Gameplay

While the majority of the gameplay still consists of maneuvering your monkey with the analog stick to avoid falling off of narrow ledges, the single-player levels now brim with more interactivity and tables that are quite different from the original. Some enhancements include switches such as the “Play” switch, which moves an object or ledge, and the “Pause” switch, which if pressed at the right time allows you to use various and sundry moving (and now-paused) objects in your quest to beat the level. Many Monkey Ball purists will not appreciate nor adapt to this change, but it’s definitely one that many will enjoy for its slight use of strategy rather than pure skill.

In the original, gamers rolled through either 10 easy, 30 normal, or 50 hard stages with three lives and a handful of continues. While Super Monkey Ball 2 also includes this mode, the developers at Amusement Vision have added a Story Mode to systematically go through all of the levels by groups of ten. For gamers who found the original’s single-player mode too challenging, especially in Expert mode, this addition will help them reach later levels that they may miss otherwise.

The actual story in Story Mode, though, is one of the most inane to grace any console, next-gen or not. The plot features four good monkeys flying around in their magical flying balls (for some reason they can fly before and after you’re near a level), chasing the evil Dr. Bad-Boon to retrieve their stolen bananas by chanting magical spells about cooperating and some nonsense about “Ei Ei Poo.” Ei Ei Poo, people. That’s not even TRYING to make sense. I’m all for campy storylines in games that don’t need them, but after you see GonGon degrade himself to shouting “Ei Ei Poo,” you just want to murder something. Or watch the Teletubbies.

Thankfully, Super Monkey Ball 2’s ridiculous story mode immediately feels unimportant when you focus on the multiplayer gaming. All of the upgraded versions of the original multiplayer games are unlocked from the beginning, so you don’t have to worry about forcing yourself to play the single-player mode just so you and a couple of friends can roll the night away. Detailed below are the available multiplayer party games in Super Monkey Ball 2, the first six of which are upgraded versions of the original party games:

Monkey Race 2
Originally one of the weakest multiplayer games available, Sega has greatly improved the game while changing very little. Rather than race three opponents, you’re now able to race against up to eight computer opponents. You’ll also have a few new weapons at your disposal, most noticeably the Hunter Missile, which fires a barrage of rockets at racers in front of or behind you. Add the new weapons and increased enemies to the simplified tracks, and this mode promises good fun for everyone.

Monkey Fight 2
Monkey Fight 2 also features its share of improvements, including the ability to charge up punches (by holding down B) and fighting on stages that literally crumble as time progresses. While there are only three arenas to fight in, the battles in Monkey Fight 2 are just as fast and frenetic as the original.

Monkey Target 2
Arguably the best game from the original (and my personal favorite), Monkey Target returns, and boy has it changed. The simple concept of Target (roll off a giant ramp, glide, and land on giant targets) remains the same, but bananas are now only collected for points, given that items are now suspended in the air while you make your run. The most noticeable improvement is the ability to control a group; seeing five monkeys fly parallel to one another and change in formation is a riot and adds a very interesting twist to reaching certain items or falling on a landing point. You can also play two to four players simultaneously.

Monkey Billiards 2
Not much has changed to the Billiards side of things, though you now have the option to play different styles of pool ranging from Japanese Nine-Ball to Rotation. There are also a few different camera angles and play options, but nothing too spectacular.

Monkey Bowling 2
While you can still play a 10-frame game, the real treat is “Special Mode,” which includes 10 different lanes (the lane changes after each frame) that include everything from warped wood to moving parts. Each monkey also now has his own positive and negative attributes. Special Mode was a smart inclusion, and increases the replayability of the entire game with a single mode alone.

Monkey Golf 2
Monkey Golf received the biggest makeover of all the hold-overs from the original. In Super Monkey Ball, players played a round of 18 mini-golf holes. Now players have entire courses on which they can whack their monkeys. Natural additions include wind resistance, driving, chip shots, and terrain that actually effects how hard your shot will be hit. You may need to get used to the statistics when it comes to wind resistance and shot power, but Monkey Golf 2 is a nice inclusion for the avid golfer.

Monkey Boat
Welcome to the jungle, monkey-style. This is the first fully original party game in Super Monkey Ball 2, though it will definitely remind you of those good old gads of Toobin’ in the arcade and on your Atari. In Monkey Boat, players navigate down rapids by using the two analog triggers to move their right and left paddles. While the controls can be difficult at first, you’ll soon be grazing past rocky cliffs and using select items to slow down competitors. Although this isn’t the most fun party game available, it certainly gives your index fingers a good workout.

Monkey Shot
The weakest party game in Super Monkey Ball 2, Monkey Shot is a lightgun game without a lightgun. Up to four players move their cursors around the screen to shoot enemies and incoming missiles, but despite the presence of boss fights and upgrades, Monkey Shot should really be shot itself.

Monkey Dogfight
If you’ve been pining for a great console dog-fighting experience, this is your mini-game. You and three other combatants battle in an open arena flying around as in Monkey Target but without the gliding physics. Players use a basic lock-on system to fire coconut missiles, or they can just spray bullets like there’s no tomorrow. An ingenious aspect is the targeting and dodging system, which uses three polygonal arrows that point in the direction of your opponents. This arrow system also indicates the location of projectiles headed your way, which allows you to see where you have to move in order to dodge the missile. Missile counts and health can also be increased by flying into items in the air, making for a long-lasting and promising addition to the series.

Monkey Soccer
Despite its easy control and simplistic style of play, this indoor soccer game is easily one of the best party games in the series. Add in the option to change play styles (defensive, normal and offensive), and Monkey Soccer will keep you busy for a while.

Monkey Baseball
The oddball of the bunch, this mini-game takes over the title formerly held by mini monkey golf. Ever hit a baseball? Well, that’s all there is to do in this one. While smacking your monkey you’ll aim for ramps that lead to homeruns. If you miss, you’ll hit slots near the warning track that are tagged with the number of bases you get to advance. When you’re not at bat, you manually control the pitch (fast, slow, weave, etc.) and the formation of your outfielders, and if your opponent gets a hit, you control the outfielders themselves. Monkey Baseball is entertaining, but ends up being little more than a fun distraction.

Monkey Tennis
Oddly enough, the players in Monkey Tennis control more like those in Mario Tennis than Virtual Tennis, right down to the icons that appear on the court (indicating a returnable smash serve if you stand on the marked spot). Monkey Tennis is amazingly fun when you get four comrades over to smash it out, and it’s definitely a keeper for Super Monkey Ball3 (should there be one).

Graphics
Super Monkey Ball 2 is usually quite impressive graphically. While the original featured a grab bag of sharp textures on the levels and overly drab environments, the sequel really benefits from improved backgrounds that include everything from animated gears to falling ash illuminated by textured lava fields. The game also pays attention to the little effects, like sparks that shoot when your ball hits the ground. While the stages are comprised of basic shapes, the geometry of the environments is often quite impressive. Nearly every cosmetic change adheres to the visual style of the original, but they’ve received a nice polish this time around.

Sound
Amusement Vision hasn’t drastically changed the game’s audio, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. While the monkeys don’t actually speak English, the string of untranslatable speech almost sounds like someone’s talking backwards. Yips and screams have been carried over from the original, as has the overly enthusiastic announcer. The most noticeable improvement is the musical score, which contains more variety and complexity than the original while retaining the happy and upbeat melodies.

Replayability
Like the original, Super Monkey Ball 2 lives and dies by the mini-game, and based on our review, it’s going to be around for a long time. The single-player portion is entertaining, but everyone knows why they picked up the game. And it wasn’t to play through the Story Mode multiple times. If you ever have at least one friend over on a normal basis, Super Monkey Ball 2 delivers one of the best multiplayer experiences around. For 99 percent of GameCube owners, this game will not get old.

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