The implausible centrality afforded to cats in Japan will never not be surprising. Onomichi – a city in Hiroshima Prefecture famous for its population of cats – now has a website that allows users to virtually explore its backstreets and alleyways as a cat.
Hiroshima Cat's Street View displays a 360-degree image from the perspective of a cat, close to the ground. The cursor is a tiny paw print and soft meows frequently punctuate any ambient noise pickup on the street.
Users have the ability to navigate the streets, shops and even museums as a cat. Following a Club Penguin-y kind of vibe, if you see another cat, you can click on an icon above its head to get more information about it.
There is also a "cat trail" that you can follow to get to various sites such as the Maneki-neko Art Museum, famously dedicated to the "beckoning cat" figurines that exist pretty much everywhere.
The website is also a testament to how 360-degree view capable cameras, such as the Ricoh Theta m15, are opening up a world of new possibilities for VR navigation.
More than anything, however, the new website seems to be a way to encourage cat-loving tourists to visit the city.
