Sep 29 2025
4
I didn't expect to like this, but I did. I couldn't easily tell you why, though.
Katamari Damacy
Various Artists
2004
Album Summary
Note: This album has been submitted by a user and is not included in any edition of the book.
Katamari is a video game franchise created by Keita Takahashi and developed and published by Namco (and subsequently Bandai Namco Entertainment). The first game in the series, Katamari Damacy, was published in 2004. The success of the game led to the release of six sequels over the next five years: We Love Katamari, Me & My Katamari, Beautiful Katamari, Katamari Damacy Mobile, I Love Katamari, and Katamari Forever. It also inspired a spin-off game, Korogashi Puzzle Katamari Damacy. Two mobile games in the franchise, Katamari Amore and Touch My Katamari, were released in 2011, and two more, Tap My Katamari and Amazing Katamari Damacy, were released in 2016. Five of the games' soundtracks have been released as albums. Katamari Fortissimo Damacy, a soundtrack album for the original game, was released by Columbia Music Entertainment in 2004, Katamari wa Damacy was released as a soundtrack album for We Love Katamari by Columbia Music Entertainment in 2005, and Katamari Original Soundtrack Damacy was released in 2006 as a soundtrack album for Me & My Katamari by the same publisher and also included tracks from We Love that were not included in its album. Katamari Suteki Damacy was released by Columbia Music Entertainment in 2007 as a soundtrack album for Beautiful Katamari, and the latest album, Katamari Damacy Tribute Original Soundtrack: Katamari Takeshi, was released in 2009 by Columbia Music Entertainment as the soundtrack album for Katamari Forever. The soundtracks to the other Katamari games have been composed of tracks from previous games in the series, and have not had separate album releases. Both the soundtracks and their associated albums have been well received by reviewers, who have cited the "catchiness" and "quirkiness" of the music as their most notable features. The soundtrack to Katamari Damacy won both IGN's and GameSpot's "Soundtrack of the Year 2004" awards, while the theme song to We Love Katamari was awarded Best Original Vocal/Pop Song at the 4th Annual Game Audio Network Guild awards in 2006. None of the other soundtracks have been nominated for any awards. They were still well received by reviewers, with the music of the PlayStation Portable game Me & My Katamari receiving the weakest reviews due to its extensive reuse of songs from previous games in the series.
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Sep 29 2025
3
I mean, if we're being honest, game soundtracks have kind of been the next wave in music for a while now, and a major source of music for a lot of people. So I'm approaching this with an open mind. I'm not familiar with these games at all, but the music is bubbly and engaging. A total mood lifter. I'm not quite ready to call this an "album" in the traditional sense, and it really was too long. But this was a fun listen. Fave Songs: You are Smart, Moon & Prince, Walking on a Star!, Lonely Rolling Star, Gin & Tonic & Red Red Roses, WANDA WANDA
Oct 05 2025
3
I went into Katamari Damacy knowing nothing about the game or its music, and this turned out to be a bubbly, fun, and surprisingly cohesive album. This style is not something I'm overly familiar with, but the overall tone is bright and playful, and it’s also well structured and musically tight. Even with so many composers and such a mix of styles, from J-pop to samba, mambo, lounge jazz, and, apparently, something called chiptune. Favourite track was Katamari Mambo, which blends J-pop, samba, and big-band jazz into one track without ever feeling out of place. It’s easy to overlook this as simple game music, but the craft behind it makes it stand out.
Oct 12 2025
2
I don't think a video game OST is a bad add per se, but the listening context is wholly different from its intended purpose. These tracks are meant to sit in the background while your frontal cortex works on rolling things into a massive ball, and without the context of the game it can be a bit of a slog to listen to them straight through as a first introduction. I enjoyed the overall character of the LP, just felt it ran long and I had no hooks for the narrative this album is supposed to supplement. Did remind me I need to play Katamari though, that's one cultural rock I need to crawl out from under for sure.
Oct 03 2025
3
Kinda fun to work to, but I have never played this game, so I have no context for anything, nor speak Japanese, so I was a little lost. Still, kind of liked it.
Oct 06 2025
2
I’ve heard that people listen to video gags me soundtracks but I never have before. I am guessing you need to love the game to really get into it.
Oct 15 2025
2
It sounds like something that someone has knocked out on a cheap Casio keyboard in their tea break.
Oct 01 2025
1
Looking forward to the soundtrack for Pac-man. Even Combat.
Oct 09 2025
1
I am more and more convinced everyday that the user list is simply trolling me