Katamari Damacy Mobile
Encyclopedia
is a video game developed by Namco Bandai
for the Mitsubishi P904i series of mobile phones for NTT DoCoMo
. It was released in June 2007 in Japan. It is a spin-off
of the Katamari Damacy
series, the second game on a portable system and the third game produced without the involvement of series creator Keita Takahashi
.
This version of the game uses a unique method of control, by making use of a new software technology called GestureTek EyeMobile to make phones capable of detecting tilt and vibration
via the built in camera on the P904i. The player will be able to move the katamari ball forward, backwards, left and right by merely tilting the phone.
There will be traditional controls as an option to the default motion controls.
Katamari Damacy Mobile will come pre-installed on P904i model phones. Other phone models will need to download the game through the Namco Games channel.
.
DoCoMo
's 904i series, however, calculates tilt based on digital camera
images; unlike the Wii
and PS3 controllers which use different motion sensing technologies.
An IGN
review of EyeMobile-compatible 3D Tilt-a-World warns that this type of motion control fails "if your movements are too sudden for the game to translate" and that the setup requires "a well-lit area so the camera can get a good 'fix' on an image."
Namco Bandai
, also known as the Bandai Namco Group, is a Japanese holding company formed from the merger of Namco and Bandai. It has interests in toys, video games and arcades, anime, and amusement parks. The new entity was founded on September 29, 2005...
for the Mitsubishi P904i series of mobile phones for NTT DoCoMo
NTT DoCoMo
is the predominant mobile phone operator in Japan. The name is officially an abbreviation of the phrase, "do communications over the mobile network", and is also from a compound word dokomo, meaning "everywhere" in Japanese. Docomo provides phone, video phone , i-mode , and mail services...
. It was released in June 2007 in Japan. It is a spin-off
Spin-off (media)
In media, a spin-off is a radio program, television program, video game, or any narrative work, derived from one or more already existing works, that focuses, in particular, in more detail on one aspect of that original work...
of the Katamari Damacy
Katamari Damacy
Katamari Damacy is a third-person puzzle-action video game that is published and developed by Namco for the PlayStation 2 video game console. It was first released in Japan, and then later in South Korea and North America...
series, the second game on a portable system and the third game produced without the involvement of series creator Keita Takahashi
Keita Takahashi
is a game director, his most notable titles being Katamari Damacy and its sequel, We Love Katamari. The original Katamari game was a surprise hit and was praised for its quirkiness, originality, and charm...
.
This version of the game uses a unique method of control, by making use of a new software technology called GestureTek EyeMobile to make phones capable of detecting tilt and vibration
Vibration
Vibration refers to mechanical oscillations about an equilibrium point. The oscillations may be periodic such as the motion of a pendulum or random such as the movement of a tire on a gravel road.Vibration is occasionally "desirable"...
via the built in camera on the P904i. The player will be able to move the katamari ball forward, backwards, left and right by merely tilting the phone.
There will be traditional controls as an option to the default motion controls.
Katamari Damacy Mobile will come pre-installed on P904i model phones. Other phone models will need to download the game through the Namco Games channel.
Gameplay
In Katamari Damacy Mobile, the player controls a highly–adhesive ball called the katamari. The object is to make the katamari as large as possible by running over and collecting objects of increasing size. The more objects players collect, the larger the katamari becomes. Instead of using analog controllers to control the katamari as in the home console Katamari games, players roll the katamari by tilting the phone in the direction they want the katamari to go.Criticism
Many have noted similarities between the 904i series of phones using motion controls similar to the Wii RemoteWii Remote
The , also known as the Wiimote, is the primary controller for Nintendo's Wii console. A main feature of the Wii Remote is its motion sensing capability, which allows the user to interact with and manipulate items on screen via gesture recognition and pointing through the use of accelerometer and...
.
DoCoMo
DoCoMo
DoCoMo is a trademark of the NTT DoCoMo corporation of Japan, used in its home market and in India in partnership with Tata Teleservices. It is an acronym of the phrase "Do communications over the mobile network."See also the following mobile phone operators:...
's 904i series, however, calculates tilt based on digital camera
Digital camera
A digital camera is a camera that takes video or still photographs, or both, digitally by recording images via an electronic image sensor. It is the main device used in the field of digital photography...
images; unlike the Wii
Wii
The Wii is a home video game console released by Nintendo on November 19, 2006. As a seventh-generation console, the Wii primarily competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3. Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic than that of the two others...
and PS3 controllers which use different motion sensing technologies.
An IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
review of EyeMobile-compatible 3D Tilt-a-World warns that this type of motion control fails "if your movements are too sudden for the game to translate" and that the setup requires "a well-lit area so the camera can get a good 'fix' on an image."