Banana Rumble is probably the closest we can get to a true sequel to Monkey Ball 2. The new levels are a bit too easy for most of the game but in the last few worlds (and in the ex worlds), they become more challenging and memorable to me. It's also really fun to try to break the levels with the new spin dash ability. The new characters introduced are adorable and the high amount of customization for your character is a neat bonus.
I cant comment on the multiplayer since i only played the story campaign and the 1st ex world, but if you only want to play the story mode and also try to beat all the missions for each stage, then there is a large amount of content for you to enjoy, around 200 levels with 3 bonus missions per level. Besides that, the music is quite forgettable and the story isn't that interesting.
Overall: While not as fun as banana mania, this is a first true-to-form and challenging monkey ball sequel in a while and i enjoyed my time playing this. I'll probably try out the later ex worlds and multiplayer later.
I cant comment on the multiplayer since i only played the story campaign and the 1st ex world, but if you only want to play the story mode and also try to beat all the missions for each stage, then there is a large amount of content for you to enjoy, around 200 levels with 3 bonus missions per level. Besides that, the music is quite forgettable and the story isn't that interesting.
Overall: While not as fun as banana mania, this is a first true-to-form and challenging monkey ball sequel in a while and i enjoyed my time playing this. I'll probably try out the later ex worlds and multiplayer later.
I'm thrilled to say that Banana Rumble, in terms of its single-player offer, is a triumphant return to the series that I've been yearning for all this time. It brings back the essence of Super Monkey Ball 1 & 2 with its impeccable stage designs that perfectly capture these games' philosophy of being easy to grasp but difficult to master. Additionally, the introduction of the spin dash adds a fresh mechanic without disrupting the core of Super Monkey Ball, which the jump button certainly was in Banana Blitz. Couple this with the game featuring a charming story mode that makes a long-awaited comeback from Super Monkey Ball 2, and this is truly a fulfilling experience.
The only main gripes I have, aside from the hot mess of that multiplayer, are the lackluster soundtrack, which pales in comparison to Super Monkey Ball 1 & 2, and the bad sound design for the ball rolling. It's puzzling why Banana Splitz remains the sole post-GameCube Super Monkey Ball game to reuse the much better ball rolling sound effect.
Not gonna lie, I had my skepticism when this game was announced as this series has burned too many bridges before for me to not fully trust it. Even though I enjoyed Banana Mania, it was just a step in the right direction and didn't fully restore my faith in how RGG develops these games. However, Banana Rumble finally did it and gave me pure Super Monkey Ball goodness without any major drawbacks, unless you're solely interested in the mini games. Only time will tell how it compares to the first two games, but one thing is for sure - it remains a well-crafted experience created by people who clearly have a deep understanding of Super Monkey Ball.
The only main gripes I have, aside from the hot mess of that multiplayer, are the lackluster soundtrack, which pales in comparison to Super Monkey Ball 1 & 2, and the bad sound design for the ball rolling. It's puzzling why Banana Splitz remains the sole post-GameCube Super Monkey Ball game to reuse the much better ball rolling sound effect.
Not gonna lie, I had my skepticism when this game was announced as this series has burned too many bridges before for me to not fully trust it. Even though I enjoyed Banana Mania, it was just a step in the right direction and didn't fully restore my faith in how RGG develops these games. However, Banana Rumble finally did it and gave me pure Super Monkey Ball goodness without any major drawbacks, unless you're solely interested in the mini games. Only time will tell how it compares to the first two games, but one thing is for sure - it remains a well-crafted experience created by people who clearly have a deep understanding of Super Monkey Ball.
Its good to see another entry in the Monkey Ball series and its even battle that the game isn't abysmal dogshit. Its a fun time all around, the tunes are alright and the level design is monkey ball. It is probably the easiest Monkey Ball game that I have ever played but still overall a good time.
The characters are cute as hell, except that ugly ass cat.
I love everyone's outfits and I love Palette and Easel.
The customization is also very cute.
Speaking on the characters I do think its a lil annoying that the characters have stats, I personally don't know if they've ever done that in another Monkey Ball game but it's new to me.
Back on the level design there were only like a few stages that I genuinely did enjoy but all the other ones were solid.
It doesn't have the traditional minigames which I took some points for but being able to earn stuff by playing with randoms in a kind of battle pass-esque format is certainly...a decision. [I just wish I was able to find games.]
Overall I loved the game hopfully a few friends of mine end up with it so we can play the levels together. Even though that sounds like a hilariously awful Idea
The characters are cute as hell, except that ugly ass cat.
I love everyone's outfits and I love Palette and Easel.
The customization is also very cute.
Speaking on the characters I do think its a lil annoying that the characters have stats, I personally don't know if they've ever done that in another Monkey Ball game but it's new to me.
Back on the level design there were only like a few stages that I genuinely did enjoy but all the other ones were solid.
It doesn't have the traditional minigames which I took some points for but being able to earn stuff by playing with randoms in a kind of battle pass-esque format is certainly...a decision. [I just wish I was able to find games.]
Overall I loved the game hopfully a few friends of mine end up with it so we can play the levels together. Even though that sounds like a hilariously awful Idea
Don’t even need to beat every level to know this is the best we’ve had since 2, SUPER MONKEY BALL IS BACK 🧎♂️🧎♂️🧎♂️🧎♂️🧎♂️🧎♂️🧎♂️😭😭😭😭
While perhaps not as engaging on a level-to-level basis as SMB once was, there are shining moments where Banana Rumble gets close to reaching those heights we remember so fondly from the days of SMB2. Beating levels in 5 seconds thanks to the spin dash mechanic was a transcendental experience that makes Banana Rumble a unique and worthy entry in the series.
gaming is back
Never played a Monkey Ball game before and had some friends who were excited for this ones multiplayer so I thought I would give it a shot.
Was genuinely surprised by the amount of fun I had, just the right amount of challenge without being overly frustrating and even when it does start boiling over to that point, the game has a few help options to help see you through the admittedly short story mode fairly comfortably.
Love how this game looks, each of the locations is incredibly colourful and vibrant.
Haven't had much time to dedicate to the multiplayer just yet but what little I have played was fun even if match making does take quite a while.
Looking forward to further runthroughs of this game (plus going through the EX stages you get for beating the game
Was genuinely surprised by the amount of fun I had, just the right amount of challenge without being overly frustrating and even when it does start boiling over to that point, the game has a few help options to help see you through the admittedly short story mode fairly comfortably.
Love how this game looks, each of the locations is incredibly colourful and vibrant.
Haven't had much time to dedicate to the multiplayer just yet but what little I have played was fun even if match making does take quite a while.
Looking forward to further runthroughs of this game (plus going through the EX stages you get for beating the game
definitely a step in the right direction for the series! it's obviously nowhere near the originals, but it blew my expectations out of the water by being an improvement over the last two games, which i'm happy with.
gameplay wise, there's a lot more emphasis on precision here, and the control is a lot better, but man i have no idea why they just don't bring back the original physics. the floatiness is still very apparent in this one and the camera not even following your movement properly fucked me over in a lot of levels - i'd be fine with it if camera movement didn't feel stiff af.
obviously the star of the show here is the spindash ability and it's...... interesting to say the least. while it doesn't really hurt the game since there aren't a lot of instances where you have to use it, it just feels like an afterthought they added late into development, similar to sonic 2 - i'm not a big fan of adding an instant speed move in a game where momentum is key.
the level design sucks as well - while i'm very happy that staples like dynamic objects, switches (and just more terrain in general) have found their way back into the design, a lot of these levels involve waiting for platforms to come around, or rolling through a huge tower and it feels very samey after a while, until the later levels at least.
while there isn't too much stuff to keep you intrigued, it's most definitely a glimmer of hope and i'll be waiting in anticipation to see how they improve on this in the next one.
also removing monkey target is an unforgivable sin and somebody at rgg studio is going to pay
gameplay wise, there's a lot more emphasis on precision here, and the control is a lot better, but man i have no idea why they just don't bring back the original physics. the floatiness is still very apparent in this one and the camera not even following your movement properly fucked me over in a lot of levels - i'd be fine with it if camera movement didn't feel stiff af.
obviously the star of the show here is the spindash ability and it's...... interesting to say the least. while it doesn't really hurt the game since there aren't a lot of instances where you have to use it, it just feels like an afterthought they added late into development, similar to sonic 2 - i'm not a big fan of adding an instant speed move in a game where momentum is key.
the level design sucks as well - while i'm very happy that staples like dynamic objects, switches (and just more terrain in general) have found their way back into the design, a lot of these levels involve waiting for platforms to come around, or rolling through a huge tower and it feels very samey after a while, until the later levels at least.
while there isn't too much stuff to keep you intrigued, it's most definitely a glimmer of hope and i'll be waiting in anticipation to see how they improve on this in the next one.
also removing monkey target is an unforgivable sin and somebody at rgg studio is going to pay
The newest installment in the Super Monkey Ball series is a very nice surprise, it is a return to form (SMB1 and 2) whilst also building on top of the established Super Monkey Ball formula! Sure, it’s quite an easy game (main campaign) but the amount of fun to be had in this game cannot be understated!
At the time of this review (June 25th 2024) I’ve only touched the main story and a few EX worlds so I can’t speak for the minigames and multiplayer. The addition of the roll dash to the moveset is a great one at that! Many levels utilise this move really well whilst also having it be optional for many stages, it provides a quick burst of forward momentum and can also be used to stop your momentum if you face the dash the other way. It’s not as broken as the jump move from Banana Mania (which is a good thing, and those levels didn’t take the jump into consideration due to it being a new feature in the remake) but it can be used to break the game in fun and intuitive ways such as skipping big portions of levels but it requires precision and occasionally some trademark Monkey Ball RNG (which fortunately isn’t awfully common in the levels themselves!).
The world themes are all very nice but the game is definitely hindered in the graphics and resolution department however performance wise it’s nearly an immaculate 60 FPS fortunately, as performance is very important to this series of games! The music is definitely serviceable but I’m not led to believe there will be any tracks that are like the original games where you might recall them now and again, but of course that comes in due corse.
My verdict so far (as I’m likely to re review this when I’ve played more of the extra content) is to wait for a port (to PC, Xbox Series S/X or PlayStation 5) and a price drop / sale. It’s a very good game just not something I can say is ‘bang for your buck’ with the likes of Banana Mania existing (which is a fantastic collection of games, definitely check it out if you like platformers and haven’t played it already).
At the time of this review (June 25th 2024) I’ve only touched the main story and a few EX worlds so I can’t speak for the minigames and multiplayer. The addition of the roll dash to the moveset is a great one at that! Many levels utilise this move really well whilst also having it be optional for many stages, it provides a quick burst of forward momentum and can also be used to stop your momentum if you face the dash the other way. It’s not as broken as the jump move from Banana Mania (which is a good thing, and those levels didn’t take the jump into consideration due to it being a new feature in the remake) but it can be used to break the game in fun and intuitive ways such as skipping big portions of levels but it requires precision and occasionally some trademark Monkey Ball RNG (which fortunately isn’t awfully common in the levels themselves!).
The world themes are all very nice but the game is definitely hindered in the graphics and resolution department however performance wise it’s nearly an immaculate 60 FPS fortunately, as performance is very important to this series of games! The music is definitely serviceable but I’m not led to believe there will be any tracks that are like the original games where you might recall them now and again, but of course that comes in due corse.
My verdict so far (as I’m likely to re review this when I’ve played more of the extra content) is to wait for a port (to PC, Xbox Series S/X or PlayStation 5) and a price drop / sale. It’s a very good game just not something I can say is ‘bang for your buck’ with the likes of Banana Mania existing (which is a fantastic collection of games, definitely check it out if you like platformers and haven’t played it already).
After 20 years, we finally have, in my opinion, a worthy Super Monkey Ball 3. Fun, dynamic levels, a cute little story, all wrapped up in the most stylish presentation this series has ever had. It's good to have this series back.
(Multiplayer is a little lacking but I never really bother playing that stuff anyway.)
(Multiplayer is a little lacking but I never really bother playing that stuff anyway.)
I had somewhat low expectations but this turned out to be quite good. It's easily the best original Monkey Ball game outside the originals and the remakes. I'm only speaking for the campaign (not interested in the multiplayer) and while it's not as hard as the originals the new mechanic is pretty fun and the last two worlds are genuinely really great. The only big flaw is the performance is rough on Switch and not nearly as good as Banana Mania.
Overall it's pretty solid, not as good as the originals but I think any fan of Monkey Ball would easily say it's the third best entry.
Overall it's pretty solid, not as good as the originals but I think any fan of Monkey Ball would easily say it's the third best entry.
After 22 damn years, we finally have Super Monkey Ball 3… and it barely falls short of the first two. The controls are competent enough, but the sound design is awful, characters have stats instead of being cosmetic, there are dash panels just like Sonic, and you have to play 100 relatively easy stages before you can play the other 100 stages that are hard.
At least it exists at all. I thought I would have died without seeing a real attempt at a new installment.
At least it exists at all. I thought I would have died without seeing a real attempt at a new installment.
finally
Atlus Defeated By Ape In Ball.