Back in the early days of the Wii, a single of the games I played the most was Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz. It wasn’t a single of the finest games in the franchize, but I didn’t dislike it as significantly as other folks. So when I heard Sega was releasing an updated HD version for Nintendo Switch, I was excited. However, it left me longing for the original.
All the original 100+ single-player stages are back with updated, higher definition 1080p graphics operating at 60 frames-per-second. Also returning are 10 of the original 50 celebration (mini) games, which enable you to play with buddies. I hear you, even though. They reduce mini games and created it HD. What about the new stuff? Why get this. Effectively, now you have the capability to compete on the web with buddies in two distinct forms of leaderboards: Time Attack and Decatholon. The former has you competing for the quickest time although the latter puts you by way of the 10 mini games in an work to get the highest general score.
This alone tends to make for a fantastic update to the game, but they had to contain a single far more “new” aspect. They changed up the handle scheme. Now you can play the complete game with your controller’s analog stick. Oh, wait… I stated, “can,” when I meant to say, “must.” Yes, the game that was constructed for motion controls now has it stripped away. Whilst the Wii’s motion controls have been annoying on some games, I discovered them to mesh properly with Banana Blitz.
Exactly where the handle limitations popped up the most was in particular celebration games that have been clearly created for motion. Seesaw Ball had far more precision, for instance, as the Switch analog sticks are extremely touchy. Slingshot, Hammer Throw, and Whack-a-Mole also all endure from the switch to a regular handle layout. Whack-a-Mole wasn’t the greatest encounter prior to, but it is even worse now considering that you have to aim with the stick.
The analog stick handle, along with the jerky camera in the single-player story created me want to attain for the garbage can or the Dramamine numerous occasions. Thankfully, playing in handheld mode was far better, but I nevertheless did not love playing for longer than 15-20 minutes. Possibly that was their target to avert becoming a couch potato, but I doubt it. And yes, there is a camera sensitivity adjustment in the solutions, which helped some but not fully. I do, on the other hand, propose every person turn that down to the lowest setting when you start playing.
Sega even stated in their press release, “Motion controls from the original Banana Blitz have been removed in favor of tightened analog controls, producing it a breeze to jump in and start off rolling by way of the game’s 100 levels.” I disagree that this tends to make the game a breeze. Possibly it is a limitation for the Switch’s analog stick only, but I actually hope they release an update at some point to contain motion controls once more for these who choose it.
A thing they need to have updated have been the hit-boxes. When traveling by way of some stages in single-player or cruising down the hill in Monkey Snowboard, I was hitting snowmen, trees, and other obstacles that I believed I was clearly avoiding. Meanwhile, in Hovercraft Race, I had to be straight on leading of the flags prior to they registered as becoming collected. These inconsistencies created me just annoyed and forced me to keep away from certain modes like the Hovercraft Race.
As soon as you total particular in-game objectives, you can unlock particular costumes for every character in the game. For instance, you can get Captain AiAi. You can also unlock a particular blue hedgehog also, which is a 1st for a Monkey Ball game. The bananas even turn into rings and supply classic sound effects when playing as Sonic, which is a extremely good touch. Just beware of his speed if you struggle with controlling balanced monkeys like AiAi.
Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz HD is not a negative game. Even even though the original was not my favored Monkey Ball game, I actually enjoyed it on Wii. Whilst updated graphics, on the web leaderboards, and unlockable costumes and characters are good, I can’t overlook the downsides of significantly less mini games, the forced non-motion controls, and the jerky camera. They develop all-natural limitations, which indicates I will not play it as extended, and particular celebration games will be avoided. If you have been a major fan of the original, but wished they took away the motion controls, this is absolutely for you. But for individuals like me who preferred motion on this game, I’d wait it out and hope for a future update.
(To see me play by way of the 1st two worlds and witness the jerky camera oneself, verify out the video beneath. You will also locate the announcement trailer and the Sonic trailer.)
GAME: Super Monkey Ball Banana Blitz HD
PLATFORM: Nintendo Switch
DEVELOPER: Sega
PUBLISHER: Sega
ESRB: E10+ for Everybody 10 and up (Mild cartoon violence, Suggestive themes)
MSRP: $39.99 US
OBTAINED: Code supplied by developer/publisher for press purposes
Gameplay Preview of Worlds 1 and two
Original Announcement Trailer
Sonic Announcement Trailer
Steve is the Senior Editor of NintendoFuse and co-host of the NintendoFuse Podcast. He’s been a Nintendo gamer considering that age six and has been on employees with NintendoFuse considering that 2008.