It’s nice to see SEGA be more dedicated to using their backlog. It’s not hard to just picture them as the Sonic, Bayonetta, and Yakuza games, with Atlus being the main force behind their Persona series. Over the years, they have created countless other titles, but they just ignore them, from the likes of Ecco The Dolphin to the recent games like Rhythm Thief (which absolutely needs a sequel). Thanks to the success of the Sonic franchise, however, they have been more open to using their vast catalog more, like the recently released Samba De Amigo: Party Central, and have promised to bring back more previous titles for new experiences. Super Monkey Ball has been relatively fortunate in this regard, being their first attempt to bring back an old franchise for the modern audience with Banana Blitz HD. Now, with a completely new game underneath their belt, it’s nice to see the series still going strong.
Aiai and his friends are off to Juicy Island, a tropical resort where they can relax and enjoy the serenity of the islands. However, one day there, Aiai ended up brushing against a monkey called Palette who wanted their help. Her father has been missing looking for the Legendary Banana, a treasure that would have let anyone have as many bananas as possible. To do so, they need to collect all the mysterious artifacts to point them toward the Legendary Banana. To get them, they must go through mazes rolling around in balls to get to the end of it all.
The series is mostly known for its mazes and gameplay in skill it takes to get to the end, and not the audio and graphics. Which is a shame because both of those artistic elements are good here. The graphics can be nice and pleasant to the eyes, showing off the new locations and worlds well, while having the characters and texture look unique and lovely, giving them some distinctions to make them stand out from the other two recent games released for modern consoles. The music can offer a relaxing vibe, managing to do a good balance between calming and still pushing you to go through another set of levels.
And the levels and gameplay are just as tough as ever. Your goal is to tilt the stage around to roll your monkey around from the start of the level and go all the way to the end through a goal post. New to this series involves a charging move that lets you push your ball at max speed, allowing you to launch off of ramps or just speed through levels. This is a change from the jump button from the previous games released on modern consoles, and it’s a good change. Instead of having the jump button be able to null and void most obstacles, the dash feature allows you to get some airtime through ramps and just go faster whenever you want, but not whenever you want, so it’s a fair trade without making it too overpowered.
Levels first start as basic lines, but soon enough, slopes and curves start to turn up, and more and more hazards get thrown into the mix. You will need to deal with moving platforms, buttons that need to be pressed, and bumpers that can quickly knock you off course. However, with no lives to lose meaning you can just keep throwing yourself at the stage over and over again, it’s only a matter of time until you’re able to strongarm your way to victory with careful maneuvers, or even go for a quick shortcut to get the shortest time possible.
There are more goals to do than just complete the level if you want to go for 100%. In each stage, you are given three side objectives to do. These can be either you have to beat the stage within a set time, collect enough bananas before reaching the end, or find the hidden golden banana before completing the level. You don’t have to do these to beat the game, but it can help you flesh the game out and give you more bonus points to use in the shop. There’s also a bonus time attack mode for every world you beat, giving you even more incentive to try and explore each level to its fullest to see how fast you can beat it. In case it’s too hard, there are helper functions that let you see a shadow go through the stage and even rewind a bit without going through the entire stage again, so it’s open for anyone to learn about it, and for the more dedicated players to perfect. The options menu is just as robust, from offering you specific controller options to ensure your stick moments are as precise as possible to let you turn on and off the helper function mode and replay mode for whenever you fall off a stage to let you see where you failed, so it’s also worth it to explore there a bit.
And don’t be afraid to change your character. Each specific character has their own unique stats that make them different from one another. This can be helpful if you’re having a hard time with a stage as a character, then maybe another character with different stats could help. For example, if you keep finding yourself getting bounced around, then a heavier character could help you keep your footing. You can also unlock new characters and cosmetics for them to wear by playing, so don’t be afraid to get experimental.
Outside of playing through the stages, there is also the battle mode, where you can either race through a special battle stage, bust up robots, get through goals to score points, collect the most bananas, or play a game of tag with bombs that explode if you’re caught with one at the end. You can also race through story levels to either get the better time or to help each other beat it through co-op play. Historically, Super Monkey Ball’s multiplayer has always been one of the franchise’s more endearing features, being perfect for parties or groups of friends to have fun with. Here, while it is lacking the usual number of game modes, which is disappointing, the fact that you can play these games online and get cosmetic awards for it is still reason enough to check it out, especially since the games themselves are still fun.
Really, the main problem here is the multiplayer not going far enough, and the fact it doesn’t have enough mini-games meant for single-player, unlike the past games. In terms of the actual game and what we do have, it’s still a fun time. The main story mode is still an entertaining and challenging time that provides good replay value, and the side games, while not as grand as before, are still enjoyable to mess with from time to time. The game is still a brand-new adventure in the series and is still a solid entry well worth it for any fan. It’s another ripe pick that SEGA gave us to show their love for bringing back their other franchises, and I can’t wait to see what franchise is next for them to bring back.
