We Love Katamari

"Look out citizens of the world! The Prince is back for more!"

Hey look, we have another Katamari game. Just what we needed. More Katamari rolling and consuming...

Gameplay

Much has been added to this great game from the previous one. There are now many kinds of new missions and specific tasks you must complete within the courses. It's not all about making a large katamari this time, but that's not to say that you won't find that. In fact, you would probable be glad to know that this time, you will be able to roll up a katamari that greatly exceeds the size of the biggest one you could make in the first game. Yes, we are now talking about making katamaries thousands of meters high. Not to mention, you will eventually be able to pick up the King of all Cosmos themselves! That is very enjoyable. Let's take a look at some of the new courses this game has to offer:

Under the Sea - You will now be picking up lots of fish and other sea creatures. It does bring a new twist to the gameplay because the physics are changed around. If you try dashing off a high point in the level, you will descend at a very slow pace and find yourself wasting lots of time. So one must work around the sluggish movements of playing underwater. You will also encounter lots of randomness while you are down there. You will find dogs with snorkels and televisions along with a bike and a car. Well, I do suppose it's quite possible...

School - You will partake in several types of missions here. One will traditionally involve making your katamari as big as you can get it. The other requires you to pick up all the children as fast as you can and the other requires you to pick up as many origami storks as you can. I think they are storks...But anyway, you don't get to traverse an entire school. There are several classrooms adjacent to the halls and once you travel past the whole you warp back to the beginning of it. I must say though, it's quite satisfying picking up teachers and other school stuff...take that school!

Raceway - Katamari meets Mario kart! Well not quite. It's not really a race but in this course you will not be able to control the speed of your katamari. It will keep traveling forward at a very high speed. You can turn it and such but it will keep on moving at all times. It's a very fun course. You can make high flying jumps off ramps and hills and pick up other racers and eventually, pick up everything other then the race course itself.

These are only a few of the new levels. There are plenty more. You will be rolling up a fireball in order to light a campfire. You will be collecting fireflies to help a boy study his school work in the dark. You will also be rolling up a head for a snowman. And you will be rolling around a sumo wrestler to get him big enough to win a match. So yes, there are lots of new gameplay elements.

Another interesting addition to the game is the ability to switch characters. When traveling through the different courses you will be able to pick up some of the Prince's cousins and then be able to use them. Supposedly, they all have different characteristics and handling, however, they generally tend to be similar.

Story

This game does in fact, have a story. The game Katamari Damacy becomes a big hit throughout the world and all the fans are begging the King for more. They all have their own share of problems and ask the King for help. These are your missions. However, these fans are no ordinary fans. They definitely are not fanboys. You will always hear them complain after the tasks saying how you could do so much better and then they decided to let the King keep the katamaries, in which, he will pop them up into the cosmos. Along with that, you will view several cut scenes throughout the game that shows the King as a little kid and then growing up and eventually marrying the queen and so forth, all done with a dramatic/opera type of presentation. Some parts are so sad...

Graphics

Just like the first game, the graphics are very blocky, but apparently, that is the style and there is nothing wrong with it. Everything is very colorful and is pleasing to the eye. No complaints in this category.

Sound

Yes, this game has sound. You will still hear cries of pain from the poor victims of the rolling katamari. However, the music is a slight disappointment compared to the first game. None of the tunes are that catchy. I say there are about two or three songs that are good. The rest are rather dull.

Final Recommendation

We think you should buy this game, especially considering the 30 dollar price tag. If you enjoyed the first game, you will surely enjoy this one as well.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 01/23/06