We all love Monkeys, they are cheeky little things that add a little fun to the world of animals, you get the impression therefore that Sega’s latest offering, Super Monkey Ball Banana Blitz is a sure success, after all who could fail to be impressed with 50 party games that all include Monkeys?
The object of single player Monkey Ball is to guide your furry friend to the end of the puzzle like platform by controlling the angle of the platform your Monkey is on, you do this by tilting the ground in different directions, this causes the ball your Monkey is encased in to roll in the desired direction, with speed increasing the more you tip. The aim is to get to the end of the level while collecting bananas and trying to avoid tipping off the edge of the platform, unfortunately your cause is not helped in later levels were the developer has made it as difficult as possible for you by adding all manner of object to get in your way.
You will find that the lengths to which Sega have gone to implement the Wii Remote are genius, the control works perfectly with the game which makes it simple for anyone to pick up and play, the controls really couldn’t be any more simple, just tip the control anyway you wish and the on screen action will duplicate you exact move.
Also by hitting the A button, your Monkey will leap into the sky, this really does help as you progress further into the game as Sega have included obstacles around this ability, however providing you practice enough, you should be able to negotiate these levels eventually.
The single player mode really shows what the Wii can do and is very addictive, it is without doubt therefore that you will find yourself going back for more time and again to try and complete the levels which are really frustrating you.
There is more to the game than single player mode however and this comes in the shape of the party games, for these to be included really does add to the overall value of package.
The 50 party all new party games all utilize the Nintendo’s Wii’s Remote in one way or another, this is by using the Remote either on it’s own or with the Nunchuck, it is a shame then that some of these games aren’t quite up to scratch, thankfully though the ones that do reach the standards expected are excellent, Monkey Golf and Monkey Target in particular are a lot of fun as is the excellent Monkey Racing in which you control your vehicle using the remote in horizontal position, others which also deserve a mention are Monkey Bowling which explains itself really and the excellent Monkey Wars which offers a very imaginative and entertaining FPS experience.
There are a few other mildly entertaining games such as Simon Says and Monkey Hurdle, however, most of the other games are average at best and do not really take advantage of the Wii Remote due to the controls being far too over complicated.
Overall though the mini games are not to be sniffed at when you consider there are other games out there that offer less for the money and are nowhere near as entertaining as this game.
Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz, is a very entertaining game and it is one that you will keep going back to play, the single player mode is addictive and very challenging while the party games offer enough variety to keep you hooked for a long time, yet again Sega have proved that you just can’t fail when it comes to Monkeys.
