released in July 2016 under the nameWhite Cat Tennis. The "Punicon" controls fromWhite Cat Project are used here as well.[11] A new action RPG tentatively namedShironeko New Project is announced for theNintendo Switch, originally slated for release in 2020 in Japan.[12][3]
In January 2018, Nintendo filed a lawsuit against Colopl over fivepatent infringements found inWhite Cat Project. These include "the special technology used to operate a joystick over a touch panel", first patented by Nintendo for itsNintendo DS wrist strap that Nintendo claims Colopl had used for its "Punicon" controls.[13] Nintendo later added a sixth patent infringement to the proceedings,[14] and seeks 4.4 billion yen in damages plus late fees, in addition to an injunction on the operation of theWhite Cat Project smartphone app.[15][16] Colopl changed the game's control mechanics in February 2020 in response to the lawsuit.[17] Colopl eventually paid Nintendo the equivalent of $30 million US dollars in a settlement.[18]
An anime adaptation of the game, titledWhite Cat Project: Zero Chronicle (白猫プロジェクト ZERO CHRONICLE,Shironeko Purojekuto ZERO CHRONICLE), which adapts the in-game "Zero Chronicle – The first sin" prologue event, was announced during the Colopl 10th Anniversary event and aired from April 6 to June 22, 2020.[19] It was animated byProject No.9, withMasato Jinbo directing and writing the series, Yousuke Okuda designing the characters, andTaku Iwasaki composing the music.[20][21]Takanori Nishikawa andASCA performed the series' opening theme song "Tenbin -LIBRA-" (天秤-Libra-,Balance -LIBRA-), whileRei Yasuda performed the series' ending theme song "through the dark".[22]Funimation had acquired the anime series, and they streamed it on its platforms.[23] FollowingSony's acquisition ofCrunchyroll, the series was moved to Crunchyroll.[24]
| No. | Title[25][a] | Original air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | "The Land Protected by Light" Transliteration: "Hikari ni Mamorareshi kuni" (Japanese:光に守られし国) | April 6, 2020 (2020-04-06) |
| 2 | "The World's Egoism" Transliteration: "Sekai no Wagamama" (Japanese:世界の我儘) | April 13, 2020 (2020-04-13) |
| 3 | "The Grief-stricken Queen of Light" Transliteration: "Shūshō no Hikari no Ou" (Japanese:愁傷の光の王) | April 20, 2020 (2020-04-20) |
| 4 | "The Messenger from Black" Transliteration: "Kuro no Tsukai" (Japanese:黒の使い) | April 27, 2020 (2020-04-27) |
| 5 | "United Front" Transliteration: "Kyōtō" (Japanese:共闘) | May 4, 2020 (2020-05-04) |
| 6 | "The Gray-Green Demoness" Transliteration: "Hai midori no Mashō" (Japanese:灰緑の魔障) | May 11, 2020 (2020-05-11) |
| 7 | "Picking Wild Greens" Transliteration: "Sansaitori" (Japanese:山菜採り) | May 18, 2020 (2020-05-18) |
| 8 | "A Promise" Transliteration: "Yakusoku" (Japanese:約束) | May 25, 2020 (2020-05-25) |
| 9 | "The Queen of Light and the Prince of Darkness" Transliteration: "Hikari no Ou to Yami no Oji" (Japanese:光の王と闇の王子) | June 1, 2020 (2020-06-01) |
| 10 | "The Gentle Song of Darkness" Transliteration: "Yasashiki yami no Shi" (Japanese:やさしき闇の詩) | June 8, 2020 (2020-06-08) |
| 11 | "The Distant Sky" Transliteration: "Haruka tenkū" (Japanese:はるか天空) | June 15, 2020 (2020-06-15) |
| 12 | "The Sin of Beginning" Transliteration: "Hajimari no Tsumi" (Japanese:はじまりの罪) | June 22, 2020 (2020-06-22) |
On July 18, 2014,White Cat Project reached the top of Google Play Japan's ranking of newly released free apps, four days after release on Android. It reached 1 million downloads six days later, becoming the fastest growing app in Colopl's history.[27] It soon became Japan's fastest growing smartphone game, having amassed 10 million downloads a little more than a month later on August 30.[28] It reached 100 million downloads on June 27, 2016.[29]
The game won the award for "Best Game of 2014" inGoogle Play Japan and in "Best iPhone Game" and "Best iPad Game" in Japan'sApp Store Best of 2014 awards.[30] It also won the "Excellence" award in theFamitsu Awards in 2014 and 2015.[31][32]
Colopl was sued byNintendo in 2016 on claims thatWhite Cat Project violated five of Nintendo's patents. While Colopl initially defended itself in the lawsuit, the company announced in August 2021 that they agreed to settle with Nintendo for¥3.3 billion (approximatelyUS$30 million) as to "resolve the matter as soon as possible". The settlement allows Colopl to license Nintendo's patents forWhite Cat Project and other games.[33]
