Beautiful Katamari
From Katamari Wiki
Beautiful Katamari (ビューティフル塊魂, Beautiful Katamari Damacy) is the fourth game in the main Katamari series. It was released on the XBox 360 during the holiday season of 2007. Along with the full version of the game is a free, downloadable demo for XBox Live. While classic elements of the Katamari series return intact, new modes and items have been added.
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[edit] Gameplay
Like all games in the Katamari series, the game mainly revolves around the building of a Katamari, a magical ball that has the ability to pick up objects smaller than itself and any items it has already amassed. Each level has a time limit and a size goal, where the Katamari must reach the predetermined size before the time limit is up.
New elements added to Beautiful Katamari include a grading system, where The King of All Cosmos judges a Katamari based on speed, size, and total number of a specific item collected in the Katamari. Each level has a request for a specific item to be added to the Katamari, the more of which will result in a higher score. Getting a perfect grade of 100 will unlock the Eternal mode for that stage.
Also new to the series is online play, which includes a race to see who can complete his or her Katamari the fastest, or "Thingy Battle", where players must collect a certain number of a specific item. In addition, the XBox Live Katamari game lounge also includes a Worldwide Katamari which contains the total size of all Katamaris of players connected to XBox Live.
[edit] Downloadable Content
In addition to the included stages, there are also downloadable levels available. Completing each of the new levels adds more stars and planets to the Cosmos, allowing for an even bigger Katamari to be constructed once the player reaches space in the Uranus level. Included in the downloadable content are other items that can only be rolled up in the new stages.
Some criticism has been spoken because of this. In order to complete the 1,500,000 Km Katamari needed to complete the game, all of the downloadable stages must be purchased and completed. These stages are also only a few kilobytes in size, and many complain that the additional levels could have been included on-disc. As a side effect of the downloadable levels not being included, it is impossible to unlock all items until the stages are bought, and the game cannot be beaten until they have been completed.
However, this is not true as the Uranus stage can be beaten at around 1 million Km. The final achievment in the game is to roll a 1.5 million Km Katamari, but the downloadable content is not required. Each stage can have up to 10 stars each made from the finished Katamari, and other objects appear in the Cosmos as more and more planets are made. Two planets can be created in multiplayer, one for Co-op Play and another for Versus Play. Once all objects have been made, a player can finish the Katamari by playing the Supergiant level until large enough to roll up all the stars, planets, and other celestial objects.
[edit] Development
Originally, Beautiful Katamari was slated for release on the PS3, but eventually pulled due to development issues. It was later announced for the XBox 360, and later still on the Wii. However, this was retracted and reannounced as an XBox exclusive title. The official website briefly mentioned a release on all three systems, with undecided release dates on Wii and PS3, but was soon taken down with only a date for the XBox.
Ultimately, it would only be released on the XBox 360, though Namco would later state that exclusive titles for other systems. This has been supported numerous times, but no official announcement of a release has thus far been made. During production of Beautiful Katamari, however, Namco showed interest in using the motion sensitive controls of the other systems. This ultimately led to the rerelease of Katamari Damacy as Katamari Damacy Mobile on the P904i cellphone.
[edit] Demo
The demo sticks the player in a level with a 1m Katamari. The King tells the player to "have fun," and sets the timer for 3 minutes. Despite being a relatively small level, it is entirely possible to get a Katamari over 6 meters, and even to roll up all items. Beating the level does not unlock anything more than some commentary from the King.
[edit] Reception
While fans of the series generally gave positive reviews of the game, it has received some criticism as well. As many aspects of the series, including its simple controls and quirky design, have become trademarks of the games, many expected more detailed and realistic designs for an XBox title, with new controls and gameplay. Additionally, stage designs have been described as "Dull and lifeless" by IGN, lacking the quirky layouts that many levels in earlier games presented. In addition, with few stages available without downloading the additional content over XBox Live, it is much shorter than its predecessors. While long-term fans of the series may find the game lacking, however, NTSC-uk has stated that "Newcomers will no doubt discover the reason why so many people hold the series very dear to their hearts."
[edit] Cousins
Eight new and fresh cousins are introduced in Beautiful Katamari. One of them almost has a close look on the Queen and almost a second child of the King.
