"I really love Bananas" - AiAi Check out our full site: www.nintendolife.com Like us on Facebook: / nintendolife Follow us on Twitter: / nintendolife #SuperMonkeyBall #BananaMania #Review
Absolutely appreciate a big outlet having such a hardcore fan to cover something like this, but also somebody who can balance that with the remit of reviewing a game for a broad audience. People often boil down a review to its final score, but there's a lot in the text here to help people know whether or not they'll enjoy the game. I've never spent too much time with the Super Monkey Ball series, and I expect I'd enjoy this release fine, but I can absolutely relate to how much a remake's shortcomings and inconsistencies can disappoint when you're so invested in the original game. I expect lukewarm reviews will put off some people who might otherwise have a great time with the game, and fuel ignorant discourse, but I really like seeing this level of insight from a longtime fan on a big site. Great work, Jon.
While botching Monkey Target isn't a deal breaker at all for me...why is it so off? It's one of the few mini-games that really mattered in monkey ball since it was more of an extension of the main game.
Simply the engine used. To make something on par with the original, retooling Unity's physics engine to fit the game doesn't do it. You would have to rebuild the game's engine from scratch.
While I was never the biggest fan of Monkey Target.. I actually had the best memories playing monkey tennis with my dad and two sisters. As long as that one and billiards is still good. I don’t mind.
Its because of the ramp. The ramp portion is scripted rather than natural. as you get a really weird boost of speed. Its not horrible, but its kinda scuffed. Not the engines fault imo.
@@robsmall6466 unity is basically an industry standard by this point. There are lots of reasons to want to use it. Programmers already know it, adding assets is simple, it has decently robust built in physics, and so on.
I see where the review is coming from, physical movement especially momentum are EVERYTHING in a game like this, and if it's slightly off then the whole experience is off.
Honestly I would rather have seen an emulated port than this. This also lacks the charm of the original in terms of art and sound design. I don't know why Sega has a hard on for the current designs because honestly they just suck. The surreal look of the first two games was part of the charm and aesthetic.
@@simplyrin210 Nah, crash HAD problems back in the day with movement physics. 3D platform games were basically nonexistent,so there was no frame of reference back then. And thought the years they made something better and better Sega CREATED a completely new game concept, and executed it to near perfection, and instead of i gradually improving, it seems like they just didn't get why the originals were good in the first place and made a mess instead. Now that they are trying to go back to their roots, it's hard for them to even find what their roots where. Specially when now there are fan-made games that do nail the snappy fast paced physics perfectly. This is engine's flaws are not "by design", they are sadly a limitation
@@RGozz That's in part the community problem, people are comfortable with pirating old stuff, so buying an emulator + rom for them looks like a scam. That leads many companies to release their old games, redone in new engine with few tweaks, this way they keep low-cost, nostalgia and provide minor 'improvements' for the potential buyers. P.S. I think people often forget, that all companies are machines earning money. (there's nothing bad about it, that's just how it is) In general - If people protesting high-price/low-effort release of any game, company won't lower the price, they'll spend as little money as possible to make atleast some people buy it; or if company gives up (usually for publicity), their next product won't be better, it'll be more persuasive. That's free market for ye - you can support good behaviour, but can't punish bad. That's why Activision, EA, 2K, etc. won't die anytime soon.
As someone who’s never played a Monkey Ball game prior, this seems like the perfect place to start to me, since most of this review’s main sticking points seem to come from the lens of a longtime fan. Though considering how jam-packed October is in terms of game releases, I might wait a bit before picking it up.
@@simplyrin210 I guess it will depend if you played the original or not. Sega went with Unity ( probably because it was cheap ) and it wasn't the best option. Having said that Monkey Ball is such a good game fundamentally that it seems Sega have just about got away with it. Enjoy Monkey Ball if it's your first time playing or if you've played before it's great to have Monkey Ball back
I can relate. But hearing that controls aren't as good as they were before and a game mode being broken because of it is a huge turn off. Even for someone like me who has never played monkey ball. And since this is sega, I'm waiting a little more to hear what other things are messed up. Cause dear God sonic colours ultimate is a mess
I'm sad about the sound effects. One of the most nostalgic things about the original games is the sound of the ball rolling and hitting things. I'm still hype for the game, but the hype went down a little.
My hype dropped a bit because of the lack of multiplayer. I play this game a lot with friends and family. It's sad to see they did not include. Lots of people were misled because of information about multiplayer seem to suggest it would be usable in the main game.
You guys did a better job with this review then IGN. That was a fair review. However, we have to be very grateful that this game is releasing on PC because I can bet you anything that the modding community is going to get Banana Mania right next to the original games from physics, animations, to the target mini game.
jon - thank you for always talking so casually about accessibility features. they’re so important for so many people, but often get missed out of reviews. appreciate it!
Agreed. I’m still excited though. I think Jon’s being particularly hard because he’s such a huge fan, which is fine. But as someone who hasn’t played a monkey ball since the GameCube/ds days I hope this will be great for me and most audiences.
@@christophergardiner7372 Yeah, I've never played a Monkey Ball game, so this is probably the pest place for me to jump in, but it's still disappointing to hear that it didn't live up to Jon's expectations.
I feel that this is because jon is sucha huge fan of the originals. The new features and content dont mean nearly as much to a man like jon as the core gameplay that he fell in love with all these years ago, and even the slightest of changes can seariously lead to dissapointment.
was thinking about this during the review. what an amazing thing that happened when sega made monkey ball. and recalling that the arcade game was released with a banana joystick makes the story feel all the more like a wild fever dream
Literally one of my favorite things was reaching max speed in Monkey Ball 2 and seeing the sparks fly and hearing the ball sound speed up. It’s honestly really sad they removed the sound/effect, feels like something is missing 😔
I suddenly don't want to go get this game after reading your post. ☹️☹️☹️ Sound is just as important as graphics. Graphics ant shit if there's no sound to go with it. 🤬🤬🤬😭😭😭😭
@@lukeanthony2279 I just went and got the OG Super Monkey Ball 2, and it’s just as incredible as I remember; like the value of Banana Mania is great but everything being so different really turns me off.
Super Monkey Ball 2 didn't show the next floor in the air too. The ramp thing It seems like the camera movement makes it feel like it's scripted, but it's not scripted, going slow shows that, the sound stuff is good for what they were aiming for, the original sounds are so satisfying and the new one is cute, which what the series is now, I like both, I bet the game will be modded to add them back
My biggest problem with the game is something I didn't see anyone mention - I think the soundtrack sucks compared to the originals. It's got that plastic kind of post 2010 mainstream electronica sound, while the originals are dripping with 90's rave goodness that gets my head bobbing immediately and puts me into a sort of a trance
I’m going to get this with Metroid Dread on Monday, I’ve never played these before and I always wanted to so this is my chance even if it’s not the absolute best way to play them😊
Those are the two games I ordered as well. Though, I was tempted to cancel Monkey Ball on the switch and get the steam version....decided I would "get good" on switch, then get it on steam when it goes on sale and grab those achievements.
Multiplayer, sound design, and the butchering of Monkey Target is really heartbreaking. I really hope they consider updates in the nearby future. It might just take away from the bitter cons the game has.
With the huge reduction of Multiplayer games, gratefully, this would be the PERFECT time to bring back Multiplayers in Main Game!!! It's been a single player experience FOREVER now, (after Deluxe). I pray they bring it back! I miss playing on the couch as each person takes turns challenging each Floor as each becomes more difficult than the last! #MultiMainGame #MultiMainGame #MultiMainGame
It sounds like this is similar to the Spyro or Crash remakes. Different enough to bother hardcore fans, but perfectly acceptable to more casual fans or newcomers. Considering that I haven't played the original since it came out, I'm still very excited for this.
So the game's got 300 levels that work just as they should and a couple of minigames that have different physics than before? Sounds like a victory to me, honestly.
Like the other person said, the physics in the main game have the same issue. Sounds like movement doesn't have the same fun impact that the originals have (which is a huge reason people love the games so much). Mania looks a bit slow, floaty, and unsatisfying. It sounds like Jon had a good time with it but the sheer difference in physics causes the game to be worse overall. Definitely still serviceable but to hardcore fans, it loses a lot of its fun factor. All this to say, it's definitely more than just "a couple of mini games that have different physics"
I only played Monkey Ball Jr, and LOVED it. I always thought about getting the other games, and this seems like a perfect opportunity. If the controls are analog, they're already better than any Monkey Ball I played and loved. Target wasn't even in Jr. There was golf, fight, bowling, and I'm not even sure if there were more in Jr, and I played that for ages.
As a huge fan of monkey ball 2, and many many many hours playing Targets with my whole family, this is disappointing news to me. If you can’t get the physics right on a physics-based game, what’s even the point? I used to love testing the limits of monkey targets. I wouldn’t even take the ramp, I would drop right off the side of the platform and open just in time to pull up, skimming the water’s surface. It was in all honesty, a thrilling experience.
So besides Monkey target? Are the physics in the base levels fine? Would be really disappointed if the physics were bad across the board since I've never played Monkey Ball and I've been looking forward to this game
I didn't play the original GameCube games but I respect where you're coming from in terms of the physics, the momentum, and the engine in question. Like, even _I_ noticed that ramp jump in Banana Mania looked SO weird... Why? Like I said... I didn't play the originals and if I picked up this game today, I'm sure I'll enjoy the game! But I think your criticisms are valid for the most part. So overall, I'm getting the impression that the overall package is excellent and doesn't feel like a cheap cash grab and can be VERY fun but isn't quite what it was back on the GameCube (including the party stuff like Monkey Target).
The game looks great! I played so much Monkey Ball on the gamecube and it’s great seeing this back! I can tell some of the mini games were a bit off as you mentioned (especially the momentum of going off ramps). I don’t think you were being over critical and you are someone that is passionate about the series and you want to see it as best as it can be This game is for sure on my list :)
So been doing some ranking challenge and trying to improve my time. I got 2 runs where I got a better time and I selected to upload the scores but it keeps defaulting to what time I got originally. The weird thing is it shows my personal best with my new time but it won't show when I enter the leaderboard... not sure if this is a bug or something I did wrong but is anyone else getting this too?
Can I just double check something, did you say that there's no multiplayer in the main game at all as in they haven't even got the taking turns mode. If so that sucks as that was the main reason I wanted this so I could play it with my brother and his girlfriend as she really loved the Monkey Ball games.
Love the review. I'm still really excited for the game since I've only played one of the GameCube Monkey Ball games (can't remember which one) and I didn't play it for very long since the Wii was in the family room at the time and I just didn't have much time to really dig into it. Plus being able to just turn my Switch on and play without having to dig out wires and controllers like I would with my Wii just sounds like a more appealing option for me.
I think if anything, it's a testament to how amazing Amusement Vision were. They only really released Monkey Ball and F-Zero GX, but both games had such amazing game engines that they struggle to get the game/animations feeling as good as the originals. I'm still really excited for this game. Monkey Target being nerfed is a bit of a pain as this was by far me and my friend's favourite mini-game, to the point that we play it every single time we meet up and get excessively competitive over it, but hopefully it can be patched in the future, or maybe it's just something we need to get used to. I remember when Crash N.Sane Trilogy and CTR Nitro-Fueled came out I initially wasn't a fan due to how it didn't perfectly recreate the original feel, and this is something that has improved over time to the point they are now my preferred way of playing these games. I hope people still buy Banana Mania. I don't think they fucked up, but rather they just didn't hit the lofty heights reached by the original game, which was always going to be hard to follow. More than that though, this represents a chance for people to tell Sega they want this style of Monkey Ball game. Hopefully they take feedback on board and release some patches etc. but only time will tell.
If the party games are the main sticking point where the main stages are as fun as ever, its gonna be an instant purchase for me. I didnt even know the original 2 games had party games LMAO
Agreed for the most part, but no main game multiplayer is a bizarre bummer. Even though it was just taking turns, it's not as simple as just passing the controller every round. Every players progression was individual, so some players could be multiple stages ahead of the others. Idk, it just seems weird not to have it.
Yeah i preordered this like more than a month ago and i literally cant wait for tomorrow (i got deluxe) cause I’ve never played a monkey ball game and it looks super fun. Cool to see an avid fan if the series say his thoughts, pretty insightful!
Banana Blitz was originally made for the Wii's Motion Controls. It featured wider levels to accomodate and, as a result, it's now way too easy without motion.
Jr./N-Gage: Too many of the stages ate recycled from the first game and the controls are worse because there's no joystick. Deluxe: Nobody seems to dislike this one, but I will criticize it because a lot of its new levels are terrible mazes. Touch & Roll: Lots of recycled stages, much like with Jr. Still no joystick, but controls are nonetheless better thanks to touch screen movement. Adventure: Bad game. Bad controls. Someone at Sega must've played the rolling ball stages in Crash Wrath of Cortex and somehow thought it would be a good idea to ask Traveller's Tales to make an entire Monkey Ball game with that mechanic. Banana Blitz: Blitz has jumping, which for many people defeated the point of Monkey Ball. The game was also built around motion controls and is far too easy as a result. The fun in the original games was the satisfying feeling of speeding your way through the brutally difficult levels. In Blitz, many of the levels have very wide platforms and have guardrails. Oh and the party games are bad. The first few games had few, very polished and fun party games. Blitz instead went with quantity over quality and has a whopping 50 unpolished, one and done party games with terrible controls. Step & Roll: Balance board controls lol 3D: Too short. Heard the mini games were good, though. Banana Splitz: Heard this one was good, but never played it because it was only on the Vita.
Blitz is decent in the remake, its not amazing and the bosses are a pain but I think it’d actually be good for a new starter because of its easier system and then move onto banana mania if you enjoyed it. The later levels however are super hard, have a check out of level 10-5!
it'd be neat if they could patch in some fixes and add back in the sounds for the ball. it seems SUPER awkward to not have the sound of the ball smacking the ground at all.
They did a phenomenal job recreating the original stages and they feel pretty great for me! But they totally botched the mini games, which is not a deal breaker for me but they really half assed them specially the low res textures and the physics to my beloved monkey target :(
I was only buying this for monkey target. My friend and I sunk so many hours on the original mini game more than the main game. Sucks that my favorite mini game got robbed. Thank you for the honest review!
Main game and monkey target aside, is it still good for playing the other mini games with friends? I want to introduce my nephew, niece and girlfriend's brothers to the series, to give Mario kart and Party a break for a while, but don't want to have to unlock everything playing by myself first...
If multiplayer from the main game is missing, I’m canceling my preorder. Thanks so much for this review. Man, with target and main game multiplayer dead, then I have no desire to buy
@@14vatochongo awesome I have the game but haven't tried it yet. I thought about streaming it once my capture card finally comes in the mail. So far I'm just streaming games on xbox but can't wait to crack into my nintendo games!
Always wanted to play Super Monkey Ball yet never got around to it, so I'm definitely getting this one and actually may benefit from not having any of your nostalgia over the original two.
Never played Monkey Ball before so I'll probably been fine. Just been wanting to get into a modern entry that hasn't been reviewed poorly, and this seems decent at least Also KIRYU GRABBING STAMINANS
I think the sound effects bug me the most out of all the critics for some reason 💀 like the original sound effects were so arcade like and adorable! Now they sound so generic!
_Watches other reviews and hears how good the game is_ That's REALLY good to hear! _Watches this video and hears Jon's complaints_ That's kinda disheartening to hear. I myself got into the series on Gamecube and I will admit, the 2 big draws for me were the mini-games and the physics. And while I'll still get this and hopefully have fun with it, hearing it's just not as good as it used to be makes me sad. :/
I never really played monkey target, as my siblings and I never figured out the controls. We usually just played the main game and bowling. I really hope the main game has a multi-player update.
I'm gonna pick this up because Monkey Ball was the only Saga franchise that I never got into when I was a kid. Been on a Sega binge recently playing Nights and Sonic Adventure. I remember I was super into Sonic back in the day, I also played Billy Hatcher and I remember AiAi appeared in that game also as an easter egg.
I don't remember ever playing Monkey Target as a child. Billiards and bowling on the other hand.... I'm excited for this, and at £25 it was a no-brainer for me.
It's possible. There was a lot of information about it being in the game, but it was mysteriously taken down and only mentions the minigames. Perhaps there's going to be one later.
I have this preordered and ready to go, but have been wondering how much I will notice the negative changes Jon has mentioned. I played a lot of SMB 1 and 2 back when they were first released but haven’t played them for many years and not played any other games in the series. The sound effects don’t sound great, but I wonder whether the game will instantly feel off, or if having not played it in almost 20 years I won’t really notice.
Glad you touched on the importance of lives and game over in this type of game. It’s not “artificial difficulty”, it’s to prevent the player from getting frustrated by challenges they are not ready for and to encourage them to really learn the mechanics. Otherwise, the game would have to play it safe and basically not challenge the player at all, which is unfortunately what even Nintendo does these days…
Also if Monkey Target is better on Mania than on Blitz, it should be great. I quite liked the one on Blitz although have a couple of issues with the controls
From what I heard, they were aware of these issues, but I think the issue they found was the same issue that hold Jet set radio from being ported or remade. Apparently the original code that's responsible for the OG game's existence was lost to SEGA, so from deluxe onward, they had to use alternative engines to get to that level. I say with that info in mind, I would recommend bumping it up to a 8.5/10. When put behind this context it's even more impressive how close it got, but how Monkey Target was handled still holds it back from being at it's greatest.
It's unfortunate for SEGA, but ultimately this is being judged as a product people are spending their hard-earned money on, and you shouldn't be awarding sympathy points for developers who ran into problems during production.
I actually still have Super Monkey Ball 2, but I don't have a GCN or Wii to play it on anymore, so I'm conflicted about whether to buy this or save up for a GCN.
Are lives not available to turn on? Unfortunate to hear this isn't as good as the old games. Still handy to pull out and play on the go with the Switch version. Any notes on handheld performance?
I know this is off topic, but this is the 10th anniversary of arguably one of the best Wii titles: Conduit 2. The Conduit was the definition of "good for a Wii game," but Conduit 2 is, in my personal opinion, severely underrated. JarekTheGamingDragon made a video reviewing Conduit 2 (and all first person shooters on the Wii) and its sad that he is the only sizable RU-vid channel that has talked about this underrated title (he gives mad praise for it too.) It is High Voltage Software's magnum opus yet never is spoken of, as it lives in the shadow of the original game. I would love to see you guys give Conduit 2 the attention it deserves, even if it means only playing it. Thank you :)
Target is such an issue. It really killed the excitement. Race doesn't have the same... speedy feeling you'd get going 80 km/h. I remember FLYING through the air just to beat my siblings and now it's like "wooo" passed you? Fun. The main games feels fine. Not exact which is what you commented on it.
Is there a chance that the developers can update the engine and some of the things mentioned in this review at a later date? If so I think that's the final thing I'd need to commit and grab this game.
Wait so they don’t have multi player in this game? I remember the old games let you take turns with friends on different levels than you if they failed and you passed. I know I missed that aspect in the first Nintendo switch monkey ball remake, so if it doesn’t have multiplayer or difficulty levels like the old games I’m not sure I want to invest in it.
I feel like I should mention this, but I imagine even if things don't get patched (at least on the PC version), there's gonna be dedicated superfans who will probably make community bugfixes and mods to fine-tune the physics and make them work a little more closely to the Gamecube versions. I'm definitely getting this game on day one because as much as I loved the originals (I remember renting both of them quite a few times, in 4th/5th grade), finding copies of those games aren't easy (even trying to find ISO files for Dolphin is hard to come by)... and also because I made the boneheaded decision to get the slow-as-molasses PS2 version of Deluxe instead of the Xbox version, ages ago.
Honestly, the only reason why I got this game was cuz the deluxe edition had the option to use the classic soundtracks in game (I k ow I could purchase it separately but i feel the deluxe would be a better option)
I just bought it today because i found it in walmart at 14 dlls and i really enjoyed playing again monkey balls and to remember monkey ball 2 was so great
Can someone start a petition to fix the sound effects and monkey target? I don't think monkey target has to be just like the original to be fun. I feel like they should trust the physics engine they have in place and make monkey target satisfying in its movement with what it's working off of. Idk if that's possible but the physics in the main game look good. Idk why they nerf that momentum with an animation :/
All in all these sound like very minor complaints, aside from the physics for monkey target. I can see SEGA adding better sound effects as an update post launch but Monkey Target is a little disappointing...
The end part "Unity" is really what makes me hesitant to pick this up. The first game was near perfect and the 2nd one really dragged its feet but was a good sequel. I'll probably snag this on a holiday deal for like 20 bucks.