More than just a Japanese Pac-Man?
The main objective of Prey the Stars is to eat everything in sight and to attack your opponents. Each of the games colorfully-themed stages are cleared by devouring as much as possible before time runs out. The player with the highest score at the end of the stage is the winner. Each player scores points by eating and by sucking in “spirits” which are hidden in some objects. The bigger the item, the higher the score!
Prey the Stars offers a delicious smorgasbord of multiplayer options. Gamers can feast with up to 4 friends using local Wireless DS Single-Card Download Play or Multi-Card Play. Players can also take their gastronomic conquest worldwide with Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection.
Exclusive character designs for Prey the Stars were created by break-out Japanese pop artist TOUMA. The highly-respected designer is renowned for his whimsical and edgy creations including, Knuckle Bear and Boo, that have taken the urban vinyl toy industry by storm.
Prey The Stars is another odd DS title; it feels like a mix between crazy Japanese gameplay and Pac-Man when he’s eating fruit. The latter is all you do in the game, you just race to food and eat more than everyone else, there are a few moves to speed the process up and such, but the gameplay doesn’t change beyond that. It’s too basic for most, including me.
The game has a main story mode, although why a game like this requires a story is anyone’s guess. I didn’t pay much attention to it to be honest, it seemed a little nuts…I can imagine it would appeal to those who like Japanese games, but it doesn’t really work over in the West as well as you would hope. It just feels out of place. The multiplayer contains the same gameplay as the single player, eat food and beat your friends to it. I don’t really know why the game has WFC support, seems that games that need it don’t get it and ones that don’t need it do. Don’t get me wrong, Prey The Stars can be fun but it gets old very quickly. I just found it to be repetitive with its gameplay.
The graphics aren’t the worst, but the levels could have been much better. I can’t help feeling that the gameplay is just too one-sided, there’s no variety in it. The sounds in the game are typical Japanese-fair and will please those who enjoy these types of games; I just don’t think it works too well over here.
The Verdict
This is possibly one of my shortest reviews in a long time, because Prey The Stars is too basic and repeats the same gameplay through the whole game, never changing. Racing to eat food before everyone else isn’t much of a game, more of a mini-game that you might see in the likes of Mario Party, not a whole game.
