'Katamari Damacy Reroll' Hits PS4, Xbox One From Bandai Namco In November

A game with a familiar name from the early 00s is looking to make a splash on the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.

“Katamari Damacy Reroll” is a remaster of the odd title that first came out on the PlayStation 2 in 2004 called “Katamari Damacy.” From the mind of designer Keita Takahashi, “Katamari Damacy Reroll” already launched on the Nintendo Switch and PC in December 2018 to high praise.

This remaster may not add much in terms of new content but it does translate the classic title to more modern hardware for even current gaming fans to enjoy or for fans of the original to relive the memories once again.

“Katamari Damacy” is all about the King of All Cosmos removing the stars from the sky and the Prince making up for his regal father's mistakes. The Prince does this by rolling around a Katamari, a ball that can stick to just about anything in the world of humans.

The Prince and his ball start off extremely tiny but collecting more items increase the Katamari's size, even leveling buildings, mountains, and even oceans at some point. Once big enough, the King can fling it into the sky and send the Prince on a whole new mission.

“Katamari Damacy Reroll” was first announced for Xbox One and PlayStation 4 in Japan but was soon followed up with a Western release announcement after the initial date on Nov. 20. Although no announcement was made for next-gen consoles, those purchasing a PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X will still be able to play it thanks to backward compatibility.

Upon its first release in 2004, “Katamari Damacy” was a big hit that immediately spawned several sequels over the years. A quick follow-up to the original was accompanied by “Me & My Katamari,” a PlayStation Portable game that altered the gameplay a bit.

Phone versions used built-in motion sensors to let players mimic the Prince's rolling around stages, and the series hit HD on the 360 with “Beautiful Katamari.” Series creator Keita Takahashi would move on from the franchise fairly quickly, spinning out to produce equally odd titles like “Noby Noby Boy” and “Wattam.”

Although it does seem that Bandai Namco is releasing this remaster as the current-gen consoles are preparing to give way to the next-gen consoles, it is understandable when you think how they overextended the series in the first place during the franchise’s infancy.

Enough time has passed now since those days and a new “Katamari” game does seem to feel right once more. The simple arcade appeal of “Katamari Damacy” is universal and so many more gamers have come aboard since those early PlayStation 2 days.