Ever since playing the previous two titles, I’ve always wanted to know how exactly the whole concept was pitched at the Sega execs. I mean, it’s got to take something special for them to accept and fund a game where monkeys roll around in plastic balls, collecting bananas and hurtling through levels towards a piece of tape. What I don’t quite understand is how they went ahead and allowed them to develop a platform-based adventure using the same idea.

Monkeying Around

You see, Super Monkey Ball has always stuck to the same formula- you control a monkey in a ball, and you have to guide it towards the goal. It sounds simple (and let’s face it, it is), but it becomes very tricky, very quickly. Levels become infuriatingly difficult, the time becomes more of a factor- and before you realise; it’s game over for the third time. This same sense of panic is somewhat lacking from the Adventure Mode- it’s a rather simple and boring affair unfortunately, and actually becomes quite irritating.

The basic premise of the main game is thus; you must complete various missions that have been asked of your monkey, ranging from bee-collecting to baby finding. Naysayers are responsible for the dwindling happiness in the Monkey World, and it’s your task to make people happy; essentially completing the aforementioned missions. Unfortunately, these tasks are fairly basic and lack any real reward upon completing them. They also become quite repetitive fairly early-on, resulting in a tedious romp through 5 Monkey Kingdoms.

A Load of Ball-oney

It really begins to grate when you end up repeating the same processes over and over again. For example, you’re required to wake up four sleeping guards from tree-top positions. The idea is fairly simple- blast yourself from various cannons that are targeted towards large gongs; the resulting noise is what wakes the guards up. Fine then, no problems here. Unfortunately, the last gong happens to be aimed at such an angle that as you hit it, nine times out of ten you’ll end up in the water. Oh, and you’ll have to start it from scratch, too.

For some reason, Traveller’s Tales has opted to use an autosave feature. Whenever a mission is attempted or completed, the game automatically saves your progress. This interrupts the gameplay in a fairly obvious way, and it won’t be long before you wish it wasn’t included. Annoying coding errors such as these only seem to amplify the sheer anger the main game provides, and really mar any enjoyment you manage to glean from the woeful adventure.

One thing the PSP version seems to suffer from are cumbersome controls. Unfortunately, the analogue stick just isn’t precise enough to allow the same level of control found in other iterations. Some sections of the game are incredibly tricky as a result, particularly anything flying-related, and you will find yourself rolling out of bounds on many occasions. It makes the adventure mode that much more frustrating, and simply rolling from place to place becomes a mission on its own.

Great Balls of Fire

It’s not all gloom and doom, though. A new feature is the ability to make your monkey chant in order to use special abilities; ranging from a wooden ball that floats on water, to a huge boxing glove that protrudes from your shell. This adds some variety to the adventure, and is a welcome addition to the fairly generic platform setting. You move the analogue stick in the four compass directions in order to perform the chant, and a pre-determined combo will activate if done correctly. It sounds fairly normal, but when you have to chant “Poo! Woo! Yay!” it only affirms your suspicions of which demographic the game is aimed at.

Graphically, Super Monkey Ball Adventure is impressive. The different worlds are uniquely detailed, bright and colourful, and are a testament to the PSP’s graphical capabilities. The sound, too, suits the game well, though the annoying gibberish the monkeys speak will become irritating. The camera control is also excellent, with the L and R buttons being responsible for rotation. It’s a simple and fairly standard feature of any game, but has been missing from some recent PSP titles - Tomb Raider for example.

Monkey Business

Thankfully, Challenge mode is more at home with the Super Monkey Ball name - it’s where you’ll find the traditional rush-to-the-finish gameplay that is sorely lacking from the main Adventure mode. There are 50 new maps spread over four difficultly levels, ranging from Beginner (though despite the name, it’s actually quite tricky) to Advanced. The same degree of frustration from the previous games is here, with you being reduced to spitting red-faced insults at your PSP while you ride the Number 7 bus. This is one of the redeeming features of SMBA, but it’s still not enough to warrant a £30 splash-out.

The third and final mode is the Party section. Here you’ll find your old favourite party games from the two previous games, along with three more new games- monkey bounce, tag and cannon. Unfortunately, unless you’re a die-hard fan of the party modes from previous games, you’ll feel a little let-down.

Weighing everything together, Super Monkey Ball Adventure isn’t anything special. If Traveller’s Tales had stuck to the original and proven format, this would be more deserving of a higher verdict; challenge mode proves this point.

Unfortunately, it has either tried too hard or not enough, it’s hard to say, and the result is an average platformer at best. The Challenge and party modes are the redeeming features, but they’re only the side dishes- and the main course will leave you with a particularly bad taste in your mouth.