From the creator of Katamari Damacy comes Noby Noby Boy. For once I can’t think of a witty thing to say about this game since it just speaks for itself, so I’d recommend reading the review itself.
Noby Noby Boy
Developer: Namco Bandai
Platform: PlayStation 3 (reviewed)
Noby Noby Boy is a game without any goals or missions. You play as BOY and are thrown into the world to stretch. That’s it. Don’t try to find any deep meaning behind this game because there isn’t one. If there is a goal to this it would be to stretch as far as you can, but more on that later.
You control BOY with the two analog sticks. The left controls his front and the right controls his back. Push the sticks in opposite directions and you’ll make BOY start to stretch. The farther you stretch the more you’ll find him harder to controller with the physics in this game. Holding L2/R2 allow BOY to cling to the ground which is useful when your mess of a body starts flying all over the place and you need to stop. Tapping L2/R2 allow BOY to fly into the air and you’ll find yourself laughing to yourself as you see BOY’s body flop all over the place. Tapping L2 also allows BOY to eat the various inhabitants of the world and tapping R2 allows you to ‘pop’ out the things you eat. The L1 and R1 buttons pressed in various combination’s with the directional arrows and tilting the controller change the camera, and at first is annoying but you get used to it after a while. If you zoom out you’ll see the planet with the Sun-lion looking down on you and GIRL’s body heading towards space which is a nice touch.
Meet BOY. Yes those are my buttocks that just got ripped off and yes I’m going to eat it.
When you enter BOY’s house you can select to be sent to a new map. Each map is randomly generated so you usually won’t play the same one in a row and sometimes the items in those maps are changed. Each level contains an assortment of animals ranging from chickens, cows, and even sharks. Various odd looking humans inhabit the levels and are quite humorous to see, and I nicknamed one of them “Ball-Chin”. I think the name is quite obvious to how he looks. The human characters perform various actions and will either drive one of the various vehicles, run away from BOY, chase BOY, bow down to him, or jump on him for a ride. There are also random objects like giant spinning-tops, donuts, and robots. Some of these objects can actually rip you apart if you’re stretched too long. One hilarious result came from a windmill which I got wrapped up in and torn into 3 separate pieces. I then proceeded to eat my rear-end and was greeted to a triumphant sound as I regrew my buttocks.
The only ‘goal’ in Noby Noby Boy is to stretch as much as you can, shrink yourself, and then repeat. This all adds to your total unreported length which you can then upload to Sun who then adds this to GIRL’s length. Noby Noby Boy is interesting in that if players want to unlock the other planets they all have to play to add to GIRL’s cumulative length which will then lead to new places to play. The Moon has already been unlocked after a week or two of the game being released and Mars is next on the list.
Don’t bother to comprehend what’s happening here. Just go with it.
The graphics aren’t amazing, but they do have some charm to them. I don’t think there was a single design that I didn’t want to get a closer look and some made me chuckle at how odd they looked, in a good way. The music in this game isn’t anything impressive, but it is relaxing. It fits the game perfectly and allows you to just relax and get into a good mood while playing.
Noby Noby Boy has two features that I simply loved. The first is the screenshot feature. You simply press the PS button and scroll to the pictures section of the XMB, there you’ll see the option for screenshot and after picking that one you’ll return to the game and be allowed to take them by pressing the X button. These will save directly to your hard drive. The other feature is the option to record video. By holding the square button you’ll be given the option to choose either a ‘small’ or ‘large’ memory amount for the video or you can upload it straight to Youtube which is a great addition.
The Final Word
Noby Noby Boy is a hit or miss game. The only con I can pick out of this is the unusual camera control, but that would be nitpicking since you can easily get used to after a while of play. You’ll either love it for all it is or just not like it. For those that enjoy it they will find a quirky and addictive game that will keep you coming back to it and wondering how you can be having so much fun with such an odd and simple game. For $5 this is a great purchase especially with the promise of new planets as levels once they are unlocked.
– MonsterVine Rating: 4 out of 5 – Good
