Video Game Reviews

Katamari Damacy
Platforms: PS2
Namco, 2003

9.5 Anuses Out Of 10

Review By: Manzoku

In the old, golden days of the video game, things were simple. So simple, in fact, that its simplicity superseded the concept of logic. Who can explain how collecting 100 coins somehow gave you the chance to die and come back? Or how a hedgehog is extremely fast and able to kill almost anything but spinning? Or how mushrooms make you big and allow you to take an extra hit? Or how about [insert millions of examples here]?

While we make fun of the Japanese for some of the bizarre games that they make, the fact is that they have the right idea. Think of the most popular games - most are either great multiplayer experiences (allowing great fun with friends) or are just outrageously entertaining to play. Though other factors (graphics, multiple game modes, controls) are also important, what makes or breaks a game is the experience of playing it, and ridiculous games are often the most fun to play.

Katamari Damacy is a ridiculous game, but it is probably one of the best single player gaming experiences that I have had in a long time. The basic concept follows the concept of the "Snowball Effect" - you start off with a small ball (Katamari) that can pick up very small things, and as your Katamari grows in diameter, you can pick up larger objects.

From that description, the game doesn't seem that interesting. But Katamari Damacy is a game drowned in the ridiculous, and it would hard to not love it. The number of hilarious, bizarre, and just plain great things is too large to list here, but here are some examples:

• The Monty-Python-esque opening sequence (with singing ducks, dancing bears, and other random things)
• The freaky but hilarious cut scenes after each single player level
• The ridiculous things going on in each level (why are there three guitar players riding on a rampant elephant?)
• The bizarre objectives of the special levels (the sky isn't pretty enough, so roll up as many ladies as you can)
• The conversations with the King of All Cosmos before, after, and during each level ("It was boring watching you this whole time")
• The storyline (your father, the King of All Cosmos, had "too much fun" one night and destroyed all of the stars and the moon, and you have to roll shit up to throw into the sky to reform the stars and moon)

The ridiculous aspect is not enough to make a great game, but the gameplay is sweet. It's simple enough to easily get into, but still challenging enough to get an experienced gamer interested. After the first level, the game becomes all about trying to grow enough to pick up the next biggest thing - pets, street signs, people, plants, cars, trees, buildings, ships, islands. The music is awe-inspiring, extremely catchy and fits perfectly with the action of the game, causing you to want to play the game for both the action and the music (any game music that is good enough to buy or download is pretty sweet.) Finally, things that you can pick up and the sounds that they make show that the programs intended for the game to be hilariously sarcastic, especially the short descriptions that you can check out after you pick them up. This game is nearly impossible to describe, but I would recommend it to pretty much anyone that plays video games and has access to a PlayStation 2. It only cost me $20, so you can get it cheap. Trust me, it's worth it, and if you get it now you'll be able to play it in time to get a craving for the much anticipated sequel that the "underground" video game scene is already pumped about.

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