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Great Fun but a Mite Tricky for Tykes

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 47 / 48
Date: December 18, 2006
Author: Amazon User

The problem with games like Super Monkey Ball Banana Blitz is that you have rabid fans of the series - some who love them no matter what, and others who hate any slight change, no matter how small.

That means that no matter how well or poorly the Wii version was, those who loved the game on previous platforms will either hate it for changing - or love it because it has the same theme.

Let me first say that I love the Super Monkey Ball series in general. I grew up playing the actual marble game - Labyrinth - that this is based on. In the Monkey Ball games, there is a marble (holding a monkey) that rolls around on a surface. You tilt that surface via the controls, to move the marble. Your aim is to gather up bananas, avoid obstacles, stay on course and reach the goal. There are both the main game path, which involves trickier and trickier courses to navigate, as well as mini-games.

With the Super Monkey Ball Banana Blitz version for the Wii, you get an entirely new level of interactivity. In essence it's becoming more "real". In previous versions you pressed buttons to tilt the board - but now you are actually *tilting* the controller. You're in essence playing with a real board, with a real marble. You tilt your controller forward, the marble rolls forward. It is incredibly intuitive.

For some people, like me, this is great. It's no longer a button press "translating" into motion. Your hand is causing the motion. I can hand the controller to anybody that comes into my house, show them the game, and they get it immediately. It's physics, it's beautiful.

While this is great, it also means that it gets challenging for really little kids. They don't have great hand-eye coordination yet. While they might be OK with button pressing, they aren't wonderful at holding a controller steady to guide a marble along a path. They probably aren't playing professional soccer either. I'm not saying this is "bad" - but I'm saying it's something you have to accept. The challenge level of this game is fine for kids in the intro levels, but the later levels are meant to challenge talented gamers. Little kids might feel stumped here. They can always replay those earlier levels to try to get all the points there, and practice their skills until their bodies catch up.

In addition to the main gameplay path, there are 50 mini-games. This is of course a huge number, but as with any new release, some are upset that their previous favorites are altered. That's going to be true with any new game. I have to agree that some mini-games here aren't my favorites. I specifically don't like the games like the "harpoon" games that make me "thrust" my spear into fish. I don't find that thrusting motion with the Wii to be very accurate. On the other hand, I love some of the other games. That's why they give you 50 of them - you'll like some, dislike others. I'm sure other people love the fish game and hate some of my favorites. If you're fond of some of the previous GameCube mini-games, heck, stick the GameCube game into the Wii to play them. The Wii takes the older discs, after all.

In general the graphics are quite nice, bright and colorful. The music also strikes the right note of fun and casual gameplay. The real beauty of this series - and the Wii controllers - is that you can get anybody to walk into your house and within minutes they grasp what is going on and play along. You can't say that for most XBox 360 or PS3 titles, or even for several other of the Wii games we own. I really do give Super Monkey Ball Banana Blitz great kudos for what they have here. If I had any complaint, it's that they might have wanted to add a "super easy" mode so that little kids could play through the entire game even if they lacked coordination. This is one of those super-kid-friendly games and while it could allow adults to cheat, I think the benefit to little tykes to "get through the game" and be happy would be worth it.

They destroyed the mini games!

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 80 / 113
Date: November 20, 2006
Author: Amazon User

I have been an extremely devoted SMB fan since the very first time I laid eyes on it. I own ALL of them, and so when I stood in line all night Saturday (and through Sunday morning, 8am), I made sure to grab myself a copy of SMB: Banana Blitz for my brand new Wii. I bought an entire set of controllers, anticipating the mini-game fun with all my friends. (We're huge SMB fans, all of us. It always makes an appearance at our parties.)

But now I'm really angry. They completely gutted our favorite mini-game(s), hitting Monkey Target worst of all. I can honestly say I don't care that there are 50 freakin mini-games, because now Monkey Target is completely worthless. Instead of the amazingly subtle game play with bonus items, increasingly difficult levels, magnets, velcro, double bonuses, wind speed and direction, and the all-import ramp run-off you have... a cannon, one level, no wind or wind direction, no bonuses, and no special items.

Who cares if I can SORT of pilot a submarine on a single level? Monkey squash -- no joy there. A lot of the controls for the mini-games are terrible. And so on, so forth. The new mini games suck almost unilaterally, but gosh darn, there are 50 of them! But volume does not make up for lack of quality.

I love traditional SMB levels and the ones on SMB: Banana Blitz are nice. The graphics are beautiful and fun. But the best part of the game for me and my friends, is now gone and dead. None of the reviews I'd read mentioned the fact that this favorite of most SMB players was killed like this, and if they had, I certainly wouldn't have wasted my $50 plus tax.

If Sega people are reading this: BRING BACK MONKEY TARGET. That's what people play at parties when they're slightly drunk and sick of listening to Super Smash Brothers, and way too awake to enjoy Mario Party.

A little disappointed

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 34 / 40
Date: November 25, 2006
Author: Amazon User

I was a little disappointed with Super Monkey Ball. It has a main game, and 50 mini-games. The main game is quite fast paced and fun, however, it is a little too simplistic to justify the cost of a full game. Supposedly the 50 mini-games should make up for it. However, these mini-games are so difficult to control to be any fun. After playing Wii Sports, I just cannot get used to the awkward gaming experience Super Monkey Ball has to offer.

BEST Wii EXPERIENCE SO FAR!!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 23 / 31
Date: November 30, 2006
Author: Amazon User

Man, I never write reviews, but this game is just too cool. Especially once I saw that people were dissing it, I had to throw my two cents in. I don't understand how someone could say something negative (or even neutral) about this game! It is so much fun! Yes, a few of the mini-games (like Trombone) are awesome in theory, but don't really work in practice. But there are FIFTY of them!! AND - they are all UNLOCKED from the get go! That is SO awesome! Some of the games require you to get really into it as well. I love that! One of the mini-games has you flying like a bird through rings, and I couldn't get the controls to work right until I started flapping my arms like a bird. Yes, FLAPPING MY FREAKING ARMS LIKE A BIRD!! I'm a 30 year old man with two kids and a hot wife and I own businesses and I'm flapping two controllers like a bird in my living room. NINTENDO Wii IS THE GREATEST THING EVER!!
***A WORD TO THE CURIOUS***
Almost all of the negativity I've heard about the Wii and/or its games comes from hardcore gamers. They are used to pushing buttons to hit a homerun, and getting their thumbs to do everything. But with Wii (and Super Monkey Ball and its mini-games), if you want a better backhand, you've got to practice your backhand! My videogame-illiterate wife picked up this game and is just having a blast with it! It is very intuitive, especially to those that have little experiences to marr their Wii adventures. New wine fits better in new bottles, to paraphrase a biblical passage.
Also, I should point out that the regular Monkey Ball game is better than ever, too. It takes a second to adapt if you're familiar with the old games, but using the Wii controller is so much more fun. Also, you can jump now! In closing, my favorite mini-game is a racing game in which you turn your Wii controller sideways and drive it like a steering wheel!! It really changes the whole game experience. Once everybody gets used to this way of gaming, Xbox and Playstation don't stand a chance. Who cares if the graphics are great if you still hit a button with your thumb to swing your sword? And this game is the best game to experience Wii that I've played (which I realize only includes Zelda and Wii Sports, but still). If you have doubts, rent it first. But don't listen to the skeptics - you'll love it once you get a taste. Trust me. I usually sell games a week after buying them, but this one isn't for sale.

5 star ratings saying 'but yah, the mini games suck'

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 8 / 9
Date: November 30, 2006
Author: Amazon User

Like a few of the poor comments, a lot of people will buy this game thinking they're getting a lot with the 50 mini games. One can't dismiss this in a review stating that 1 or 2 or 5 of the mini games are fun, therefore justifying a 5-star rating. Sega needed to make 10 of these mini games exceptional, dump the other 40 early in development, and then spend the rest of the time tweaking the main game. Then, this package would deserve 5 stars. As it stands, half of the mini games are unplayable (once you have played Wii: Sports and can see how the games are supposed to react to controller movements). Of the remainder, most are not fun, frustrating, or simply not 'special'. And really, that's what it comes down to. SMB was supposed to be a 'special' title. Instead, it's going to be one of the first bargain bin games for the Wii.

Poor poor use of the Wii Remote

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 11 / 15
Date: January 21, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I currently have 6 Wii titles and this is easily the worse of the lot. Many of the games are difficult and the controls are very awkward. My children (8 and 10 yr old girls) get frustrated very quickly with this one. I really wish I hadn't wasted my money on this turkey.

Give this Monkey a Chance!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 7 / 10
Date: November 23, 2006
Author: Amazon User

There seems to be schools of thought on this one. Some are hard core fans of the old versions (which I have never played) and are extremely upset about the mini-games being changed (especially Monkey Target). The other reviewers absolutely love the game for what it is... a challenging experience that is destined to provide you with hours upon hours of enjoyment!

Lets start with the main game. I LOVE how the Wiimote is used here. It is INCREDIBLY sensitive and works perfectly with this type of game. When you play through the first word (eight levels and a boss) you are taken to the credits. When this happened for the first time I nearly freaked out and began to wonder who to sell the game to someone at not too big of a loss. However, once the credits were over I realized that you would have multiple worlds to choose from. I'm now midway through world six and they just get better and better. There was a point when I was about ready to tear my hair out it was so challenging. But, once you beat a level, you a psyched up and ready for another challenge. This is the sign of a great game. This game is worth buying for the one player mode alone.

This other part of the game is the now "infamous" multi-player mode. There are 50 games here... FIFTY!!!!! I agree with the other reviewers who say that not all, maybe even most, of the "party games" are now very well done. The controls were obviously not perfected and I"ll probably never play many of them again. However, there are some mini-games that are wonderful! My wife NEVER plays video games and LOVES these minis. Some are very addicting. My wife's younger brother spent the day with me today and we have a blast playing the minigames alone for over THREE HOURS and didn't even come close to playing them all. Yeah, some were letdowns, but most were a lot of fun. The best thing about the mini-games are that they are so varied. They really show what the new Wii controls are capable of.

In conclusion, do not buy this game if you ONLY want to play Monkey Target. But, if you are looking for a super fun launch title that can be played played in both single and multi-player form, BUY IT NOW! You will easily get your money's worth and its replay value is high. Monkey Ball Rules!

Great Game! Very Underrated!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 7 / 10
Date: December 27, 2006
Author: Amazon User

I am surprised by all the mixed reviews of this game yet all the hype of the very below average Rayman Raving Rabbids. Anyways, back to Super Monkey Ball Banana Blitz. This game is a ton of fun and the controls regardless of what others say are great, took a few tries to get used to the wii remote with it but got the hang of it in no time. If anyone says the controls don't work good with the remote are just not that good of a wii gamer. The remote makes you feel like your actually inside the bubble and going hundreds of miles and hour and even can make you feel dizzy and times! Graphics are cool too and this game is very rewarding and takes good practice and skill and when you beat each world it will feel very rewarding like you actually accomplished something and was a lot of fun in the process. Get Super Monkey Ball today, you won't regret it, plus there are 50 fun mini games!

Seems a little rushed.

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 5 / 6
Date: November 21, 2006
Author: Amazon User

The Main game is enjoyable- but that is a formula that has been set in stone. The controller adds a new element- and its a blast. However- they are trying to sell most people on the MiniGames- and they just aren't good.

I have played a handful of them- and they all control very poorly. Half of the time- we just started over because one of the controllers would go eratic. I hope that this isn't a sign of what is to come from SEGA for all of their Wii games.

A Super Monkey Ball Banana "Blast"

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 5 / 6
Date: November 22, 2006
Author: Amazon User

Ok, so far the reviews have been really harsh on this game. Some user gave the game a real cheap shot just because Monkey Target isn't as good as the Gamecube one. Admittedly, it isn't. I loved and played the gamecube monkey target for hours, but this one just isn't up to par. Ok, that's upsetting, but it's easily overlooked. The reason that's the case, has to do with the fact that the rest of the game is amazing. There are a few mini games that are a tad boring, but most of them are a blast. And then there is a large selection of mini-games that are just as good as monkey target from gamecube, and some. And that is saying a heck of a lot. The new controls make for a fresh and enjoyable experience, whether in the main game or the mini-game. This is THE game to have if you want to see just what the Wii is capable of. The controller is used in every which way to show just how fun this new control mechanism can be. Oh, and BTW, if you want to see just how responsive and enjoyable a FPS can be on the Wii, one of the mini-games show you just that. Don't listen to the harsh reviewers, this is a keeper, and a great game.... especially with other people to play it with. In other words, a Super Monkey Ball Banana "Blast," and it wouldn't be possible without the amazing system, thanks Wii!

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