Remember back when you were a young kid? Every day seemed to be bright and sunny. You'd spend half of the day playing with your friends, chasing each other around, or poking things with very big sticks. Back then everything seemed to be primary coloured, bright, and full of wonder. Each bush a possible fortress, or twig a dazzling lightsaber.

But as time progressed we grew older. More rainy days seemed to arrive. Friends started to discover the joys of the opposite sex and instead of living out our fantasy-filled dreams in the local park (the cider/cigarette fantasy not included) we found videogames to be an incredible escape from the real world. But as the years have progressed, the obsession with realism and colours that more suit the real world atmosphere brought us many more collages of greys and browns than I care to remember.

But then Katamari Damacy (the title of the American iteration of the first Katamari game) came along, showing off bright primary colours, bringing us a gaming experience that simply needed to be encountered. Of course, the Western publishers in all their infinite wisdom decreed that Katamari wasn't a suitable title for us Europeans, and hence, it's been left to the much-maligned Electronic Arts to bring the sequel to our shores.

For those out there who've been reluctant to import in the past, the Katamari titles are incredibly simple in premise. As the Prince, simply roll up as much debris as possible on every level in order to achieve a Katamari big enough to complete the stage's goal. It really is as simple as that. There's no hidden special moves or power-ups to pick up items at a quicker rate, it's simply a case of rolling over items small enough to be consumed by your Katamari. If it stands at a mere half a metre tall, you'll find it impossible to pick up a human being. Level design needs to be praised, setting out a path of sorts, meaning that you never find yourself stuck in an area with huge items with only a pitifully small Katamari, yet never doing it in such a manner that you feel as if you're being led by the hand from area to area.

This time around, thanks to the success of the first game, the premise of We Love Katamari involves the fans making wilder and wilder demands on the King, urging him to create new and better Katamaris. And of course the King delegates these duties to the ever cute, tiny Prince. The sublime translation, with lashings of grin-inducing humour, makes the story itself feel much more than the sum of its tiny parts. If anything, you'll come to look forward to each chance the King has to speak and adore the infrequent cut scenes played out in a comic book style.

Controlling your Katamari proves to be a true test of your gaming abilities. Utilising both analogue sticks, you're required to twist and turn through levels, with no need to press any of the face buttons and even the shoulder buttons required only at the rarest of opportunities. It's a control method much admired for its simplicity and the old hands will find that We Love Katamari controls in much the same manner as before. But newcomers to the series are bound to find themselves lacking the required knowledge of the nuances of control in order to speed through the early levels. It takes time, yet it's an input method you can't help but adore.

The visual style and aural accompaniment that were so loved in the first title thankfully remain fully intact. The bright colours and catchy tunes are back to delight both the eyes and ears. The completely off-the-wall tunes, encompassing catchy J-pop through to electro and other genre types, culminate with a soundtrack you'll endeavour to listen to again and again. The bright visuals simply bring the game to life. From the huge visual representation of the King through to the tiny little Prince himself, everything has been created with such care and skill that you'd easily recognise each in mere shadow form.

Detractors may be eager to point out that We Love Katamari doesn't really offer too much over the original. Despite the frequent oddities to some of the ultimate tasks that need to be fulfilled, your goal is more often than not to simply build as big a Katamari as possible in the time limit allowed. Even the odd changes can cause frustration, with you rolling up enough debris to give you the Katamari size you require, but then finding it impossible to discover the whereabouts of your ultimate goal you need to interact with.

We Love Katamari reminds you of just why you fell in love with the pursuit of gaming. Enjoyment is at the very forefront of the Katamari ideology and it shines through with dazzling brilliance. Despite the incredibly simple idea and the somewhat repetitive nature of the gaming experience, We Love Katamari always feels fresh and draws you back time after time to control the Prince on yet another task. I'm just thankful that finally all European gamers now have the opportunity to sample the delights of the Katamari series. Everyone, please buy ten copies each, so Western publishers realise we really do adore these insanely Japanese titles.

Reviewed by AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).