Prey the Stars

Prey the Stars: Gabu Gabu Planet, known as Gabu Gabu Planet (GABU★GABUプラネット) in Japan, is an eating game with an easy learning curve yet tricky-to-master mechanics. Its namesake is derived from the Japanese onomatopoeia for guzzling or gulping down.

The director and main programmer of this title is Toshio Otake while the game designer is Takahiro Kawai. Character designs and background illustrations were done by Japanese pop-artist TOUMA and visual art group Bright.lt respectively. The music was composed with the assistance of Robeter Productions.

The plot centers on a planet that looks similar to Earth as it is invaded by four hungry monsters. These dog-like creatures of unknown origin are mysteriously summoned to chow down on anything in sight, be it in the land, sea, air, or even space. Later on, it is revealed that their destructive gluttony helps preserve the cycle of life by revitalizing the spirits of the planet.

Gameplay
The main objective is to have the player's character eat as many objects as possible for a high score; the one with the most amount of points is declared the winner. Players are forced to contend with two or three other competitors along the way.

At first, objects can be eaten by merely tapping the A button repeatedly. However, the game gradually introduces other tools of the trade needed to devour an item. When consuming an elemental object, characters can simply lick them down to size with the X button. This helps negate the effects of their elemental properties as well as soften their resistance to bites. Sometimes, a few spirits may fly out of an item after a bite or two. Players may opt to suck them in by pressing the Y button while they eat. If successful, they gain additional points based on the number of spirits absorbed into their belly. In the event the player does not want their monster to eat an object, they can always have them spit it out with the B button.

Timing each bite becomes a crucial factor mid-game. When the player's monster has an object in their mouth, a green and orange meter pops up. Once the gauge is highlighted as green for their second bite, the player can receive a "Good" rating. Improperly executing each bite will cause the feeder to stop chewing momentarily. Scoring a straight number of "Good" ratings lands the player with a "Perfect!" to build up their GABUGABU meter on the right side of the screen. Filling up the GABUGABU meter activates GABUGABU Time, allowing the player's monster to chomp down on anything without worrying about timing as well as gaining twice the number of points obtained from items and spirits.

The more items the player's character eats, the bigger they will get. If they are too tiny to tackle a particular item, they can eat more items or search for a power-up icon that drops on the field. The player's size is judged by level of the Stomach Gauge located on the bottom left of the touch screen. It's probably better to reserve the biggest objects of the map when it reaches Level 3 (or MAX Level).

If an opponent's monster is stealing the first place seating, it may be in the player's best interest to disrupt them in any way possible. Pressing A or blowing into the microphone can push opponents away from objects or into pitfalls. Special abilities can also be acquired by eating three items of the same elemental type in a row.

When a monster falls down the playing board or experiences their doom to another competitor, they instantly revive themselves by hatching out of eggs that land on random spots. Their stomach gauge upon revival is reduced. Should players find themselves in a bind, they may choose to block or deflect certain attacks by holding the L button.

Story Mode
The main feature of the game, it contains a total of eleven stages for players to finish. This mode is used to unlock new skins, other monsters, and the hard difficulty setting. Finishing the game once turns it into Challenge Mode, unlocking a slew of various challenges for each stage.

Multiplayer Mode
Enables four players to compete wirelessly with local players or with Wi-Fi settings and friend codes. Players can create their own rooms for others to join in.

Extras
Keeps the tutorials, story cinematics, records, and skins unlocked by the player.

Options
Allows players to switch audio settings (stereo and mono) or adjust difficulty settings (easy, normal, or hard). Players may also choose to change their nickname for Wi-Fi battles or erase their game data for a completely new start.

Characters
Summoned into the planet by a mysterious entity, these four monsters are the main stars of the game. The section below contains information regarding every relevant stat available.


 * Special Skill - The special ability of a monster during GABUGABU Time.
 * Bite - Denotes a monster's innate biting proficiency.
 * Lick - Denotes a monster's innate licking prowess.
 * Suck - Denotes a monster's innate sucking power.
 * Level 1 Stomach Gauge - The length of a monster's stomach gauge when small-sized.
 * Level 2 Stomach Gauge - The length of a monster's stomach gauge when medium-sized.
 * GABUGABU Meter - Represents the length of a monster's GABUGABU meter and how many seconds their own GABUGABU Time lasts.

Gabu - The All-Rounder
Gabu is the first character players have access to right from the start. Well-balanced in almost every aspect, he can swallow many objects without too much trouble. A good choice for beginning players. Gabu is named after the Japanese onomatopoeia for biting.


 * Special Skill: Boost - Licks away the elemental properties of an object in one go and sucks in all visible spirits simultaneously.
 * Bite - 80
 * Lick - 50
 * Suck - 50
 * Level 1 Stomach Gauge - 2x
 * Level 2 Stomach Gauge - 3x
 * GABUGABU Meter - 8 "Perfects!" to activate (Lasts for 20 seconds)

Bari - Power Biter
Bari is unlocked by clearing the Family Crisis stage. His biting power alone is more than enough to consume any non-elemental object within reach especially when under the effects of GABUGABU time. However, he does not fare very well in stages filled with elemental items due to his low licking stat. Bari is named after the Japanese onomatopoeia for crunching.


 * Special Skill: Crush - Chomps down on non-elemental items with only one bite.
 * Bite - 100
 * Lick - 30
 * Suck - 30
 * Level 1 Stomach Gauge - 3x
 * Level 2 Stomach Gauge - 3x
 * GABUGABU Meter - 8 "Perfects!" to activate (Lasts for 14 seconds)

Chuchu - The Vacuum
Chuchu is unlocked by clearing the Water Slider stage, and his specialty lies in sucking objects into his belly rather than chewing them outright. This enables him to absorb more spirits in one eating session, earning the player bonus points that can be doubled during GABUGABU Time. Unfortunately, his sluggish mobility makes him more vulnerable against unexpected attacks by other monsters. Chuchu is named after the Japanese onomatopoeia for sucking.


 * Special Skill: Spirits - Forces out multiple spirits from an object by sucking. Further sucks can drastically increase the amount of points earned.
 * Bite - 80
 * Lick - 30
 * Suck - 80
 * Level 1 Stomach Gauge - 1x
 * Level 2 Stomach Gauge - 4x
 * GABUGABU Meter - 10 "Perfects!" to activate (Lasts for 30 seconds)

Pero - Lick Machine
Pero becomes available after the Sand Horizon stage has been cleared. Like Gabu, Pero's stats are balanced enough in that he can bite or lick objects with little difficulty. More specifically, his licking prowess is the highest amongst the group. His only glaring weakness is his low sucking ability. Pero is named after the Japanese onomatopoeia for licking.


 * Special Skill: Automatic - Can use any button while eating without penalty.
 * Bite - 80
 * Lick - 60
 * Suck - 30
 * Level 1 Stomach Gauge - 3x
 * Level 2 Stomach Gauge - 2x
 * GABUGABU Meter - 5 "Perfects!" to activate (Lasts for 24 seconds)

Spirits
Spirits are magical beings responsible for the planet's creation. Their existence helped shape life and nature to what it is now. But as the world continued to flourish, the spirits began losing their strength to the point where they would soon fade from existence. To remedy the situation, they summoned the four monsters to consume the planet in a bid to regain their lost power.


 * Spirit of Energy - A spirit who holds the power of nourishment. Is the first to be absorbed by the monsters.
 * Spirit of Love - A spirit who houses love in all its forms. Tends to talk about love most of the time.
 * Spirit of Creation - A spirit who represents creativity and livelihood.
 * Spirit of Metal - A spirit from which metals are born. Is the first to reveal the background story of the spirits.
 * Spirit of Time - A spirit who holds dominion over time.
 * Spirit of Adventure - A spirit who represents excitement and adventure.
 * Spirit of Water - A spirit who holds command over the deep oceans. Is known for using surfer slang upon interacting with the monsters.
 * Spirit of Wind - A spirit who resides in the sky and clouds.
 * Spirit of Fire - A spirit with the ability to produce flames. Humorously tries to reward the monsters with unnecessary items before being absorbed.
 * Spirit of Earth - A spirit whose power sustains the entire land.
 * Spirit of Stars - A spirit with influence over the stars and other celestial bodies. Is actually the eldest of the eleven spirits and the one responsible for awakening the four monsters.

Stages
There are eleven different stages to choose from, each with its own individual gimmicks and objects to add more chaos on the playing field. Participants can keep an eye on their current position and ranking by glancing at the dual screen. The duration of a stage is determined by a time limit of five minutes or by the number of items still on the map. If the monsters gobble everything quick enough, they can end a stage before time runs out. By filling up the spirit bar for each stage during the main storyline, players are immediately given a set amount of missions they must achieve before unlocking the next area. These missions gradually increase in number and difficulty as the player advances from one board to the next.

Allusions

 * Fatal Inertia is the name of an amusement ride in the Adventure Park stage.