We all have had moments when we are doing something boring and start to goof-off. But that could lead to disaster, like when the King of Cosmos was playing with a scroll while cleaning and ended up destroying the stars, again. Once Upon A KATAMARI is a puzzle-platformer, where you roll a ball-like object, called a katamari, to collect random objects to grow it to enormous size in the hopes to bring back the stars, moon, and the earth.
The art style is goofy, but in a good way. Everything looks like it is made of cardboard and the people look like cry outs. The prince, the character you play as, is so small to everyone else that most people don’t even notice him, until his katamari is rolling towards them. The gameplay, while hard to get the hang of,is very fun and addicting. It’s no wonder this game has been around for so long despite the story just rehashing the same plot over and over again.
The game begins with the cosmos family doing some spring cleaning when the King of Cosmos finds a scroll and starts playing around. During his antics he tosses the scroll so high in the air it destroys the stars, moon and the earth. It seems like everytime he goofs-off the cosmos gets destroyed and his son the prince has to clean up his mess. Honestly, they could have had anything else happen to make the player have to fix the cosmos. Maybe have someone frame the king, or even have it so the queen does it by mistake. But regardless the game is a fun time, if you can get used to the controls.
The gameplay is very entertaining but with hard controls to get used to. When moving the katamari you can’t move the camera until you are completely still. This stops the momentum which is key to beating the levels since each level is timed. Sometimes the timer is just for score so you don’t have to worry, but some levels have a time limit and can get stressful which can be a good or bad thing depending if you like time limits in games.
When rolling the katamari you have to start collecting small items to slowly grow it. Once you get enough items, the camera zooms out and the game slows down for a second. This tells you that you can now collect bigger items. If you try to collect items that are too big, you will just end up getting knocked back and losing more time. If you crash into something too hard, you will actually lose some of the things you collect, making your katamari smaller. While playing the levels, you will find powerups that will help out. You will find things like magnets to attack nearby items, stop watches that will slow down time making things that run away easier to collect and many more items. You can even collect other playable characters called cousins. Each one can be customized to your liking, adding more personalization to your playthrough.
The levels are designed so wacky yet it fits the aesthetic. You will go through different levels based on different time periods to recreate the cosmos. The japan theme levels alone gives off an ancient japan feel and the music that plays adds more to the feeling. I actually feel like I’m in that time period. The animation often gets a laugh out of me when you see the characters react to different things. Especially when you roll up people and animals and watch them freak out while you continue to roll up more and more things.
While I enjoy single player games. This game could benefit from a multiplayer mode. You could have to stop two players from competing to get the biggest katamari or even have a bumper care-like mode. The possibilities are endless with some creativity.
In conclusion, Once Upon A KATAMARI is a fun and wacky game that will give you a fun time. With fun level design, funny character animations, and character customization, I had a great time with this game. If they had a much easier control scheme, and a more creative story, this game could easily be one of the best games to just sit back and relax after a hard day. Still I recommend this game to anyone interested in trying something new, or just want to relax and have a fun time.
Score 8 out of 10
Reviewed on PlayStation 5