Celestial Body

Lore & Background

In a drunken stupor, the King of All Cosmos destroys all the stars, Earth's Moon and other celestial bodies in the universe, except for Earth itself. He charges his five-centimeter-tall son, the Prince, to go to Earth with a magical ball called a katamari and collect enough material to recreate the stars and the Moon. The Prince succeeds, and the universe is returned to normal.

Reader's Guide

The player controls the Prince as he rolls the katamari around houses, gardens, and towns to meet parameters set by the King. The player uses the two analog sticks on the DualShock controller to control direction. Objects smaller than the katamari stick to it; larger objects are hurdles. The katamari grows as objects are collected, eventually allowing the player to pick up buildings, mountains, and clouds. The primary mode is 'Make a Star,' where the player must grow the katamari to a specific size within a time limit. Other missions include collecting specific items or score attack. Each level has two secret items: a royal present containing a wearable object, and a camera for screenshots. Two-player mode splits the screen vertically, with players competing to collect the most objects in three minutes.

Did You Know?

• The game was designed by Keita Takahashi, who struggled to pitch it to Namco and eventually sought student aid from the Namco Digital Hollywood Game Laboratory to develop it for less than 1 million.
• The soundtrack is Shibuya-kei.
• A high-definition remaster was released by Bandai Namco Entertainment for Windows and Nintendo Switch in December 2018, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in November 2020, and Google Stadia in September 2021.