Katamari Damacy sequel rolling out

TOKYO--According to the Nikkei MJ (Marketing Journal), Namco will make a sequel to its recently released PlayStation 2 game Katamari Damacy.

Initial sales of Katamari Damacy were disappointing--about 30,000 copies were sold during its first few weeks in release in March 2004. But while game companies in Japan usually rely heavily on sales during the first two to three weeks after a game's release, Katamari Damacy kept on rolling. The game continued to receive about the same volume of orders from retailers each week, and by the end of May, it had shipped more than 100,000 copies.

The sequel to Katamari Damacy is scheduled for release within the year. "We can grow it into a brand if we make it into a series," commented Namco president Kyushiro Takagi to Nikkei MJ, expressing his anticipation about the future of the game.

Most of the official site for Katamari Damacy closed down yesterday. However, its index page has been replaced by a teaser, most likely as a prelude to the sequel’s official announcement.

For more details on Katamari Damacy, check out GameSpot’s previous coverage.