Round 3 for impressions on the Monkey Ball fun. I absolutely loved this game at Spaceworld and was looking forward to getting some serious time in with it. Out of the three games released at the time of the Japanese launch, this is the only 3rd party title. How weird is it that it comes from Sega? It’s Sega’s new arcade title, souped up and with added multi-monkey love, minus the banana controller. In a sense it’s an underdog, being the odd title released. Odd is Sega’s middle name, and even so…Super Monkey Ball is an excellent game.

The game concept is very easy. Get the monkey in the ball to the goal. On the way to finishing the level pick up some bananas. That’s it. Surviving the trip is the key. Contrary to popular belief, you don’t need to get all the bananas to complete the level. Some levels you don’t want to take the chance on some bananas, and just race for the goal. You get scored on time as well, so more bonus points for the fast you complete the tracks. Bananas give you score, as well as 1-ups for every 100 you collect. Time bonuses are higher, but 1-ups come in handy, so you’ll have to make a decision.

The level design is absolutely amazing. I’ve beaten the easy setting, almost beat the hard setting, and haven’t gotten too far in the expert. The levels get absolutely insane. I mean, I’ve gotten to courses and said out loud, “You’ve gotta be &$%king kidding me.” But then raced through the level and barely survived. One of the hardest courses I came across was a winding wood-like track that actually flexed when you got to the edges. It took me at least 20 tries before I could get through it, but I finally did. Then there were more challenging tracks right after that. You’ll be flying across jumps, wires, ramps…basically insane stuff. The levels get crazier and crazier. The people at Amusement Vision are going to make you go mad with the levels you’ll have to conquer. Just by how difficult the medium level gets, some people will put the game down in frustration. I’m sure of it. Personally, I’m like…”Bring it on!”

Multiplayer still continues to be a lot of fun. I still have yet to open all of the different mini games, but I’ve played all of them either here, or at Spaceworld. The problem with the mini games is the unlocking thing. I don’t understand the purpose. You have play the main game over and over until you rack up enough points to unlock all three of the mini games. Personally I think it’s kind of lame, but of course, I’m going to do it anyway. Just a minor gripe. I just want to play more. I mean, the main game is fun and all, but I want to play ALL the levels now! Impatience yes, but well…I’ve been waiting a LONG time here. And Louie’s getting violent! Cat food everywhere. It’s bad.

So basically I’ve unlocked the Bowling so far, but I’ll have to play the regular game 5-6 more times I think before I’ll unlock more. Bowling is tricky but cool. There’s a directional meter that goes from right to left that you stop with A, and then you can control spin with the L and R shoulder buttons. Doing a sweet strike by spinning is pretty impressive. Fun to do once alone, but with friends this could get intense…but golf and billiards await as well…I just have to unlock the damn things. Yeah, maybe I’m whining. I just want to get to it.

Sega takes its first shot on GameCube, and delivers a unique game which could be put in many different categories -- racer, platformer, maze, sports, etc. For 5,800 yen it’s really a complete package. Super Monkey Ball is still a sort of niche title. I mean, it’s a whole lot of fun, but it’s a quick pick up, with not a whole lot of substance. It’s a whole lot of fun to play alone for a while, but a total blast with multiplayer. That’s where I think this game will really have its value. Overall, I’m happy I got it. I play it the least of the three launch games, but it’s still a great game. Super Monkey Ball has a heart of an arcade game, but it’s got a hell of a lot more to offer. It’s a very different style of game, but with all that Sega packs into this original fun game, it’s well worth the purchase.