On the: PS2 Players: 1 or 2 players Rating: E

Opening Thoughts

I\'m taking a wild guess that no one here knew about this little gem that jumped a row from Japan and is currently rotting on the shelf of your local videogame retail store. Yes, the title is Japanese and this game clearly shows the mentality of the Japanese market compared to the USA\'s market. In Katamari Damacy, you play as the prince of the cosmos and are assigned the grueling task of repairing space after your dad, the king of the cosmos, goes out for a wild night of drinking. Yes, it is very weird and very very different, so I liked it.

Graphics

I\'m truly on the fence with this one. With a single glance, these graphics are putrid and resemble a few early Playstation titles. Everything in the game is extremely blocky and not at all detailed. The graphics resemble those good old pogo people you use to torture as a kid. Right about now your saying, Justin, wake up these graphics are horrible, why are you even thing about anything other than a F for the rating. To the you the truth, I like the graphics a lot. Now don\'t get me wrong, this isn\'t Doom 3 by any standards, but the blocky characters add to the effect of this being crazy and out of this world. For style over substance, I award Katmari Damacy\'s weakest area a C+.

Sound

In a single word, PERFECT! The Japanese tunes and even the Japanese lyrics will be caught in your head for months after playing this game. I can still hear it now and I fear their may be no silence left in my thoughts for a long while. Other than the perfect soundtrack, the sound effects are also spot on, down to the terrible voice-overs that oddly enough, fit the game. A for the sound, aww...its still playing in my head.

Controls and Game play

The basic gameplay of Katamari Damacy is as such: You have a giant ball called a \'Katamari\' that you roll around the stage. As you roll around the stage, your Katamari will collect items that you run over, increasing its diameter. Each level you have a set time and a required size for your katamari. At first your rolling around collecting thumbtacks and loose leaf paper, but after a few levels, you\'re collecting people, skyscrapers and the all important giant squid from the ocean. The controls are dead on and almost require no button pressing at all. Everything you need can be done with the analog sticks and that?s it. It may sound weird at first but quickly you will realize you\'re playing the smoothest controlling videogame since, well, ever. The game play is fast and loads of fun and add in perfect controls, you got yourself an A+.

Offensive Content

Right off the bat, the game has the notion that there are many gods and you are the offspring of one. This may offend some Christians. Other than that, when you roll over on a human, they scream. Another side note, though never ever said, this game is the equivalent of hallucinations possible brought on by illegal drug use. Overall, this game isn\'t that offensive and is a solid \'E\' that shouldn\'t offend anymore than this year\'s Madden, B+

Closing Thoughts

I am constantly harassed by saying this, but Katamari Damacy is my 3rd favorite game this year (the other two being GTA:SA and Halo 2). Trust me, go buy this game; It\'s fun, fast, weird, and only retails at a low $20. Why are you still here, go NOW.