There is an old proverb that says a rolling stone gathers no moss, but that saying apparently doesn't hold weight when it comes to Beautiful Katamari, because as it turns out a katamari will gather anything while it's rolling…of course that's only as long as it is smaller than you. Do you have what it takes to roll balls around…and commit the genocide of an entire planet?

THE STORY SO FAR
Ah dad, you're such an idiot. It started off easily enough with the family going on vacation, but then you had to go all Tiger Woods on us, nail a tee shot, and puncture a hole in the blackness of infinity, sucking up all the nighttime sky's constellations and planets. Idiot! Of course you're too lazy to do any work yourself, so you hire me, your tiny little prince, to scurry around on Earth, picking up odd knickknacks here and there to fix your mistake. Thanks!

Beautiful Katamari doesn't exactly have a deep story, as the only real narrative moments come in the beginning. The only other narrative comes from some pre-level dialogue moments between you and your father, with him dictating what he wants you do to do. Oh well, chances are all players will care about is rolling junk up into a massive ball anyways.

SINGLE PLAYER: GAMEPLAY
The main mode of the game is the single-player adventure mode, which has you trying to create the cosmos again by gathering junk on Earth and making objects for your dad to shoot back up into the sky.

When you first start the game out you're on the very miniscule level, picking up some loose change and paperclips if you're even lucky to get that far. The reason for gathering the junk is that you're trying to make your katamari ball as big as possible, but most importantly big enough to please your father's request and all before time runs out. The gist is that by using the two thumbsticks, you control the prince's hands as he pushes the katamari around the environment, picking up things smaller than his ball so that ball can get bigger, pick up even bigger objects, and then hopefully reach the size your dad needs.

Luckily for you the people of Japan are a bunch of slobs, as they leave junk laying everywhere from counters and cabinets to tables and the streets. With you able to grab so much stuff, it's surprising just how difficult the game is, as the time limit is very tied in to your katamari's size, as I never completed a requested size more than a few seconds before the main timer was over. The problem comes in that the controls aren't perfect, as it's hard to roll the katamari sometimes, especially trying to navigate around corners. The game also has some camera problems, which will at times work (making a big invisible hole in a table to show you underneath) while at other times it completely fails (where am I again). Though the time limit is your biggest enemy, you'll also run into environmental objects impeding your path, such as barriers that you can't get over until your katamari gets a certain size, or either being hit and pushed around by vehicles, animals, or people bigger than you.

Besides having to pick enough junk up you've also got the pick the right junk up, as your father is very picky, such as wanting your katamari to be mostly liquid items, and so to get as many points as possible you need to focus on liquid items. If you focus too much, however, you might not find enough items, and so you'll fail the level. The game really makes you feel depressed even after you've completed a level, as you'd think your dad would say he's proud of you, but all he does is make fun of your katamaris and says how he'll get someone else to do your job. Another level type has you needing to make your katamari reach a certain temperature, and so you have to roll up hot stuff while avoiding cold things like penguins and fire extinguishers.

One wishes they could talk more about the game, but the fact is that Beautiful Katamari is a rather simple game with a simple premise that works particularly well because of that simplicity. You roll stuff up in a ball before time runs out – not much of a change from one level to the next or one franchise game to the next for that matter.

MULTIPLAYER: GAMEPLAY
Beautiful Katamari has two different multiplayer gameplay options, giving players the chance to get along or either quench their thirst for blood. First up is the Co-Op mode, which has you and a friend both rolling a katamari around at the same time, which sounds fun, but when the game already suffers from some control problems, splitting it up between two people isn't the greatest thing. Imagine you trying to push the ball right while they want to go left, and soon a black eye will happen and you've lost your friend. The other mode is a Versus Mode, which has you and a rival player trying to be the player to roll the most target objects up before time runs out. The multiplayer is okay, but the game seems better suited for the single-players.

GRAPHICS
The graphics are Easter bright with nary a muted color or depressed palette of color anywhere in view. The entire game is just bubbling over with the brightest oranges and richest blues. Many of the objects you'll roll up are also extremely blocky, which will not appeal to everyone, but it's an unusual style and works well with the simplicity of the game.

SOUND
The sound effects of rolling the katamari around and picking up screaming children sound good, but it's the music that easily wins the audio prize. You won't understand most of the lyrics, but the heavy Japanese leanings and J-Pop sounds are so poppy and catchy that you'll find yourself humming the melodies for days after finishing the level.

IN CONCLUSION
If you're a Katamari franchise fan, you'll probably dig the newest installment and pick it up right away. For those players who may have never played the game before, it takes a lot to get used to, and sometimes getting through a level on the seventh time is more a chore than any fun. Overall the game is pretty average with too many shortcomings for it to overcome.

Rating:
Our Scoring System