Beautiful Katamari is the 4th game in the Katamari Damacy series, and like many quirky, original games that get the multiple sequel treatment, the novelty is starting to wear off. Luckily the game is still a blast to play.
You are the prince (or one of his many cousins), and you must clean up the galactic mess made by the King of the Cosmos. You're tasked to make replacements for stars and planets by rolling a 'Katamari'—a sticky ball than slowly picks up objects until it grows and grows to the correct size within the time limit.
On some levels the Katamari starts off as small as a ping pong ball, but can end up miles wide—creating an incredible sense of scale. And it's always a cheap thrill once you can roll up people (who look more Playmobil than real). All-in-all, the quirky geometric art style, funky music, tank-like controls and twisted sense of humor are a winning formula, so let's compare the pros and cons of this version.
In the plus column, the graphics retain the style of the PS2 games, but are subtly improved upon with better color, higher resolution, improved depth of field and less slow down. The overworld area is probably the best yet, with more to see and do, and the bizarre 'J-pop' soundtrack is as great as ever.
Online play via Xbox Live is a great addition, even if it can sometimes be tricky to find opponents. The leaderboards go all out with various stats on everything from high scores for each course to which cousins players use the most. However, the best addition may be the Achievements. They fit this game like a glove, offering added incentives to go back and find all the Cousins, Presents, etc.
In the minus column Katamari games plays better with a stock PS2 controller. Blame it on the odd placement of the analogue sticks on the 360 controller, but pulling off some of the special moves can be tricky. Also, other than new levels and a fresh coat of paint, there just isn't a lot of new stuff.
On top of that, the game is kind of short, unless you pay for and unlock the extra levels via the Xbox Marketplace, which brings the total price tag to nearly full price ($60). Considering that the other Katamari games were budget titles, you may feel more than a little ripped off.
Beautiful Katamari isn't the best in the series—that distinction belongs to We
♥
Katamari on the PS2, but it plays a solid version and the Xbox Live features are a welcome addition. If the downloadable levels weren't so expensive I would easily rate it a 4 out of 5. If you're someone who likes quirky games and doesn't have access to a PS2 (or you're a Katamari fan, hungry for more), I highly recommended it.
2008 ben langberg, all rights reserved.