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Keita Takahashi and Journey producer Robin Hunicke working on new project
During the E3 alternative Horizon conference, former Journey producer and now Funomena head Robin Hunicke announced a partnership with Katamari Damacy and Noby Noby Boy creator Keita Takahashi. Very little was revealed about the game, though Takahashi asked the audience to "imagine blocks coming to life." The idea came from playing with his son, said Takahashi. The game will be present at tonight's Horizon mixer, and we'll be on the scene.
Keita Takahashi unveiling new multiplayer game during GDC
Keita Takahashi, creator of the Katamari Damacy series and Noby Noby Boy, is currently working on a new multiplayer-focused game. Takahashi will unveil his new work during the joint Wild Rumpus/Venus Patrol party on March 27 during GDC in San Francisco.Wild Rumpus and Venus Patrol both collaborated with Takahashi on the new project, and promise all parties involved will reveal more on the lead-up to GDC at the end of March. Takahashi's last collaboration was with Canabalt creator Adam Saltsman, late last year when the two contributed to the LA Game Space Kickstarter campaign.
Namco Bandai removing Noby Noby Boy from iOS App Store
The iOS version of Noby Noby Boy, which isn't so much a port of the PlayStation 3 original insomuch as a weird collection of Noby Noby Boy-based activities, is being removed from the App Store on Tuesday, October 9, according to creator Keita Takahashi's personal blog.The $1.99 app is being removed by Namco Bandai itself (rather than, say, Apple) for unknown reasons – though the app's Facebook integration and cumulative point goals haven't been functioning properly for a few months, which may have something to do with it. No announcements were made regarding the cancellation of any other Noby-related services, such as the PS3 version's worldwide goal of having GIRL reach the edge of the solar system."Thank you for playing this silly app," says Takahashi. Anyone interested in grabbing Noby Noby Boy for their iDevice of choice before it disappears can do so here.
Keita Takahashi still working on games post-Namco
During last week's GameCity conference, Katamari Damacy creator Keita Takahashi explained his departure from Namco Bandai in an interview with Eurogamer. "The games I was making were not necessarily the best-selling ones," he said. "I realized Namco was, as a business, going down a bit. Also, my colleagues were leaving to do another project. I started to feel like I didn't belong there any more." On the subject of why his own games didn't sell better: "Maybe because they're not so interesting," Takahashi said. "The reason why is one of the things I'm trying to find out. If I knew, I wouldn't struggle. I don't know." Personally, we hope he never learns the secrets to game industry success (like Unreal Engine and Nolan North). He opined that the constant development of sequels by major publishers is "boring," while also admitting that he understood the business perspective. "I haven't seen anyone trying to make something really new out of the profit they made from those sequels," he said. Since leaving, Takahashi and his wife have formed a new company, Uvula. He's also working on a playground in Nottingham, the town that hosts GameCity. "I'm going to work on more videogames," Takahashi said, including ideas to present to other publishers. "In general, I want to work on lots of different things that I couldn't work on when I was at Namco."
Katamari Damacy creator Keita Takahashi leaves Namco
King of all kings of the cosmos -- Katamari Damacy and Noby Noby Boy creator Keita Takahashi -- is leaving Namco, reports Play.tm. A Namco representative confirmed Takahashi's resignation. The developer expressed his dissatisfaction in the past with developing for the Japanese publisher, even saying he was disappointed with the support he received for Noby Noby Boy. He's also expressed interest in branching out to other careers, telling the BBC in 2005, "In 10 years time, I am not going to be making games any more." More recently, he got to work on plans for a playground in Nottingham, UK. [Image credit: jontintinjordan]
Noby Noby Boy out now on iPhone, and it's awesome
Keita Takahashi is a strange guy. He's most known for delivering the brilliant Katamari Damacy to us on the Playstation 2, a game in which you rolled around a ball that stuck to everything in the world, growing bigger and bigger as more and more stuff collected on it. But after that early success, he's gotten weirder, at one point saying that he didn't want to make games at all, and then releasing Noby Noby Boy for the PS3, an "experience" in which you stretch a tubelike creature named BOY, which in turn stretches another creature named GIRL, out into the solar system with all of other players in the world. It's the kind of thing that has to be played to be understood, and even then, you don't understand it so much as experience it. Noby Noby Boy on the iPhone is a similar release: while it's an app that comes from a game platform, it's actually in the Productivity section of the App Store. Even though the goal seems to again be to stretch the BOY out as far as you can, while in turn stretching GIRL along with PS3 players ("cross-platform compatibility!" exclaims the ingame Fairy, the most charming and weird help system you've ever seen), it's really just a chance for Takahashi's brilliance to run wild on the iPhone platform. There's more to explore, do and experience in this app than any other $1.99 app I've seen, and while some of it is wacky, and strange, and just plain crazy, Noby Noby Boy is a product of imagination -- both his and ours.
Noby Noby Boy available now for 'iPhone, iPhone, iPod Touch!'
We want to be up front with you: We're not entirely sure Noby Noby Boy is a "game" in the usual way we understand it. No, we're not talking about last year's PS3 release (though one could argue ...); instead, we're talking about today's iPhone release. Let's examine the evidence: The trailer, included after the break, eschews traditional marketing tactics in favor of puppets and nonsensical dialogue. The screenshots depict a series of seemingly unrelated "functions" (minigames?) including a camera app, a map app, a stretchable Boy app, and others. And our final piece of evidence, Noby Noby Boy is filed under "Productivity" in the App Store and, regardless of its status as a "game" we're almost certain it's not going to make us more productive at anything, short of unlocking its mysteries. While we think calling it a "game" may be a bit of a stretch, as a toy, it's now got a better price on a more appropriate platform. Noby Noby Boy ($1.99): %Gallery-85924%
iPhone Noby Noby Boy demonstrated by puppets
Most publishers make dramatic trailers for their games, with carefully chosen game footage augmented by thrilling cinematics. Namco Bandai did not do that for the iPhone Noby Noby Boy game. Instead, creator Keita Takahashi put on a puppet show in a conference room. Using adorable handmade puppets, Takahashi provided the clearest look yet at the mobile version, including the stretchable Boy, several minigames and a camera app in which ... some cartoon guy hangs onto your photo. We like this approach to trailers. "iPhone, iPhone, iPod Touch!" See the rest of the videos at Famitsu.
Noby Noby Boy demoed at Apple Store in Japan
This one might require a little patience to watch, but those interested will be rewarded well, I think. The footage above is from an Apple Store in Toyko's Ginza shopping district, where none other than Keita Takahashi showed up to demo his latest iPhone game. Who's Keito Takahashi? He's the gaming auteur behind Katamari Damacy and Noby Noby Boy, two of the weirdest yet most fascinating games of the last decade or so, and he's bringing Noby Noby Boy to the iPhone. Unfortunately, the above demo is in Japanese, but you can see what kinds of thinking is going into the game. It looks like he's completely revamping the game as a top-down physics-based version of the already very strange PS3 version. We would provide you with some more explanation, but it probably won't make things any clearer: the object of the game is to stretch out a little creature named BOY, and at the end of the level, your stretched length adds up with all the other players of the game online to another creature called GIRL, who is currently reaching out into the solar system. Told you it wouldn't help. Nevertheless, it's pretty fascinating just to watch the four videos (start here) and see what weirdness transpires in the video -- there are some interesting touchscreen controls, and lots of quick physics on the items bouncing around the iPhone's screen. It's not that great as an actual game preview, but that might not matter much anyway: Takahashi said a while back that whenever this weird monstrosity does release on Apple's handheld, "price-wise might be like free." We can't wait to see it. [via Panic]
Best of the Rest: Dave's Picks of 2009
Resident Evil 5 I've long been a fan of the Resident Evil series, and while the campaign here has problems and should never be played solo, the Mercenaries mode is what kept me coming back. Those action-packed levels spent trying to survive while running low on ammo and health were some of my most chaotic, yet highly enjoyable, experiences of 2009.
Noby Noby Girl has stretched her way to Jupiter
They said it couldn't be done -- and for good reason, considering how difficult it must be for a creature to stretch its own body to a length of 576,682,810 miles. However, thanks to a little help from Namco Bandai, Noby Noby Boy's community-driven "Girl" has managed to extend her torso from Earth to Jupiter, unlocking a new playable planet for all of the game's inhabitants. Make sure you check out the video after the jump to get a sense of what eating your own butt whilst aimlessly traversing a gas giant feels like. We can't believe we just had a reason to write that sentence. Thank you so, so much, Noby Noby Boy.
A megamix of minimalist game remakes
For the opening of last weekend's GameCity Squared event, design group Alaskan Military School took a bunch of popular games and boiled them down to the bare essence, creating shockingly recognizable 15-pixel animations representing Parappa the Rapper, Street Fighter II, Noby Noby Boy, and more. This is the most abstract we've ever seen many of these games, but even without the audio, it would be easy to identify the sub-Meggy Jr. interpretations of our favorites. Although we were briefly confused by what we thought was supposed to be Gitaroo-Man -- until we realized it was Gitaroo-Man's "Legendary Theme" being played in Guitar Hero. Now we can only hope that someone runs with the idea and delivers some playable versions of these games. HD is played out -- we're ready for Sub-Standard Definition.
Keita Takahashi 'not completely satisfied' with Noby Noby Boy, blames budget
Was Noby Noby Boy misunderstood by the gaming masses? Creator Keita Takahashi seems to think so, as he believes the game's limited resources didn't fully realize his vision. "Ultimately, with Noby Noby Boy, I wanted to break the barriers between toy and game," Takahashi explained to Develop. "But for me personally, a bit more could have been done to the game. I'm not completely satisfied with the game, in terms of quality, due to the restrictions on budgets."Takahashi, famous for his work on the original Katamari Damacy, has been surprisingly forthcoming on Noby's budget (or lack thereof). Had Takahashi been given additional resources he believes the game would have reached a much larger audience. "I won't go in to what I wanted to add to the game, because that's a really long list of things, but as an overall assessment, I think the game could have been much more detailed and easier for everyone to understand."It appears Noby's shortcomings won't stop Takahashi from working on an even crazier design. Already, he's thinking of a new project, one that "is even harder to explain than Noby Noby Boy." Fans of Takahashi's works wouldn't want it any other way -- but we wonder if publisher Namco Bandai will embrace an even more experimental game.
First look at Noby Noby Boy stuffed into an iPhone
Namco Bandai revealed the first screen of the iPhone Noby Noby Boy game to GAME Watch today, which can be seen here. As you may expect from a Keita Takahashi product, we can't really figure anything out about it based on this one screen, except that it's got BOY in it, and there's a display at the top of BOY's length. The game is currently 60% done, and has no announced release date yet.People still playing the PS3 game may not even care what the iPhone version is, as long as it helps them add all-important centimeters to GIRL. Also, the fact that it "might be like free" will no doubt influence people to pick it up regardless of whatever actually happens. At the very least, it already looks neat. Of course, this screen could be a trick, like this early trailer for the PS3 game.
Noby Noby Boy moves 100,000 units, bowels
This is one of those posts that's all about perception. If we were to tell you that Noby Noby Boy creator Keita Takahashi said the game had sold 100,000 units to date, for example, you might think "Oh, that's a small number, considering the 24 million-unit size of the PS3 install base."You might say that. But then we'd turn right around and remind you: That means that there are 100,000 people on this beautiful planet who said "Oh, a game about a four-legged worm-like thing that eats things and poops as he collaborates with other worm-like things on interplanetary travel? That's definitely something I'd like to spend the money that I've earned on."Honestly, it's enough to make us a tear up, just a little.
Noby Noby Boy cheated to reach Mars
Fans of Noby Noby Boy have finally arrived at the next destination in their voyage across outer space, having only spent three months stretching to get there. Three months may sound like a long time to get to the next level of any game, but for anyone familiar with the oddity known as Noby Noby Boy, this was way (and we mean way) ahead of schedule.When the mathematicians amongst the game's fans first brought out the calculators, it was determined that it would actually take several years before Mars would be reached. Apparently, Namco multiplied player's submitted lengths by 765, speeding up the process. Essentially, it cheated, though undeniably in a good way. This, however, raises a good point: the next few planets are going to have an even greater distance between them. Does this mean we're going to see more multipliers? Can we expect to see a "double XP weekend," sort of deal? Or should Namco rearrange its measuring system or modify the gameplay?
Noby Noby Sushi
The Noby Noby Boy website has a lot of DIY crafts, but the Noby sushi roll looks nommy and makes us hungry. Siliconera took note of the culinary concoction and we immediately put our interns to work making them -- then we realized we didn't have interns and went to the kitchen to learn it ourselves. Funny (sad) thing is our Japanese is tragic and we don't exactly recognize all the ingredients (image after the break), so please feel free to leave instructions in the comments below.
Noby Noby Boy 1.1 patch lets you change your fart volume
Stop the presses! Noby Noby Boy patch 1.1 is now live and it gives you the all-important ability to change the volume of your farts. We thought you'd like to know.Oh, but that's not all. The update will also give you access to a number of new musical options, 29 in all. Want to play with the sounds of the ocarina? Go ahead. Or, you can go for the congo or cello. You can see all the options over at Offworld.If this breaking news isn't exciting enough for you, you'll also be able to see a thoroughly wacky trailer of Noby Noby Boy version 1.1 after the break.
Takahashi: Noby Noby iPhone is 'bait' for increased PS3 budget
We almost don't want to summarize this Eurogamer interview with Noby Noby Boy creator Keita Takahashi, and instead just tell you to go read the whole thing. Takahashi's disregard for video game convention and complete openness always make for an entertaining read. There are a few items of note that are worth pulling out, which are worthwhile even out of the context of "weird stuff Keita Takahashi said."For example, he reveals that Trophies won't be included in the new multiplayer update. "As this a free update, we can't add any." He also classifies the upcoming iPhone version of Noby Noby Boy as "bait:" "We used too much time and money to develop Noby Noby Boy, and there won't be any major updates in the future. However, I am trying to use the iPhone version in order to get more money from our top executives in order to keep updating the PS3 version."He hopes that the iPhone and PS3 versions will help GIRL grow faster, but Takahashi doesn't think he made her progress too slow. He told Eurogamer, "I don't think it is right to put an ending just for the sake of it. I believe that it is alright to create a stupid and irresponsible game, I really do."
Eat your friend's butt in Noby Noby Boy multiplayer mode
Think you're done with Keita Takahashi's Noby Noby Boy? Nope, there's still more to come. The upcoming multiplayer patch for the PSN sandbox "toy" will allow players to control their own stretchy BOYs. However, if one BOY eats another, you'll get a combined BOY where one player controls the head and the other controls the poo-poo side. The PlayStation Blog mentions four-player support, but Takahashi admits that the experience may be quite "chaotic." We're not sure how four-player support will be implemented, but we're certain Takahashi's team will figure it out ... even without the help of drugs.
