Beautiful Katamari

by Namco

Product Features

• Rolling in 720P Katamari leaps into the next generation with an upgrade into the HD era with increased visual depth and seamless Katamari growth All new soundtrack New levels and objects present the player with more craziness to conquer
• New Characters New cousins join the fun to bring the total to over 50 playable characters each with their own quirky animations and style
• Offline Multiplayer Share the experience with another player as you race to collect more objects than each other Tired of battling it out Make peace and work together in co op mode to roll the same katamari
• Online Multiplayer for the first time Compete with your friends to roll up everything or as many specific objects as possible As you wait for more online players take part in the mini games that populate the lobby and spread the world of Katamari Damacy
• Downloadable Content The world's ever changing as your game will continue to give you joy through downloadable content ready to give you a fresh experience very time you fire up your system

Product Details

• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B000P297JI
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.8 x 0.5 inches ; 3.2 ounces
• Media: Video Game
• Release Date: October 15, 2007
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (58 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,504 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)
  • #77 in Video Games > Xbox 360 > Adventure

Product Description

The King of All Cosmos and the Prince have returned this time in amazing Next Generation brilliance! The game that took the video game world by storm is set to continue rolling with new stages, cousins, and visual style. Play as the Prince or one of the cousins, new and old, to roll up objects in all-new stages and missions as you explore this brand new creative exploration. With this new era, the hit style of gameplay is able to present an experience only hinted at in previous versons. Seamless katamari growing and animated presents add to the experience that has captivated hardcore and casual gamers everywhere.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

49 of 51 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Short and sweet, October 19, 2007

By 

Movie Fan - See all my reviews

= Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Beautiful Katamari (Video Game)

I was really excited to learn that Katamari was coming to the 360. I thought we would be able to roll the biggest Katamari ever at lightning fast speeds, have 3 times as many areas to explore, a killer new soundtrack and tons of online playability. Unfortunately, Katamari fails to deliver on several of these expectations.

First, this game, like the other Katamari games: Katamari Damacy, We Love Katamari and Me and My Katamari, is a BLAST to play. For those who don't know, you play as the Prince of the Cosmos who has been sent by the King of the Cosmos to use a sticky ball known as a Katamari, to roll up items in the world to create stars, satellites and planets to re-populate the solar system after the King has done something to mess up the galaxy (always something funny). The Katamari starts out small and at first you can only roll up small objects, but as the game progress you'll be able to roll up people, cars, buildings and even landmasses (and much later... entire planets!). This kind of unique gameplay is addictive and fun to say the least. Here's where the game falls short...

I defeated the game in a day and a half (that includes obtaining the online achievements). The game is very short compared to other Katamari releases. Also, you end up re-visiting several maps that are being passed off as new levels simply because they have a few different items in them. With the 360's power, I really expected there to be tons of levels and none that repeated themselves, which isn't the case here.

The sound was a let down also. Most of the sounds are recycled from old Katamari games and the soundtrack is the weakest in the series. The Katamari games are none for their killer soundtracks: Minna Daisuki Katamari Damacy, but there are only 2 or 3 good songs that stand out. They even seemed to run out of new songs worthy of the game, because you'll also hear cuts from "We Love Katamari".

The online portion of the game is the biggest letdown. You can play thru all 5 levels in under 20 minutes and the object of each stage is to collect as many of a specific item as possible before the game ends. Online opponents can run into each other, knocking their foes items off their Katamari, but all this gets boring and repetative... after you play all the stages. I was really hoping for an online competition, where cousins could compete to roll the biggest Katamari for the King in either an online version of the one player game, or a specific game for xbox live, but it didn't happen.

With that said, there is a lot to praise. The game looks amazing in HD. I disagree with some gaming critics who think the graphics should have been redone to take advantage of the 360's power, but to me, if you change the look...it's not Katamari. In this version, the items and characters pop with a vibrant colorfully clarity you don't get in previous games. I also got one of my wishes for the game, you will be able to roll the biggest Katamaris ever! I wont give anything away, but the last stage is absolutely amazing. The replay value is very high with the game too. To trully beat a stage, you need to find all the cousins and presents and be awarded 100 points by the King. Obtaining 100 points on a stage, will unlock an infinite mode, that lets you play that stage without being timed! Just press "X" to quit. This is a great way to locate presents and cousins you may have missed, as well as plot a strategy to grow your Katamari at a faster rate, when it does matter.

Overall, I'm pleased with the purchase. Die-hard fans of the series will love this version of Katamari, but I think you'll feel like the game could've been so much more.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Price Makes it Worth a Purchase if You are a Katamari Fan, November 27, 2007

By 

J. A Carty "Jessie Carty" (Charlotte, NC United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

= Fun:4.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Beautiful Katamari (Video Game)

I love the other Katamari games but I found this one a bit of a disappointment. The graphics are exactly the same as the other games in the series even though this game is on a new system and the stages look very similiar. Speaking of the stages, however, they may look similiar but there seemed to be a lot less that was interesting and funny to roll up.

The game was fun to play because the controls were quite simple to use, but the game is quite short and does not contain anything new. It is pretty cheap so if you like the Katamari games this is probably worth a purchase. If you are new to the series of games and have one of the other systems I'd think about getting one of the other games as you will probably get a longer game play out of them.

17 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Very Disappointed, November 14, 2007

By 

Miss E (Ann Arbor, MI) - See all my reviews

= Fun:2.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Beautiful Katamari (Video Game)

I'm very disappointed in the new Katamari game! One of the things I really enjoyed about previous installments was the variety of challenges, but so far all of the levels fit the profile of make a katamari of x size in y amount of time. There are "fast as you can" type challenges, but they're only for online rankings, not for level completion. Not having a variety of challenges means that if you aren't good at one kind, the game isn't going to be much fun.