New Review Posted: Katamari Damacy

[Daniel Weissenberger]

Erin Bell reviews Katamari Damacy, and provides a linguistic education:

"Friends who know more Japanese than I do tell me that Katamari Damacy translates roughly into "soul of a clump." At 2004's Electronic Entertainment Expo, its demo was off in a corner—Namco's little game where you did nothing but rolled a sticky ball around collecting an eclectic assortment of crud. It was one of a handful of titles that wasn't an MMORPG, a sequel, a license, or about the Vietnam War. I don't think anyone was sure at that point whether Katamari Damacy would get a North American release at all. Namco would seem to be taking a big risk by doing so."

More review right over here.

[Reharl]

Great job, Erin, yet another awesome review, and for an awesome game as well. I don't think I've played anything more enjoyable and original than Katamari Damashii this year. It has the kind of innocent wackiness and warmth you can find in games like Space Channel Five and I adore, not to mention the soundtrack alone is well worth the price of admission.

[EnduroGamer]

I concur. Excellent job Erin, and thank you for reminding me why I like that game so much.

[David Stone]

Automated reply system for Erin Bell

Hi, I (Erin Bell) am currently out of town and cannot reply to this thread immediately. Please do not be offended by my lack of response. I will return shortly to speak to all the little people.

Sincerely,

Erin Bell


(seriously though, it's a darn fine review!)

[LemmyCaution]

A great review for a game that is pretty much my easy favorite at the moment, and has become the current poster child (replacing games like Ico, Rez, and Vib Ribbon) for the art-game genre.

One minor nit-pick, or perhaps it's just a follow-up: the "Engrishy" nature of Mister Mosquito is an element of the US version only: in the original Japanese version, the family sounds like a straightforward Tokyo-suburb-dwelling lower-middle-class family. The decision to give the parents heavy Japanese accents while giving the daughter perfect English is an interesting one that shifts the meaning of the game somewhat.

[Kin Korn Karn]

Typically, I read the reviews and then move along. In this case I go out of my way to say:

Great review, Erin. You nailed it to a "T".

[GC_Erin]

Originally Posted by LemmyCaution

A great review for a game that is pretty much my easy favorite at the moment, and has become the current poster child (replacing games like Ico, Rez, and Vib Ribbon) for the art-game genre.

One minor nit-pick, or perhaps it's just a follow-up: the "Engrishy" nature of Mister Mosquito is an element of the US version only: in the original Japanese version, the family sounds like a straightforward Tokyo-suburb-dwelling lower-middle-class family. The decision to give the parents heavy Japanese accents while giving the daughter perfect English is an interesting one that shifts the meaning of the game somewhat.

Thanks everyone. William, I was referring to the US version of Mister Mosquito, since it's the only one I've played and I assumed it would be the one most people would assume I was referencing, except you, because you're a nerd that way.

The daughter-has-perfect-English issue has reminded me of a question I've always had that perhaps you can answer: In the anime El Hazard, one sibling (the brother) is clearly Japanese while the other (the sister) is a red-headed white girl....why?

[David Stone]

She not a red-head, she's a brunette. You're thinking of Shayla-Shayla rather than Nanami.

(my fave anime, btw)