Super Monkey Ball: Banana Mania Review - Return to Monke 

CORRECTION: The tilting in Monkey Ball is merely a visual effect, I was wrong. The ACTUAL change to the physics lies in acceleration. The monkeys accelerate faster in this game, which results in less responsive turns at high speeds, but more methodical movement when rolling slowly. So a completely different cause for the same results I discussed in the video. This doesn't effect the video's thesis, but it's definitely worth addressing!

The main thing that bugs me about Banana Mania is the sound design of the ball itself. The "rolling" sound feels so disconnected from the player's movement and when the ball smacks into a surface, you don't get any sense of weight from the sound effects. The level design is back but there is still something missing.

Me and my brother have been yelling Gon Gon like cavemen at each other every time we’ve seen each other for about three weeks now. Super monkey ball was our childhoods and we can’t wait

Here’s a solution to the tilt dilemma, have a toggle in the settings between new and old so you can ease into level tilt or snap into level tilt.

Fun fact about Arthropod: lurking in the data of the original game was a second version of the level, with a single rolling drum and with fewer legs on the walking creature-just like the easy version you can play in here. A comment on the tilt: the tilt in the original game was purely a visual effect. You could disable the tilt effect with debug tools and the game would play the same way. Some drops were more annoying in the older games due to the severe tilt, even. I imagine that the visual tilt was toned down to ease motion sickness, which I've had many viewers of my streams comment on when watching.

I haven't been this excited for a game in a long time. I'm hoping the upcoming Lego Star Wars game is a fitting trip down memory lane as well

Thanks for playing Liam! 🍌

I was already getting this but Kiryu being playable makes me want 7 copies

This has to be one of the best reviews i have seen for monkey ball. I just love your passion to the series and your explanation of "different doesnt mean worst" is perfect! im glad i watched this since it really has convinced me to pick the game up when it comes out! cant wait for more videos you have in store!

As a 37yo who's been gaming since the 80's somehow Monkey Ball has rolled under my radar and I know nothing about it. But you're video was great, informative and passionate, and now I wanna play Monkey Ball. Thanks for the review!

hearing a veteran fan of something speak highly of a change is very refreshing from what I normally hear

I hadn’t played Monkey Ball since the PS2 days, and this newest instalment definitely didn’t disappoint. Loads of levels with varying difficulty’s, all of which are extremely satisfying to finally complete. I must admit there were a few bonus levels from the original games I just couldn’t complete, but nevertheless I fully enjoyed my time playing this game.

Great review man. I'm here because Banana Main is on sale for $15

This preview has made me more optimistic after hearing one other preview talking about how the new physics and engines were bad. I've already preordered but this video eases my mind a bit.

Brilliant review, it was nice to hear from a true fan of the series, thank you for spending so much time talking about the physics and how the game moves as that was one of my biggest worries going in, very disappointed about the lack of multiplayer in Challenge Mode but this'll still be a day 1 purchase for me

All Persona fans only got this due to Morgana, what a great deal

The only solution to the less responsive controller physics for many, is to patch the game with a new option to choose either 'Classic Controller' physics or new/modern 'Standard Controller' physics - problem solved, job done, everyone is happy! Lets hope they take that on board and deliver.

My only gripe about losing lives, and I don't think it alone is worth keeping lives for, is that now I feel no reason to not just brute force attempts until I get it. The restriction made me careful a bout how I approached levels that were tricky and influenced how I would approach them with each and every attempt. Now I feel like mindlessly trying the same strategy until it works, or I really really have to do something different.

Great review. Thanks for being objective and taking the time to explain the physics side of things. I would play SMB1 as a kid with my siblings, we'd all sit on the sofa and spend hours passing the controller around, watching and cheering each other's runs like football fans at their home game, only to get so far and then constantly fail midway through moderate difficulty. I think I'll pick this up: the franchise helped me bond with my siblings a lot back in the day, so the least I can do is support this release. I'm really keen to visit this game as an adult and explore more of the design and levels that I could never quite get to as a kid. I have a feeling that'll be joyous.

The monkeys are back, and in a (from what I’ve heard at least) good game this time

I've watched all sorts of reviews for this game, and I have to say this is by far the best one. This is someone that is not only knows the intricacies of the series and clearly has memories tied to it, but also tries to not to be bias and OPEN MINDED about the changes in the game. This is perfect. I will show everyone interested in this game THIS review and this review alone. Amazing work!!!

I’m so excited for this game. Thank you for providing such an in-depth review

The movement was actually the only change I liked about the new game. I miss the snap but I grew to enjoy the new controls more. Its sucked that Banana Blitz had awful boring levels yet somehow good features like boost pads being more apparent along with bumpers. And jump, I hated jump. I had no idea that this game was released until just now and I'm definitely going to buy it. Fun story: When I was young I was at my babysitters and we had SMB2. At our babysitters there was about 12 kids total. One summer I dedicated myself to beating Expert. I accumulated 99 lives, then started. We were stuck on the switch level (the one with a crap load of buttons) but that day I managed to find the right one after like 50 lives. (To those who know the level you understand) All of us were super excited that we made it past finally and the momentum carried with our excitement. But because of the noise, our babysitter told us to quite down because she was trying to put the two babies asleep. Which put the blame on me because I was the one playing. But I still pressed on. I was so proficient in the levels prior that the levels afterwards were kind of a breeze till like the final 8. At that point we couldn't hold back our excitement. We were loud as heck. Our babysitter was at her limit. Once at like level 45 level she told us if were loud again she would turn the gamecube off. I made it to 49 with three lives left. Now on fifty and were all collectively on freaking edge. The pong design, along with it being extremely fast was daunting. I roll in and bonk, shot off. I try again and last like a second longer before being bonked out again. I had the one life left and the zero life but at that point, I was just satisfied getting that far. I think we all were. So the next one I just full throttled Baby in there for the laughs but I ended up blasting through the goal gate at center stage. At that point everyone went bananas. They hoisted me up and were yelling and cheering like maniacs. Then, everything went silent as the inside garage door was wide open with the sound of crying babies wailed in the background. I was dropped. Then, my babysitter grabbed my ear and took me to the bathroom and put a bar of soap in my mouth for like an hour. I got scolded, and was told to stand in the corner till my Dad arrived after the soap. It was awful. Then when my dad picked me up she told him the disturbance I caused and I was grounded for a month. (Summer break just started btw) And lastly when we got home my Dad gave me 50 smacks to the rear with a belt. Was it worth it? Well, this was before the internet was super accessible. So all of this was practice, memory, luck, and a load of banana collecting. Heck yeah it was worth it. It's one of my favorite memories of childhood. And why I hold this franchise near and dear to me. Also why I use the internet sparingly. If you've read till the end thank you for your time. I hope I made you laugh.

This is the most objective review I've seen of this game so far, especially when you talk about the physics. Good stuff.

Though Toshahiro Nagashi is the same person who worked on monkey ball, he is also very different now. Just look at before and after photos of him. Before being before Yakuza

This is the best review of the game I've seen. You addressed the changes in a productive way, and you sold the appeal. I've been a subscriber for awhile, but this skyrocketed you in terms of gaming video essayists. I've never played monkey ball, but I'm very excited to jump in.

This was a beautifully heartfelt and knowledgeable review, thank you!

I'll add two things to this review that might help change your perspective. 1- Supposedly (though I welcome those to fact check me on this) they wanted to use the original engine for a while, especially for this remake, but much like the reason we don't have a Jet Set Radio remake or port, the reason why they had to use Unity was because the original code for the engine was lost forever. So especially with this remake, along with the changes to make new players welcomed, they tried their best to also get as close as possible by memory to the engine and what we see in game is the result. 2- Because of this, when the issue of the camera snapping became apparent to SEGA after play testers mention this in the levels that required speed originally, they decided to make for it by making the base monkey's speed go faster than the original. This I've noticed cause some skips that originally required the riding against the wall method to build speed no longer needs it. I could hold the stick forward and I'd have enough speed to make it.

I just have to say it, Liam. The quality of your content increased SO MUCH over the years. I've never played Monkey Ball before but I still enjoyed every second of this video. Your passion is contagious, I swear to god. It's been a joy as always!

FANTASTIC review. Exactly what I was looking for as I explore the prospect of buying this game.

I really enjoyed this review. Well done man. I will look forward to playing this soon asap

I'm so excited for this. Honestly the game I've looked forward to the most.

Excellent review, so happy I found this. I've been hoping for a review that goes into this kind of detail about how the game (especially the physics) compares to the originals, and this answered all of my questions. I'll be picking this up on PC, with any luck we'll get patches and/or mods that provide options or solutions for the differences. Would love to see a toggle setting for the older, snappier controls, some tweaks to make monkey target play more like the original, and online multiplayer. Kinda lame that they locked the original soundtrack behind paid DLC, but beyond that I'm pretty thrilled about the package

I remember buying two copies at launch: a physical one on Switch and one on PC. Sadly I just don't use my switch much, but I recently got a steam deck and that PC version has been a blast to play through. These levels are already hard enough in end of themselves, a life system would have honestly not allowed me to play most of them, but this really feels like a great way to casually play some fun monkey game

I'm glad to hear you got a review code. I think if there's any gaming-related channel that I would want to hear the opinion on for Monkey Ball it'd absolutely be you. Can't wait to try the game out soon!

This video and your brain r amazing. Love the original monkey ball and you were the first person I thought of when I heard about the remaster

I've had that thumbnail image in my head since before I knew that image even existed

Great video. Best, most in-depth review Ive seen of this game so far. IGN managed to leave out the penalty system details and control comparisons. Ordered this and hope to see a real sequel in the future. Got into it late on emulation but loved the first game. I believe I had gotten them cheap on Xbox but never really put alot of time into them until recently. Its good they tightened up the control on those narrow platforms because Expert mode immediately destroyed me with those sections,ha ha.

Saying that I am a HUGE fan of Super Monkey Ball 1 and 2 is an understatement. I just found out about Banana Mania, and after that incredible intro, I know that this is a review that I can trust

I bought Banana mania day one! Got the physical version. I've never once played a Monkey ball title before so this is brand new to me! I've beaten the first two worlds and unlocked Kiryu so far and I'm having a blast. Hoping this title sells well!

I miss the sparks and rolling around inside the ball

So glad to hear they changed the camera controls; that was the only thing that made me eventually give up with the games after a while. The way it would always be behind your character was infuriating, like when you wanted to slow down and wait to time something and then the camera would swivel about crazily. I am definitely gonna get this and hopefully actually beat 2 now lol I think I couldn't take the camera anymore at world 8 world and quit. Makes me laugh that they changed arthropod, though; I remember having to do that one a ton and then looked up one of those walkthroughs that had you tilt at certain times to fall into it. Anyway, great review! You mentioning the camera 100% decided for me to get the game. Also glad that Blitz HD is a thing; I wanted to get into the Wii one more, but the motion controls were killer on my wrist; always wished they did it upright like in those Mario Galaxy levels where you were running on the star ball.

Not gonna lie I absolutely love this game. While this is my first, I’ve been finding 5 second routes for some stages that some speedruns don’t even show, and it feels like I’m able explore the system’s capabilities and share what I’ve learned with others. I just got to world 9 and I’m excited for what I see next! Also the game’s drip is impeccable 🥵 Cant wait to get to the challenge levels and race my friends 😁

I pre-order this game months ago and looking forward to playing it. Still wish Challenge Mode had multiplayer, but can't wait to try levels I couldn't make it to in the original games and playing the Deluxe levels.

This remake turning out this good fills me with joy. It's warming my cold, dead heart.

Love your review ❤️

This is a great review!

I have seen people online who say that on the PC version, the physics work better if the control stick’s dead zone is changed from a circle shape to a square shape.

This review gave me the confidence to indulge in an otherwise panned game. I love Monkey Ball on GameCube but only vicariously through a friend. I am thrilled to have it for my own!

I'm really excited for this game but the one thing that let me down is Monkey Target. It's sod''s law that the one game me and my friends still play on a regular basis is the one that got nerfed the most. When me and my friends have a catch up and a few drinks, we always bust out N64 Pokémon Stadium and Monkey Target 2 as THE premier mini games to find out who is the best. We loved that you could do things like roll off the ramp early to build up more speed, and beat your rivals to the coveted magnet, and the risk/reward between taking the stars away from everyone but having no magnet, or going for the magnet/brake but having less stars as someone inevitably pinched them before you could get there. I've seen people talk about the weird scripted nature of the Monkey Target ramp, but I'm hoping you can still jump off early, or have enough control that it invites these gameplay styles. I guess I'll find out for myself but it sounds like the team are quite receptive, and I hope if it is an issue, that they release a patch at some point down the line. Either way, I'm just excited for some more Monkey magic. Also, I wonder what they done with the SMB2 level that was in the shape of a Gamecube. I wonder if it's still a Gamecube, or whether it's something generic, or whether it matches the console you bought the game for?

Hell yeah, I'm so hyped for this.

“I’m still waiting for the day I can welcome the monkeys back with open arms” And that day is today!

I'm definitley going to pick up this game when I get the chance!

14:21 - Oh geezus it's that one "Why Doesn't Eggman/Bowser Just Move the Sign Post/Flag?" joke made into a terrifying absolutely evil reality X _ X

I actually enjoy Banana Blitz HD quite a bit..... Also honestly wish we had a Super Monkey Ball Maker, and maybe Jump could be upto the level designer.

I still hold my opinion from years ago that them keeping the first two games for ransom based on the success of Banana Blitz HD was a stupid move, but regardless it's nice that against all odds everything worked well at the end. Just the experience of following this game and having good hearted discussions with people about the franchise at arguably it's highest relevance point in over 15 years is something I wouldn't change for the world, also I already expected the physics wouldn't be 1-1 with the originals but knowing the overall feel of the experience is still there with interesting new discoveries to be found is already all I wanted. Happy to finally see this series back in good shape and here's hope for it having a brighter future.

Best review of this game Ive seen

Hmm... good, good... knowing your reviews of the series beforehand, I think I am set on getting this, then

I just bought this game and it’s the first Monkey Ball I’ve played but I enjoy hearing a longtime fan’s perspective on the series

Your discussion on physics is interesting. This sounds almost exactly like a 1st order filter on the acceleration, or some other delay.

this got me excited to revisit super monkey ball

I love youe review and mostly agree with it. I'm having fun with the game

Super excited for this. I've never played the originals but have been wanting to for years. I hope this means we get a new full fledged sequel by a dev who cares

I like this review a ton, just downloaded the Steam Deluxe version. :3

One of the best written reviews I've ever listened to. I am now a subscriber.

Damn. It seems like I really need to go into this with an VERY open mind. I still say the series peaked at it's sequel, and I can't imagine enjoying the series with anything other than it's original physics. They need to release a demo of this, I just need to test the physics for myself.

Okay you’ve convinced me to get the game as someone who’s never played the series.

I forgot this game was coming out but now I wanna playing it

reject humanity, return to monke ball

This was a good review

I wish sonic's ball had a dithered effect to make it look like the shield powerup on the megadrive lol

I'm enjoying my time with this game, it's super fun to play and it feels like the originals in many ways, it's a great package and I keep telling people to buy it because it's a new Monkey Ball game and also because it can show Sega that a revival of some of their early 2000s franchises could really be a success Imagine the same treatment of Banana Mania for a game like Crazy Taxi or like Jet Set Radio, Space Channel 5 anyone? It gives me hope and that's why I bought it day 1 and also grabbed Hello Kitty Great video btw

Oh uh... The other day I bought Banana Blitz thinking it was this new one... Whoops.

Never did we imagine 1 year ago that we would be seeing a review for this game over the legendary Tak 3 XD

You really know how to do a review. Other reviewers are just bashing the new physics while your review gives it a reason as to why they are the way they are. As always, premier stuff dude

Changing the physics is a dealbreaker. I'm going to wait for them to include a setting that will put it back to the original controls.

Glad to know Monkey ball managed a rad comeback.

I used Super Monkey Ball for my Graduate Capstone Project. I was also the only one in my GCP class that actually did an experiment instead of reviewing papers.

I just played through the entirety of story mode with gyro controls and it was incredible

I'm downloading the game next week! It seems awesome

I got the game and I really thought the drip was real

As for the motion controls, I posted a video for the Ultimate Monkey Ball Experience. By putting the left joy con on a Bosu ball, the board is control by the players balance. For this type of game play, the slow motion comes in clutch.

This game looks absolutely great

I'm excited to get it if they give it a big controls and physics patch! And victory sound lol

Correction: Nick Robinson scared Sega into making Banana Mania to appease his wrath.

I think as someone who has only played Super Monkey Ball Adventure (and loved it in a nice quirky way), I am going to enjoy Banana Mania a ton.

About the physics change, it would be cool if you could use the banana buying thing to buy the option to use the original physics

How did I not know about this?? Banana Blitz was disappointing, but this one looks actually good!

Only played the 3DS one but Beat being in it is pretty cool. Sure would be interested if he was added to a crossover platform fighting game on Tuesday

Best thumbnail ever

The monkeys are back, and in a fun game this time! Banana Blitz HD just didn’t cut it I’m sorry!

Well I'm sold.

That was a good review to watch after nintendo lifes one

@3:05 ahahaha heck yeah cooking with aiai!!

Now this, is bananas

I love GameCube physics so much more then the new way, there’s so many levels I can do easily on the GameCube and now I can’t complete them without the helper function

Monkey ball on the Gameboy advance was really good too

Wow i didnt know the game had ALL this content, is it really all fully intact? Im guessing it doesnthave the story mode but thats alright. U just made me a potential customer during next sale. I played SMB 1 but couldnt get past a level that required u to be good at the tightrope mechanic u spoke of. Little kid me prob didnt even try to GENTLY move the control stick lol

Dude as much as I suck at speed running only get sub 2 hours I can't to see more people able to play it even if it's under a new leader board compared to the old one

Great review, was very disappointed in no multiplayer challenge mode personally, couldn't understand why they wouldn't include that