Beautiful Katamari posts (Subscribe to this feed)

Eternal Sonata is on PS3 reports Famitsu

by Alexander Sliwinski { Sep 12th 2007 at 2:25PM }

Remember how yesterday we reported that Eternal Sonata is coming to PS3 because it was listed on the official Namco Bandai site? Well, if you didn't follow the story after that, Namco Bandai pulled the information later. Now, in a classic Willy Wonka "Scratch that, reverse it" moment, Famitsu reports that the Eternal Sonata is coming to PS3 in Japan during the spring of '08.

We're also expecting the PS3 version of Beautiful Katamari -- also part of yesterday's disappearing act -- to show up announced somewhere in the relative future too. What we still find funny is that Eternal Sonata is still not listed on the ESRB website, despite it coming out next week in the States. The ESRB was who originally tipped off everyone that Eternal Sonata would make its way to PS3.

[Via PS3 Fanboy]

Katamari demo rolls up (get it?!) Marketplace

by David Dreger { Aug 14th 2007 at 10:00AM }

Beautiful Katamari's demo just landed on Marketplace and has been rolling up a storm. At first, it was available on a recent OXM demo disc, but now it is available for the ~~whole world~~ Canada, America, and Mexico (read: North America) to download. It weighs in at just under 435 MB, so it's not going to break the disk space bank, although X3F reader Magic Whiskey tells us that it's also on the short side, but enough to get the premise of the game. Give it a download and tell us what you think.

Beautiful Katamari to be 360 exclusive

by Dustin Burg { Jul 9th 2007 at 11:15AM }

Again, the rumors turned out to be true! Beautiful Katamari is headed to the Xbox 360 exclusively with no PS3 version in sight. In the latest issue of Japanese magazine Famitsu, they state that production on the PS3 version of Beautiful Katamari has been halted and that the Xbox 360 version is set to roll out this Fall. Famitsu also uncovered a few new multiplayer details including split screen co-op and online battle modes. Heavenly.

And so another game completes its journey to becoming an Xbox 360 exclusive title. Maybe Namco would be kind enough to tell us exactly why they decided against developing Beautiful Katamari on the PS3. Because god knows we'd love to gush over all the juicy details.

Rumor: Beautiful Katamari drops PS3, picks up Wii

by Ross Miller { Jul 6th 2007 at 2:25PM }

Rumors surfaced over the last couple of weeks about Beautiful Katamari rolling itself away from PlayStation 3 and towards Nintendo Wii. An Xbox 360 version, already weighted its own speculation, is the only confirmed version to be shown at next week's E3.

Now comes word that Famitsu (via PS3 Center) has validated the rumors and that Namco Bandai has indeed quietly canceled a PS3 iteration in favor of rolling the Prince of All Cosmos onto the Wii. As we have yet to see the purported issue of Famitsu, we're still labeling this as rumor fodder.

We've contacted Namco Bandai for a statement. In the meantime, take a stroll down memory lane with our recent b[ack]log on We Love Katamari.

[Via Evil Avatar]

Namco E3 lineup confirms Katamari exclusivity?

by Richard Mitchell { Jul 6th 2007 at 1:30PM }

If you needed any more confirmation that Beautiful Katamari will only roll on the Xbox 360, you need look no further than Namco Bandai's recently released E3 lineup. Eurogamer has the list and was quick to notice that the Xbox 360 was the only platform designated for the title. Is it ironclad proof that Beautiful Katamari is 360 exclusive? No, but it's pretty damned close. Other Namco Bandai 360 games to be shown at E3 include Dynasty Warriors Gundam, Ace Combat 6, Eternal Sonata, and Culdcept SAGA.

The universe really is full of Katamari rumors

by JC Fletcher { Jul 2nd 2007 at 2:05PM }

Remember the rumor that Beautiful Katamari was going to roll onto the Wii? It won't die. It's come back again, this time with psychotic reasoning behind it.

IGN's Matt Casamassina has "100 percent reliable" word from mysterious, anonymous sources that Bandai Namco is planning a version of the game on Wii. As the story goes, they encountered difficulty porting Beautiful Katamari to the PS3, so Namco decided to scrap it and create a new Wii version instead.

This is really the part that arouses our suspicion. A port is too hard, so they switch over to an all-new game? It just sounds like an excuse to troll the PS3 and make the Wii look better at the same time. It may be true, but we're not taking that reasoning as an explanation for anything.

We still aren't sure we should even care, with no Keita Takahashi involvement, but we can't help but become wistful when we think about a new Katamari. We wish we could hear some final word about this. We're tired of the emotional rollercoaster!

[Via GayGamer]

The B[ack]log: Katamari Do Your Best

by Ludwig Kietzmann { Jun 26th 2007 at 7:00PM }

Well, the title seemed sort of clever at the time. "The B[ack]log" represents one gamer's fight against that seemingly insurmountable and entirely self-inflicted obstacle, the ever-sprawling backlog of games that are either unfinished, unplayed or unloved. That's the "Backlog" part. After surgically inserting some brackets, it becomes "B[ack]log," a reference to both the blog format and the unique sound emitted whenever I view the stack of games I keep adding to every month. And every week, I hope to subtract at least one and ramble about it for a few paragraphs... if you don't mind. A review this is not.

It seems simultaneously appropriate and depressing then, that the first game to be ejected and examined (and then ejected again) is one primarily concerned with hoarding as much stuff as you possibly can -- We Love Katamari for the PlayStation 2.

Continued →

Beautiful Katamari fact sheet shows only Xbox 360

by Alexander Sliwinski { Jun 20th 2007 at 11:31AM }

According to an official Namco Bandai fact sheet (found after the break) Beautiful Katamari is coming to Xbox 360 ... and that is all. Siliconera dug up the sheet and adds another log to our crazy katamari of news surrounding this title. Even though the game is just more of the same gameplay we've come to enjoy from the series, the story behind all this maneuvering is becoming the interesting tale.

Maybe it is time to just to make an absurd list of what people think will happen next and we'll check back on it when the next Beautiful Katamari incident occurs -- see if anybody is on the mark. Siliconera goes on to say that the game is probably a timed exclusive, considering GameFly still has their info up for all three systems (and they don't just make stuff up), it's the best information we've got until Namco Bandai makes a clear statement on what's really going on.

Continued →

Beautiful Katamari isn't XBLA material

by Dustin Burg { Jun 20th 2007 at 11:15AM }

When Gamespot posted their hands-on Beautiful Katamari preview they mentioned that the game would be available exclusively on the XBLA. Which caused a little confusing to how much the game was actually beefed out and what would have to change since it would have to fit the XBLA size requirements. But it looks like we don't have to worry about any of that, because Gamespot retracted their Beautiful Katamari on XBLA talk and now say that the game will be released in a "full retail package". So, believe what you wish. But we ask, which would you have preferred? A cheaper Arcade Katamari or the whole big shebang retail Katamari?

Gamespot: Beautiful Katamari coming to Xbox Live Arcade [update]

by Ludwig Kietzmann { Jun 16th 2007 at 2:30PM }

[Update: We shouldn't have doubted you, Ross! Gamespot has stated that the information in the article was indeed "total crap". Original post follows.]

As the extreme and possibly insane cynic might ask, "Isn't there already a colossal ball of junk on Xbox Live Arcade?" To that we answer, "No sir, but there soon will be. Although, Feeding Frenzy was a bit rubbish, wasn't it?" The destined arrival of Bandai Namco's next Katamari game on Xbox Live Arcade is announced in a rather blasé manner by the first sentence in Gamespot's hands-on preview of the title: "The big, huge Katamari ball of junk just keeps on rolling, this time with a new installment called Beautiful Katamari slated to hit Xbox Live Arcade in October."

The news sticks to yesterday's word from Newsweek's N'Gai Croal that Beautiful Katamari would be an Xbox 360 exclusive, and neatly contradicts previous XBLA portfolio manager Ross Erickson's "total crap - not happening". Something obviously changed in the months since then, an observation not befitting of the Katamari franchise, it seems. Gamespot's Brad Shoemaker labels the game as "more of the same," noting the presence of new levels, high-definition graphics, 4-player online gameplay and, perhaps most importantly, an original soundtrack. Despite losing momentum in terms of moving the series forward, we suspect there's still plenty to heart about Katamari -- especially if the price is right.

Newsweek: Beautiful Katamari rolling exclusively with Xbox 360

by Ludwig Kietzmann { Jun 15th 2007 at 12:47PM }

Striking a blow to symmetrical ball-rolling controls everywhere, Newsweek's N'Gai Croal reports that Beautiful Katamari's royal rainbow will extend only to the Xbox 360. He explains that an exclusivity deal is already "very close to fruition" and is likely to be announced formally at July's Min-E3 event in Santa Monica. The trail of digital crumbs leading to the deal seems especially obvious in retrospect, with Ridge Racer 6, Ace Combat 6, Eternal Sonata and Pac-Man: Championship Edition all indicating quite the chummy relationship between Namco Bandai and Microsoft.

With the Katamari franchise not being nearly as unstoppable as its clutter-collecting cosmic prince, PlayStation 3 alarmists shouldn't view this as the end of their fragile and constantly beeping world. That being said, seeing a distinctly, almost obviously "Japanese" game picking up Microsoft's system alone certainly points to interesting times ahead. It also makes completing the level that much harder.

[Thanks, Matthew]

Beautiful Katamari to be a 360 exclusive?

by Dustin Burg { Jun 15th 2007 at 12:00PM }

Over at Newsweek online, N'Gai Croal is reporting that a little birdie told him Namco's Beautiful Katamari will be available exclusively on the Xbox 360. In his article, Croal says that he spoke with a reputable source who confirmed that Beautiful Katamari would indeed be exclusive to the 360 and that Microsoft and Namco's relationship has never been better. Which we have to agree with as it's more than obvious that Namco has shown the 360 lots of love lately. An official announcement and more Katamari news may come at July's E3, but for now we have good reason to think that Beautiful Katamari will roll exclusively onto the 360. Oh the joy!

[Thanks, Matthew Mac]

More Beautiful Katamari screens to roll you up

by Nick Doerr { May 9th 2007 at 7:00PM }

Screenshots, screenshots. What good are you? Indeed, you show off the power of the current-gen systems for people to gawk at and wonder "gee golly, how'd they do that?" or to set as wallpaper because it's that impressive. These aren't the only reasons why screenshots are valuable items to stay up to date on, to see what the game looks like across iterations, sequels, platforms, etc. Probably the best reason to keep on top of these is to watch a work in progress evolve, even if you aren't interested in it. The change from Okami, for example, from realistic to incredibly artsy would have been much more subdued without those screenshot things.

We come now to some more Beautiful Katamari screenshots. They more or less make everything we just said a whole lot of "what?" and a whole lot more of "ooh, neato." The game hasn't necessarily evolved from previous installments, but that's okay. Art allows that freedom. The game's still colorful, still weird, still fun. Looking. Anyway, if you want some totally awesome wallpapers of giant balls of random stuff, check out the new ones and let us know your favorite moment in the crazy Katamari universe. Ours is simple -- the opening video for Katamari Damacy. It really set up the entire experience.

Beautiful screens of Katamari Damacy

by David Dreger { May 8th 2007 at 12:45PM }

Xboxyde is on the ball again, this time bringing us some bright and colorful screens of Beautiful Katamari Damacy. Pictured is the roll of over seven thousand kilometers in diameter, taking a chunk out of the Earth that even Galactus would be proud of. Other screens are a little less planetary in scale and still show off the addicting gameplay that PS2 and PSP owners have been enjoying for years. Beautiful Katamari is looking to live up to the legacy, are you ready to start rolling, rawhide?

More of those Beautiful Katamari screenshots

by Nick Doerr { Apr 27th 2007 at 7:15PM }

As we've said before, we love rolling up trash, people, buildings and whatever else into gigantic balls of sexy, but there's one thing we just can't roll up -- screenshots. They defy every kind of rolling (unless you print them out, of course). Well, a few more screenshots have rolled in depicting our hammerheaded hero doing what (s)he does best in Beautiful Katamari. In fact, we wouldn't be surprised if in the final game, you can roll up entire planets and consume an entire solar system into your ball o' filth. Check out the new screenshots, sing a crazy song, and wait. It's going to be a while.