Topic: Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz

[Caliban]

Ceric: at the end of each world you will get credits but you can skip them now that you have seen the credits for the first time.

Pale: the game is way too sensitive for me, I've used Aiai, the Doctor, the new monkey-girl, and GonGon. I don't know, maybe it's just me that I just can't get used to the new controls.

Have you guys noticed that the levels in this game are much simpler in design (not the extra polygonal details) than the levels in either SMB 1 and 2? If there was the option of just using the analog stick this game would be very easy. I'm stuck in the desert world, 5th world I think, and the level design is still very simple.

[Ceric]

Ok.  I've gotten to the 5th level.  I have no idea where the mythical pause button that lets you save your progress that it talks about is but I can't find it.  As mentioned I finally am comfortable with the pen style holding that is required.  I wish that all the buttons that weren't used for something else would be jump.  The game definitely gets better each world.  I'm consisting finding less and less stages that I hate as the world progresses.  Which tells me they could have done a better job with the level orders.  I don't like any of the levels that rely mostly on jumping because I find those I'm fighting with the camera more then actually playing the level.  I've settled on the Doctor and thats working out well.

Though I think whoever decided to not have a way to exit a level during play or the ability to switch your monkey between stages without backing out should be flogged.  The Whole menu  systems is relatively unintuitive.  Not that great.  I haven't played the mini-games yet and I probably won't till the single player is done.  So far it feels good but a little hollow in a way.

I do feel it is a little easier on the non-mainly jumping levels.

[Ceric]

Ok I'm now at the Cobalt Mines and I've beaten all the levels except for 8 and 4.  I just can't get pass the flippy platforms in 4.  Any suggestions?

[RiskyChris]

Why couldn't they have designed the game like Excite Truck.  That's what I imagined when I heard the game was being released and got *very* excited.

Argh.

Monkey Wars, however simple, is extremely close to the perfect FPS setup for the Wii.  I had more fun playing that than the dozens of times I've tried to play Halo 2.  I shot who I wanted to shoot as soon as I wanted to shoot them.  Amazing.

[d-mode]

i dont understand how anybody can have a problem controlling the monkeys in this game.  the controls are way more intuitive.  did you know in real life there is this thing call inertia and momemtum.  you guys realise you are controlling the ground and not the monkeys.  so when the floor is tilted the monkeys move but if you tilt it right away in the EXACT opposite direction the monkey will gradually change directions. you gotta anticipate what you want to do.  and also its easier if you hold the remote normally with your arm ONLY moving up and down(kinda like doing a curl with weights) so full speed forward would mean the infrared thing is pointed at the ground, and full speed backward(or stop) would mean IR thing pointed to ceiling. and here is the tricky part,  ONLY twist the remote left or right to move your monkey left or right.  but you have to twist while keeping the remote perpendicular to your body.  if you are like my friends and twist while rotating the remote the floor wont angle as much.  main thing to try to do is KEEP the IR thing on remote pointed straight.  it has nothign to do with the sensor bar, but all to do with how much the remote tilts.  in know this sounds easy but after watching some of my friends play they end up rotating the remote rather than tilting it.    

[d-mode]

Well, honestly, it was a lot of little things.  Wii Sports is fun, but the ball for example in Tennis rarely does what you tell it to.  You swing left, it goes right.  You swing right, to keep it in bounds, and it goes further left.  The spin in bowling felt completely unnatural at first.  

for tennis make sure to do back hand swings when the ball bounces to your backhand otherwise the ball goes all wacked out,  and if you are doing a forehand make sure the ball is going to your forehand.  also if you are spiking with your closer character make sure to do the proper swing as well.  the ball does weird stuff if you swing the wrong way.  and there are so many different types of shots as well.  crazy side spins, back spins, top spins, lobs and one of my faves the drop shot.  i dont know how to do it proper but one of my friends was doing it the whole time, it was funny cuz she was swinging as hard as she could and the ball kept floating and suddently drop over the net.  i think if you dick around with tennis you will find that it does exactly what you want the ball to do. so many times i hit a nice one down the line and crazy cross court shots that are unreturnable.  and hit your serve as soon as the ball hits its apex, you will get smoke coming off your ball, tough to return if you arent paying attention.

bowling is so accurate its not even funny.  first off, how many of you let go of the button too late, meaning the ball lands like 15 feet in front of you, if you do that the ball will lose most of its spin.  for those of you who let go too early, meaning the ball leaves your hand at the front of the lane,  the ball will have all its spin you put on it.  now the main thing here is people seem to think that you need to be infront of the sensor bar,  the sensor bar is only for pointing.  you can be upstairs in the bathroom and play bowling.  ive bowled stikes without even being in the same room as my wii,(the remote beeps so you know its your turn.)   you just need to have really good muscle memory( you know like shooting a free throw with you eyes closed)  just rememer to do the exact same thing over and over again to get strikes.  the best way to bowl is to let go of the button at like a 45 degree angle towards the floor.  that way the ball lands where it is supposed to, not too early and not getting launched into the air.   so to get the ball going straight down the lane you hold B, as soon as your guy moves drop your hand down, then BEFORE he gets to the line swing your arm forward and let go at that 45 degree angle and KEEP the remote buttons facing the ceiling, no tilt.  to make sure you arent tilting to the left physically look at your remote after you let go of the button, chances are you are holding it with tilt to the left(if you are right handed).  to add spin just tilt. its that easy.  

[Mario]

Quote
Well, honestly, it was a lot of little things. Wii Sports is fun, but the ball for example in Tennis rarely does what you tell it to. You swing left, it goes right. You swing right, to keep it in bounds, and it goes further left.

Dude, that isn't how you play Tennis! It's about TIMING! Say you are on the right, the earlier you hit it it means it'll go left (other players right) and if you swing at the last second it'll go the other way. The way you use the remote simulates speed, spin and height, and the timing you hit it dictates which way it will go. Honestly I think Wii Tennis is one of the best games of all time, it's the perfect tennis game.

EDIT: Whoops I didn't notice the post above explained it too! Ah well.

[Caliban]

Has anyone gotten any Gold crowns yet? I've got the first 4 worlds completed without continuing, which warranted me a gold crown for each of those worlds.

Btw, I was playing the world "Pirate's Ocean" and I thought the levels were aaaarrrrggggghhhhh-annoying, that is until I got to the boss..like HOLY FREAKING BULLSH!T ANNOYING FOCKER OF A BOSS AAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHH...so anyone got any easy way to finish him off?

Edit: Nevermind, I got through the boss and I'm at the Cobalt Mines.

[Mario]

That boss annoyed the crap out of me too, but I sort of figured out a pattern to beat him, just by jumping a lot up close over his legs.

Quote
Though I think whoever decided to not have a way to exit a level during play or the ability to switch your monkey between stages without backing out should be flogged.

Dude you just hold down the + button. I've only played the game for a few hours so far and I knew that. I'm enjoying the main game so far, and I love the music, i'm not sure about the controls yet. They seem good until I die I always end up blaming them. This level 5 boss is really annoying me though. It seems like its going to be VERY hard to do super awesome shortcuts in this, with the lack of instant landing control you have.

The minigames surprised me, I thought most would be total rubbish, but only a few are! I've enjoyed heaps of them. Has anyone been able to actually play games like Golf or Ring Toss? They seem broken beyond belief.  

[MarioAllStar]

I simply can not play any of the games that have you aim with the Wiimote (left, right, up, and down). They are a great example of using motion controls where the D-pad would have worked better (like bowling and golf in Wii Sports).

[Mario]

Alright... 7.1, I can't even get up the hills. EDIT: Nevermind, switched Monkeys from Doctor to Gongon, he's heaps faster.

Gah now 7.5 is pissing me off, and my hands are getting really sweaty so i'm losing grip on the remote, this has to be the most hardcore game ever.

[ShyGuy]

Sister got this for me for Christmas. I like it, it's a lot of fun, but I think Super Monkey Ball 1 & 2 were better. Okay, here is my take on the fifty minigames:

Alien Attack: Annoying control, no explosion of the aliens when you shoot them to give you satisfaction. Status: Meh
Asteroid Crash: Simple shooting gallery, but a ton of fun. one of the best in the bunch. Status: Great
Banana Catch: Ok, this one might be ok if it worked, but the controls are broken. Seriously. Status: Awful
Banana Thief: Hrrm, it works about half the time, but it's more annoying than fun. Status: Meh
Bugs Balance: very simple. but it executes it's idea well. Status: Good
Dangerous Route: Not for everyone. Very tedious, but a test of skill. Status: Good
Disc Golf: Urgh. The first couple of holes lull you into thinking it might be ok. Then it cranks up the suck. Status: Awful
Fish Catcher: Floaty and annoying. Status: Meh
Free Throw: Simple, but has a smidgen of fun. Status: Meh
Frog Ball: Ugh, with different controls it may have been something. As it stands, it is poo. Status: Meh
Fruit Basket: I liked it better in Mario Party 43. Status: Meh
Hammer Throw: Hard to get the timing right, but spinning a wiimote in a circle is always a good time: Status: Good
High Wire Act: Not bad, but not much. Whatev. Status: Meh
Home Run Derby: I'll be saying this a lot, but it makes you appreciate Wii Sports. Status: Meh
Hovercraft Battle: About the Same broken controls as Alien Attack. Status: Meh
Hovercraft Race: See above, except more confusing. Status: Meh
Hurdle Race: A kick in the pants, good stuff. Status: Good
Jigsaw Puzzle: Fun, racing against an opponents adds an element not seen in the Wii Photo Channel puzzles Status: Good
Jump Rope: Very short, but good in a simple, simple, simple way. Status: Good
Keepy Up: There's the roots of a deeper action/puzzle game in here. Status: Good
Monkey Bowling: THE SPIN IS MENTALLY RETARDED. WiiSports Bowling is awesomely better.  Status: Awful
Monkey Boxer: Bummer, you can mover around the ring but the boxing is crap. Status: Meh
Monkey Darts:  Very similar to real darts, I like it quite a bit. Status: Great
Monkey Fencing: What a disappointment. Finally a sword duel for you and your friends and the controls make no sense at all. Status: Meh
Monkey Golf: Wow, I really dislike it. A lot. WiiSports Golf is TOOOOOOOONNNNNS better. Status: Awful
Monkey Race: Not as good as its predecessors, but still enjoyable. Status: Good
Monkey Snowboard: Not bad, actually makes me want to try that EA snowboard game coming out. Status: Good
Monkey Squash: Huh? let's come up with worst way to play. Status: Meh
Monkey Target: Wow, I miss the old monkey target. This shallow thing gives it a bad name. Still, if you have played the awesome originals it's not bad. Status: Good
Monkey Wars: I like it but my friends don't. What do they know? Status: Good
Monkeysmith: Uh... that's it? Wow. Status: Meh
Number Ball: No monkeys, but pretty fun. Status: Good
Paper Sumo Fighter: I don't get it. Status: Meh
Paraglider: Yaaaawwn. Status: Meh
Racing Birds: I donno, I just didn't like it that much. Status: Meh
Red Light, Green Light: UURRRGH I WASN'T MOVING THE CONTROLLER STUPID GAME! Status: Meh
Ring Toss: Simple but it works. Status: Good
Rock-Paper-Scissors Attack: I don't get it. Rock-Paper-Scissors-Hammer-Helmet? Huh? Status: Meh
Scoop the Goldfish: Stupid and broken and lousy even it did work. Status: Awful
Seesaw Ball : Actually pretty good. Status: Good
Shepherd: When it works, it's pretty cool. But it breaks half the time. Status: Meh
Simon Says: Need Voicework. Status: Meh
Sling Shot: Okay, I can't hit anything. Status: Good
Space Monkey Attack: Starfox ala Monkey. good stuff, wish it was a full game. Status: Great
Spaceship Landing: Short and sweet. Status: Good
Treasure Submarine: I got bored with it. Status: Meh
Trombone: I suck at music games. Status: Meh
UFO Capture: Okay... whoop-de-doo. Status: Meh
Whack-a-Mole: It works like whack a mole, but somehow, it doesn't work. I donno, it's odd. Status: Meh
Yacht Sailing: I don't like, nuff said. Status: Meh

So in summary, five times the minigames of previous Monkeyball, but one fifth of the depth and polish of previous Monkeyball.

Maybe Sega plans on putting features back in for the sequel, like EA does with Madden.

[couchmonkey]

Speaking as a casual Monkeyballer, I love this game.  (I've played the first two, but I only own number 2, and I have only played about 1/4 of it).

The main game is a little on the easy side - not enough precision areas, as some others have said.  In spite of that, I love the controls, and I'm having tons of fun.  Plus, to be honest, I've never beaten either of the others, so the low challenge level may be a blessing to me.

The party games - some have been dumbed down, doesn't bother me to be honest (though more levels in monkey target would be good).  I'd like to see more balance in the game length, and the controls on a few are crap, but overall, I enjoyed it just as much as the other Monkey Ball multiplayers.

I also think the new graphical style is heaps better than the original, and I'm loving the soundtrack for some reason.

Again, I think my casual interest in the series makes me more accepting of the "flaws" in this one - I don't expect a minimum amount of complexity or challenge going in.  Still, from that perspective, it's quickly becoming my favourite of the series.

[Mario]

Completely agree, the soundtrack is absolutely awesome, the graphics are perfect, and the main game is a lot of fun and very well crafted. If you think it's easy wait til you get to World 9/10.

[MarioAllStar]

I go back to this game every couple of weeks to try and squeeze a little bit of fun out of it, but I just can't. The controls are awful, even in the single player mode. At first I could tolerate it, but now it is just too much. I am in the 4th world (the desert one) and now there are opening/closing gates, enemies that run around, and inverted domes (i.e., depressions into the ground) that you must jump out of.

If the control was held horizontally and the rest of the mechanics/design were more like the original Monkey Ball (no jumping, no enemies, etc.) then I think this could have been a pretty good game. Mercury Meltdown Revolution is supposed to use the horizontal control setup, so I might have to try (rent) that one.

[Mario]

I'm the opposite, I didn't find it very intuitive at first but now I think it's more precise than the analog stick. What has changed more I noticed is the actual physics of the game where it's harder to pull back if you're going really fast or bouncing.

[King of Twitch]

I rented the game, it was really fun towards the beginning and hard to put down. Once I got past that ridiculous roller coaster lava level I was ready to return it; now that I'm at a part that has a long series of rotating platforms resembling tick tock clock in Mario 64, I'm more than ready to snap the disc in half before taking it back. It was a good time but it has stopped being fun.  

[Caliban]

Quote
Originally posted by: MJRx9000
...I'm more than ready to snap the disc in half before taking it back...

That just about summarizes what is the single-player mode for SMB1/2/BB.

[MarioAllStar]

I didn't feel like poor controls cheated me in the first game. In this game, I always get the feeling that I would do so much better with an analog stick or better Wii controls.

[Caliban]

There were some levels in SMB1 where it was more a matter of look than skill.
I agree that, in SMBBB, having the option to use the analog stick would have made it alot easier for us.
As I've said it before, the level design in SMBBB is alot simpler to roll through compared to SMB1/2, but the motion control makes it alot harder to progress, which I think was a cheap way for SEGA to make the game challenging.

[couchmonkey]

I played some more and I take back any complaints about the game being too easy.

Personally, I find the "steering" controls just as good as analog.  My only complaint here is that my arm gets tired after a while (but the same could be said for my thumb in the other two games).  Maybe horizontal would have been better, but I'm not really having a problem with them as it is.

I admit that some of the jumping stuff is annoyingly hard.  I like the jumping in general but the precise jumping sections are unfair because you can't predict a safe landing with those balls bouncing and rolling all over the place.