Me and My Katamari

Written by John Scalzo  on March 10, 2006

Final Glimpse: The King can swim in my pool anytime.

Tweet

Comments

The King of All Cosmos and his merry family changed the definition of "quirky" forever with the PS2 release of Katamari Damacy in 2004.

In the beginning, after a night of drunken debauchery, the King had knocked all the stars from the sky. "Roll this garbage into a ball", the King asked his diminutive son, "and we'll take that Katamari and turn it into a star to relight the sky." So with it's funky soundtrack, stylized Lego block-like graphics and pitch perfect control, Katamari Damacy won the hearts of gamers everywhere. It also helps that the King is the greatest video game character since... well, ever.

In Me and My Katamari, the first family of the cosmos is at it again. After the exhausting trial of repopulating the sky in the previous two Katamari games, the King is taking his family on a tropical vacation. Sadly, someone left the minibar unlocked and the King once again imbibes of the cheap hooch. And during a leisurely swim in the ocean, the King's massive frame causes a tsunami that leaves all the animals of the area homeless. So once again the King is called upon to roll up his sleeves, flex his muscles... and make the Prince fix everything.

The PSP may be a very powerful machine, but there's one ingredient vital to Katamari Damacy that is missing: a second analog stick. For those that don't know, controlling the Katamari used both analog sticks, much like driving a tank. With the PSP's single stick setup, some improvisation had to take place. And that improvisation is remapping the PS2's analog sticks to the D-pad and the face buttons. Anyone familiar with Smash TV on the Super NES will know how this system works and how it's a close, but not exact, replica of two stick analog control.

But thankfully, other than the misshapen controls, Me and My Katamari will look, sound and play like the Katamari of old. And by that I mean the first game in the series. Yes, gone are many of the unique challenges of We Love Katamari like going underwater, collecting paper cranes and racing your Katamari around a track. In MaMK, the Prince will once again just be asked to roll up a Katamari of the appropriate size in the appropriate time frame. If he's successful, it will become the appropriate new home of some grateful animal. If not, the King will be angry. Menacing, lightning and lasers from his eyeballs angry. You don't want any piece of that.

With his Katamari ready to take on the world, the Prince will encounter environments that look like they could have been ripped straight out of the PS2 games. Yes, the stylized Lego-block world that gives the Katamari series its distinct look will return. Also returning will be options to collect presents and play as the Prince's cousins. I'm sure a new funky soundtrack will also put the PSP's speakers to the test.