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I Love Katamari in the App Store, optimization not included

by Mike Schramm Dec 15th 2008 at 9:00PM


Can't believe we didn't think to ask of this before Namco gave it to us, but here it is -- there is already an official version of I Love Katamari (otherwise known as Katamari Damacy) right there on the App Store and playable on the iPhone. What a perfect game to put on the iPhone -- it's casual, it's easy to pick up but tough to master, and the analog controls, while perfect for a pair of analog sticks, work great on a touchscreen as well.

Unfortunately, it's not quite perfect yet -- the game slows down fast, and quickly becomes unplayable with all the stuff on the screen. But lots of people are hoping for an update from Namco, and while that hope might not quite be justified (is Namco really going to commit to making this game great, or are they just taking advantage of a hot property?), you never know. Pac Man has been a winner for the company for sure, so maybe they will make sure that Katamari plays as well as its console versions. As much as we appreciate original games on the iPhone, there's nothing wrong with quality ports of console gems as well, and if Namco can patch out the bugs to everyone's satisfaction, there's no question that's what this will be.


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Can't believe we didn't think to ask of this before Namco gave it to us, but here it is -- there is already an official version of I Love...
 

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bryan

The price is $7.99 if anyone's wondering.

December 17 2008 at 7:08 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
melis

This game was awesome on the PS2, its pretty darn good on the iPhone 3G. The most obvious part that shows the game isn't optimized for the iPhone 3G, versus the iPod touch...5 minutes of game play takes way longer than 5 actual minutes.

I've been waiting for this game for the iPhone for so long...and now that I have it, I love it, and can't wait for the next update.

December 16 2008 at 11:53 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to melis's comment
Kweenie

Hahaha, yeah - at least the clock slows down in relation to your katamari (well, for now, anyway).

December 16 2008 at 1:10 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
frank

man i love this game. i'm willing to wait for it to be ported right, though. but i agree -- why didn't we think of this before??

December 16 2008 at 9:47 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to frank's comment
J

I'm with you on waiting for a better port. As soon as developers really get the hang of the iPhone things are gonna be awesome!

I just hope they hurry up :)

December 16 2008 at 11:57 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Camperton

I find the tilt sensor lame as a primary control. I much prefer the games that use touch.

December 16 2008 at 7:03 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
required

That looks horrible. Here is what it wishes it was:

http://media.psp.ign.com/media/771/771963/imgs_1.html

December 16 2008 at 1:30 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
high fivers

If you're new to the game you'll probably find the speed acceptable, but there definitely is major room for improvement. Hope updates happen soon. Otherwise why rush it through development?

December 16 2008 at 1:12 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
optimuscrime

God damn, this thing is unplayable. I own Katamary Damacy and We Love Katamary, so I love this game. But this is so insanely slow, it's unbearable.

December 16 2008 at 12:51 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
balls

So much for "Dreamcast level" hardware.

Soul Calibur 1 never slowed down at 640 x 480.

December 15 2008 at 11:32 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to balls's comment
Orion

It has nothing to do with the hardware. There are more impressive graphics and physics done on the iPhone already.. it's called it's a lazy port. IE: unoptimized code.

Technically the iPhone is more powerful than the PSP. But like with all consoles and handhelds, it's going to take more then 6 months until developers get the hang of utilizing it. If you want an example look at the PSP, PS3, and 360.

December 16 2008 at 8:28 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
austin

is it bad that i have never heard of katamari before in my entire life?

December 15 2008 at 11:04 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to austin's comment
dialing_wand

Not bad.

But now that you have, you.... must... roll... things... up!

December 15 2008 at 11:22 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Frank Tinsley

The about screen listing the version as 1.0.0 gives me hope that they're hard at work finishing the optimize phase. Also, they're gonna want to increase that rating if they expect to keep selling the game. That said, even at the snail pace, the addictive gameplay still had me pinned to my seat at Jack in the Box way past the reasonable time to leave.

December 15 2008 at 9:51 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
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