{"id":69276,"date":"2026-07-07T17:30:34","date_gmt":"2026-07-07T08:30:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/?p=69276"},"modified":"2026-07-07T17:30:37","modified_gmt":"2026-07-07T08:30:37","slug":"rhythm-heaven-groove-is-super-popular-with-cats-in-japan-for-some-reason","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/news\/rhythm-heaven-groove-is-super-popular-with-cats-in-japan-for-some-reason\/","title":{"rendered":"Rhythm Heaven Groove is super popular with cats in Japan for some reason"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As the first title in the Rhythm Heaven franchise in over 10 years, it\u2019s no surprise that fans are having a blast <strong>Rhythm Heaven Groove<\/strong><strong>, <\/strong>which launched on July 2 for the Nintendo Switch 2. What is surprising, however, is the <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/search?q=%E3%83%AA%E3%82%BA%E3%83%A0%E5%A4%A9%E5%9B%BD%20%E7%8C%AB&amp;src=typed_query\">recent trend of social media posts<\/a> in Japan showcasing cats that are mesmerized by the gameplay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-x wp-block-embed-x\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"ja\" dir=\"ltr\">\u96e3\u6613\u5ea6\u4e0a\u3052\u306a\u3044\u3067\u6b32\u3057\u3044\u308f\u3051 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/shobLHJ1ij\">pic.twitter.com\/shobLHJ1ij<\/a><\/p>&mdash; \u304d\u308a\u307d\u3093 (@kirikirimymy) <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/kirikirimymy\/status\/2072990924062564383?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">July 3, 2026<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-x wp-block-embed-x\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"ja\" dir=\"ltr\">\u4eca\u56de\u306e\u30ea\u30ba\u30e0\u5929\u56fd\u306e\u732b\u30b3\u30e9\u30dc\u304c\u96e3\u6613\u5ea6\u9ad8\u304f\u3066\u30ef\u30ed\u30a6\u305f <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/3lOsrp0bXt\">pic.twitter.com\/3lOsrp0bXt<\/a><\/p>&mdash; toro-hide (@thai_hide) <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/thai_hide\/status\/2073030520125153683?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">July 3, 2026<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The cats don\u2019t seem to be particularly picky about which minigames their owners are playing. From <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/_78Pa\/status\/2073958005457228268?s=20\">flying cooking ingredients<\/a> to <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/mom0_tam\/status\/2072661911012036747?s=20\">floating volleyballs<\/a>, if there\u2019s something moving on the screen, chances are a cat chasing after it. It may have something to do with the simplicity of Rhythm Heaven Groove\u2019s repeated animations and beats, but one can only guess what has got these feline companions more absorbed in the game than their owners.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-x wp-block-embed-x\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"ja\" dir=\"ltr\"><a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/hashtag\/%E3%83%AA%E3%82%BA%E3%83%A0%E5%A4%A9%E5%9B%BD?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#\u30ea\u30ba\u30e0\u5929\u56fd<\/a> \u306f\u795e\u30b2\u30fc<br>\u306a\u305c\u306a\u3089\u732b\u3082\u904a\u3079\u308b\u304b\u3089\u3067\u3059 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/EoK4vedBVC\">pic.twitter.com\/EoK4vedBVC<\/a><\/p>&mdash; 788\u00b0 (@_78Pa) <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/_78Pa\/status\/2073958005457228268?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">July 6, 2026<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">While Rhythm Heaven Groove definitely isn\u2019t meant to be a cat-themed title similar to the likes of Stray or Little Kitty, Big City, cats tend to appear in the game\u2019s stages. <a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/JyPuVgAfevM?si=hjLb3O8eg5WWDWIC\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">A white cat<\/a> can be seen near the sink in Slice N Dice Kitchen while a black-and-white cat grabs any ingredients you might have missed. <a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/IBh7DB4UWdY?si=152p67WkpR6fjQ8m\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Several Maneki-Neko<\/a> hop to the beat in Hop Stop N Roll. Aside from the previous examples where cats are on full display, some stages include secret cats that only pop up when certain conditions are met.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you\u2019re a Rhythm Groove enjoyer and also a cat owner, you might want to plop your furry friend in front of the screen the next time you play. You might find out that your cat is just as obsessed with the game as you are.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Rhythm Heaven Groove is available on the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nintendo.com\/us\/store\/products\/rhythm-heaven-groove-switch\/?srsltid=AfmBOooYqMveGSn1DH6PqIIWmACt8dNgKSnodXfa09d8toErexTGuj4m\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Nintendo Switch<\/a> and Switch 2.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Cats in Japan are going viral for being &#8220;hypnotized&#8221; by their owners&#8217; Rhythm Heaven Groove gameplay.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":67,"featured_media":69279,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_gspb_post_css":"","autoblue_enabled":true,"autoblue_custom_message":"","autoblue_shares":[{"did":"did:plc:uzrrhkfyjrfdsynj2voztcf2","date":"2026-07-07T08:30:52+00:00","uri":"at:\/\/did:plc:uzrrhkfyjrfdsynj2voztcf2\/app.bsky.feed.post\/3mq26ur6qy32n","response":"{\"uri\":\"at:\/\/did:plc:uzrrhkfyjrfdsynj2voztcf2\/app.bsky.feed.post\/3mq26ur6qy32n\",\"cid\":\"bafyreido322oh7sxkixbwoj2seqbfg2ycc77g5l32tqkety6vewdn7wv7a\",\"commit\":{\"cid\":\"bafyreid4julsr3rt76pnxtii6usrims3tirxdmit6njdqzc2wvgnn27tv4\",\"rev\":\"3mq26ur74p32n\"},\"validationStatus\":\"valid\"}"}],"autoblue_post_url":"","autoblue_publish_document":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[17,33],"class_list":["post-69276","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-japan-related-news","tag-nintendo"],"blocksy_meta":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.8 - 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