Platforms: Nintendo Switch
There's always a bit of cognitive dissonance in realising that Super Monkey Ball, Sega's long-running series of cute, physics-based puzzle-platformers, is the work of Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio, the same developers behind the crime sagas of the Like A Dragon/Yakuza franchise. Then you remember the latter features lesbian warrior crabs and UFO-sized flying robot vacuums, and suddenly the idea of rolling adorable monkeys caught in Gashapon eggs around strange floating worlds doesn't seem like such a disconnect.
The first brand new Super Monkey Ball entry in a decade, Banana Rumble feels reassuringly familiar to long-time fans, but manages to pack in a few tweaks to the formula that keep things fresh. As ever, players don't control the titular monkeys directly, but rather tilt the map itself to roll them towards a goal, gathering as many bananas as possible en route. It's the pinnacle of "easy to learn, difficult to master", especially as levels progress from simple flat courses to multi-tiered, obstacle-strewn nightmares where you'll have to navigate your en-balled simian around a razor-thin curved path with no safety rails. The slightest mistake sees you plummeting into the abyss – and you're racing the clock the whole time.
It's all surprisingly tactical, especially when each playable character's stats of Speed, Brake, Weight, and Spin are taken into account. For instance, main monkey AiAi has a perfectly balanced spread, while his wife (yes, really) MeeMee is slower but has improved braking, allowing for more precision around the maze-like maps, and spritely YanYan tops the charts in speed but lacks any real control – great for roaring through a map but with major risks of careening into the void below. Players will want to take advantage of each monkey's unique skills to master the levels’ three challenges – completion time, number of bananas collected, and finding a tricky-to-grab golden banana.
As enjoyable for masochists who want to master every brutally demanding course in single player as it is for casual bursts of party game chaos
Banana Rumble's hundreds of levels are housed within Adventure Mode, a cute framing story (the first the main series has seen since 2002's Super Monkey Ball 2) where AiAi and his friends help newcomer Palette hunt down the "Legendary Banana" while outrunning the nefarious Gala family: Fes, Tee, and Val (geddit?) It's utter fluff, of course, but younger players in particular will appreciate the animated cutscenes between chapters. Similarly, a host of unlockable monkey customisation options – from individual clothing items to whole new skins – are a fun dress-up diversion, but are unlikely to offer much to anyone other than completionists.
Super Monkey Ball has always been a party game as much as a puzzle-platformer though, and Banana Rumble is no exception, bringing with it five new outings in its Battle Mode. Race is as simple as it sounds, with players tearing through a map towards a goal, while Banana Hunt is a free-for-all to gather the most bananas over the course of a match. Ba-Boom! is an explosive game of pass the parcel, with the last one holding a bomb at the end of a round being blown to smithereens, while Goal Rush offers a touch of capture-the-flag play, playing in teams to control dozens of goals strewn across a map. Robot Smash is the big draw though, another team-based game where you'll try to do the most damage to a battalion of bots, highest score winning. Throughout, a host of Mario Kart-style items and power-ups can be collected to turn the tide.
Unfortunately, with only those five Battle Mode games, Banana Rumble feels underserved as a party game offering compared to past Super Monkey Ball entries – particularly 2021's Super Monkey Ball Banana Mania, an HD remake of the first two games in the series which boasted 12 competitive minigames. While Banana Rumble's offerings are bigger, bolder, and more deliriously chaotic – especially with up to 16 players rolling around in online multiplayer – the comparative lack of variety works against it.
Whether you're playing through Adventure Mode or Battle Mode's minigames though, Banana Rumble's biggest update to the long-running series' gameplay is the introduction of a new Spin Dash move. Hold down B and you'll get an additional burst of speed, propelling your monkey forwards. It might seem like a small tweak to the mechanics, but it can change everything if used cleverly. Spin Dash plays with the physics of the game marvellously, with a well-timed surge up a ramp allowing extra momentum to soar over another hazard or gap, or bump another player out of the way in competitive bouts. It can make the difference in hitting one of those time challenges – some of which task you with reaching the goal in single-digit seconds – or clinch the win in a race. It's a brilliant example of how a tiny adjustment to a game's design can improve the whole experience.
It all makes for a fun return for AiAi and pals, as enjoyable for masochists who want to master every brutally demanding course in single player as it is for casual bursts of party game chaos. It's just a shame that the multiplayer aspect of Banana Rumble lacks variety compared to its predecessors, undermining a core component of the Super Monkey Ball experience.