Reader Reviews

Super Monkey Ball 2 (Cube)

by HairyArse

Putting monkeys in balls and calling it a game shouldn't work should it? Well don't tell that to Sega developer Amusement Vision! After surprising us all with sleeper hit Super Monkey Ball, their follow-up, the imaginatively titled Super Monkey Ball 2 brings us more of the same with a few added extras, which to me is a good thing as I loved the original.

Super Monkey Ball 2 carries on where the prequel left off, with more insanely addictive and frustrating single-player levels, and a whole new plethora of multiplayer modes to entertain you and your monkey loving chums for months to come. The single-player mode plays exactly like the original game - get your monkey-in-ball, from point A to point B as fast as possible, collecting as many bananas as you can on the way. The only major difference is this time there's the addition of switches which affect how levels play. Using said switches, it's now possible to speed up, slow down, or pause the action on certain levels, which in many cases is key to completing them.

The previous multiplayer modes return enhanced and tweaked for the better. For example monkey golf now contains a full 18-hole course for you to play instead of just a crazy golf course. 6 new modes are also included - monkey boating, shot, dogfight, tennis, baseball and soccer. The quality of these varies, but they're all very playable, just some more than others - monkey target probably providing the most fun with three friends.

Graphically it's made up of simple and colourful models and textures that just about do the job. The game runs at a constantly high frame rate with no slow down, which is essential for the pixel perfect control and balance needed for some levels - slowdown would be a real killer, but this game shows not a trace of it.

With over 150 single-player levels, and 12 extremely fun multiplayer modes, this game should provide entertainment for weeks to come. The graphics and sound are only adequate, but when games are as fun as this, who needs real-time lighting or bump mapped textures?

In all it's Aas addictive as bubble-wrap and as frustrating as a Rubik's cube - although perhaps not as hard. Multiplayer excels again, with some games good enough to warrant a release of their own.

With only the original multiplayer games available initially, it will take some time before all modes are unlocked. Your task then is to unlock extra lives, which are essential in order to complete single-player on advanced level. But the multiplayer action will occupy you for months to come. Monkey target is one of those "just one more turn" games that will torment you till all hours.