Other special modes include Reverse mode (which flips the start and goal in some stages), Golden Banana mode (which removes the goal and makes the player collect every banana before time runs out) and Dark Banana mode (which adds poison bananas that end your run if you hit them). These include the option to play through the 46 extra stages added to Deluxe, as well as an Original Stage mode, which takes 23 levels from the games that had been tweaked to make them a little easier, and restores them to their original near-impossible difficulty. Story Mode also has to be played in a set order, rather than letting players choose which stage to take on next.Īs well as the Story mode and the other main stages from the first two games (now listed as Challenge Mode), there are also a handful of ‘special modes’, which can be unlocked in the game’s Points Shop. This includes the return of the 100-stage Story Mode from Super Monkey Ball 2, although its CGI cutscenes have been replaced by far less charming sequences that play out almost like animated comics. “It’s hard to think of many full-price games that would get away with basing its entire control system on just one analogue stuck and nothing else, but Monkey Ball does it.”īy combining Super Monkey Ball 1, 2 and Deluxe in one package, Banana Mania offers players a huge selection of stages to make their way through.

The buttons do nothing, this is purely about navigating that ball to the goal. It’s hard to think of many full-price games that would get away with basing its entire control system on just one analogue stuck and nothing else, but Monkey Ball does it. The success of the game, then, lies in its simplicity. These are entirely optional but help provide that extra challenge for those who feel they need it.Īnd that’s literally it. The player has to tilt the stage with the analogue stick to guide the monkey to the exit without either falling off the edge or running out of time.Įach stage is also littered with bananas, which can be collected for extra points (and, in this game, earn you coins that can be spent on unlockables).

Each stage consists of an obstacle course with a goal at the end, along with a monkey in a giant ball. If you’ve managed to avoid playing Super Monkey Ball up to this point, the central concept is the very definition of ‘easy to learn, hard to master’. The return to the series’ roots is a welcome one, not least because it gives Monkey Ball fans and complete newcomers alike another chance to enjoy Toshihiro Nagoshi’s creation in its purest form.

Super monkey ball banana mania