Super Monkey Ball
The Super Monkey Ball series is a series of arcade platform games developed by Amusement Vision and distributed by Sega. It features 4 characters (3 in the arcade version) named Aiai, Meemee, Baby and (appearing only in the console versions) Gongon. The game debuted in Japan in 2001 as an upright arcade cabinet called simply Monkey Ball (which featured a banana-shaped joystick) and later that year was released as one of the three original Nintendo GameCube games. Since then, many sequels and ports have been created.
Games
Here is a list of games in the Super Monkey Ball series.
- Monkey Ball (original arcade game)
- Super Monkey Ball (GameCube, N-Gage) (remake of the arcade game with new features)
- Super Monkey Ball 2 (GameCube)
- Super Monkey Ball Deluxe (PlayStation 2 and Xbox)
- Super Monkey Ball Jr. (Game Boy Advance)
- Sega Superstars (PlayStation 2 EyeToy game which features Super Monkey Ball as a minigame)
- Super Monkey Ball Touch & Roll (Nintendo DS)
- Super Monkey Ball Adventure (PlayStation 2, GameCube, PlayStation Portable)
- Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz (Wii)
- Super Monkey Ball (iPhone)
- Super Monkey Ball 2 (iPhone)
- Super Monkey Ball: Step & Roll (Wii)
Gameplay
As opposed to normal games where the player takes control of the character itself, Super Monkey Ball has the player move their character around by tilting the world itself (the exception of this being Super Monkey Ball Adventure). By tilting the board at various angles, players can control the speed and turning of the character. The goal of each level is to reach a goal banner before time runs out and without falling off the edge of the level. Bonus points and extra lives can be earned by collecting bananas littered across the stage. Early games use traditional controllers to play whilst many recent titles utilise some of the modern technology, such as the accelerometers of the Wii and iPhone titles.
Characters
The main characters are AiAi, MeeMee, Baby, GonGon, YanYan, Doctor, and Jam. AiAi is a playable character in Sonic Riders and Sega Superstars Tennis (the latter of which also features MeeMee as an unlockable character). AiAi will also appear in Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing. In this game, Aiai rides a banana car and his All-Star move has him racing in his marble along with MeeMee, GonGon and Baby crashing into other characters.
The four primary characters in the series, AiAi, MeeMee, Baby, and GonGon, are present in many of the series' titles. Later installments, such as Super Monkey Ball Adventure and Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz, would incorporate a larger roster of playable characters, usually varying from title to title.