Super Monkey Ball: Step & Roll (Wii) | Pixel Pursuit
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- čas přidán 25. 08. 2024
- This is a review of Super Monkey Ball: Step and Roll which was developed and published by Sega and released in 2010 for the Nintendo Wii. The previous game in the series released on the Wii was easily my least favourite game in the entire franchise, so how will Step and Roll compare to the atrocity that is Banana Blitz? Well... It turns out pretty well actually...
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Step & Roll's Wii Disc Channel preview is a thing of audible beauty. I was listening to this game's music for the first time the other day, and I have to agree that it's some of the best music I've heard from the franchise. It helps that Tomoya Ohtani and Jun Senoue were involved in it, too, because the soundtracks they've made for the Sonic series are amazing. My personal favourites here would have to be the themes for the Far East and Magma Valley levels.
It really is isn't it! I'm pretty sure the Banana Blitz disc preview had a similar sort of thing going on too.
I had no idea that the music was going to be so good going into this and then to hear it change as you go through the levels and for it to be really memorable too was awesome. I actually looked into the composers a bit more and they both previously worked on the Billy Hatcher soundtrack which I also remember being pretty good too. My favourite track here is probably the one from Monkey Island, it's been on my mind non-stop since I first heard it!
@@PixelPursuit You weren’t responding to me! I’m trying to get your attention! I found out what that unknown collectible is!
The game goes from being pretty unplayable to really fun if you just...sit down and use the balance board as you're sitting. Then it becomes really responsive and fun. Imo that should be the intended and advertised way to play. It completely changes the game.
Using the wiimote is no good in this game imo cos the levels are just not designed with it in mind, adding a bunch of obstacles doesn't really change much. It's just too easy with the wiimote.
You know, I never actually considered doing that... I guess I'm so used to stuff like Wii Fit that I automatically jump to using the board standing up. I'll have to try that at some point and see if it's any better.
You're very right that it's on the easy side if you use the Wiimote, but at least they put obstacles in the way to stop it being a total breeze. Even if it's not a huge amount of effort I still appreciate that it's not just exactly the same as if you use the balance board!
Have you ever played it in the co-op mode? I had so much fun playing it in this mode and it's got a surprising amount of depth! The first player just controls the game as usual, but the second player has to shoot obstacles on the screen that get in the first player's way. Some of the stages feel completely different when it's played like this and it was a blast! It's like Monkey Ball for player one and a light gun game for player two!
@@PixelPursuit I found out what that unknown collectible is! (6th on the last row)
@@jonramos2676 Negative Primate: For giving up a lot.
I got into this one with low expectations but I was pleasantly surprised. It has some memorable stages and a phenomenal soundtrack. The difficulty with the Wii remote is just right. The lack of unlockable monkeys is a bit disappointing, but GonGon can keep me happy.
I agree! The soundtrack really elevates the entire game to another level and it's a shame they never revisited the idea of the dynamic soundtrack again. Haha, GonGon will keep everyone happy :D
Did you have a chance to play it in the co-op mode? I think it's the best way of experiencing it!
Oof, I'm late to the party! Step and Roll's a really interesting one for me. Never thought that a Mario Galaxy style coop mode would be a good time but you've got me wanting to give it a whirl! Also, that roll pun was a highlight. :P You seemed very proud of yourself. Good stuff!
At least you made it to the party eventually, that's all that matters! You should definitely give the co-op a go, I imagine loads of people never even tried it out and it turned out to be the best way of playing it. Haha, yeah that pun is one of my greatest accomplishments! :P
@@PixelPursuit You kept giving me a cold shoulder! Please pay attention to me! I found out what that unknown collectible is!
Seriously, Step & Roll has by far the best soundtrack in the series for me.
And world 3... WORLD 3'S soundtrack is the best water level theme in any video game. Period. You can't change my mind.
I think I still prefer the soundtracks for 1 and 2, but Step & Roll is a very close third! I really like the theme for world 1 personally! But yeah, world 3 has a weirdly atmospheric soundtrack doesn't it, it's almost emotional at times haha!
Could you maybe do a Rayman Review Marathon after this Super Monkey Ball one? Rayman has some of the best games out there. 👍
I would love to do a Rayman review marathon actually. No doubt that will happen eventually, the earlier Rayman games are some of my favourites! I've got a lot of videos planned for the near future though so it might take me a while to get to it!
@@PixelPursuit yooooo yesss review Rayman games pls
Awesome video, this was just what i was looking for
I haven't played it yet , you're right
If you have the means, you should definitely give this one a go! It's a lot better than you would expect!
Collectibles:
+ Unripe Banana: A banana that’s ahead of its time. It’s day will come soon...
+ Ripened Banana: A super-sweet banana ripened over the ages.
+ Deep Sea Banana: A tender banana grown in the sea’s black depths. Falls apart when exposed to light.
+ Sunrise Banana: A shining banana that only seems to appear during the most beautiful sunrise of the year.
+ Frozen Banana: A banana that’s been frozen solid. You could hammer nails with this thing.
+ Flaming Banana: A fiery banana that smolders bright red. Best for primates who like it hot.
+ Techno Banana: A banana for robots. I wonder how they eat it?
+ Golden Banana: A special banana awarded for getting all collectibles. (except for the MC items)
= Athletic Monkey: For moving around a lot as you completed a world.
+ Goal Hunter: For completing 100 stages.
+ Buzzer Beater: For reaching the goal with zero seconds left.
+ Plummeting Primate: For falling out of bounds a lot.
+ World Challenger: You’ve seen every world!
+ World Master: You’ve completed every world!
+ Mirror Monkey: For finishing worlds 1 through 6 in Mirror Mode.
+ Banana-phile: For grabbing all the bananas in every stage.
+ Banana-phobe: For completing a stage without grabbing a single banana.
= Solid Monkey: For hardly moving at all while completing a world.
+ Lucky Monkey: For having a total score that has the same digit repeated.
+ Switch Hitter: For monkeys who just love switches.
+ Wormhole Roamer: For monkeys who can’t get enough of wormholes.
+ Ranking King: For achieving the top rank in all the worlds in Single Play mode!
+ Pair Ranking King: For achieving the top rank in all the worlds in Co-op Play mode!
+ Top Teammate: For finishing all worlds in Co-op Play.
+ Total Cleaner: For destroying all obstacles in a single world during Co-op Play.
+ Destroyer: For destroying lots of obstacles.
= Balanced Monkey: For completing every stage in a single world with the same zest!
+ Marathon Monkey: For finishing a full marathon.
+ Marathon Roller: For traveling 26.219 miles.
+ Positive Primate: For never giving up despite repeated continues.
+ Teacher’s Primate: For putting in lots of practice.
+ Advanced Diploma: For great achievements in the Jam Dojo
+ Negative Primate: For giving up a lot.
+ Replay Gourmet: For saving lots of replays.
+ Credits Cruncher: For a perfect performance during the Staff Credits game.
= Funky Monkey: For burning lots of monkey calories!
That’s all of them!
That's a whole lot of collectibles! I like how the collectible structure used in a few of these games was reworked for Banana Mania in the form of the missions. I always found it a little annoying how you can't see what the task is for the collectibles before unlocking them.
@@PixelPursuit Thanks! BTW, 3 of the collectibles are unknown to others, but I was the first to discover them.
Row 1 - Column 8;
Golden Banana: A special banana awarded for getting all collectibles. (except for the MC items)
Row 4 - Column 6;
Negative Primate: For giving up a lot.
Row 4 - Column 9;
Funky Monkey: For burning lots of monkey calories!
How to unlock them;
Golden Banana: Get all collectibles! (MC Items do NOT count.)
Negative Primate: Use the “Forfeit” icon as many times as possible.
Funky Monkey: While using the Wii Balance Board, get lots of MC again & again and see what happens at the end!
(NP & FM are possible to get in Practice Mode BTW.)
Another awesome review!! I think the game was made in mind balance board but regardless they should have changed the games physics or engine somehow. I've only played 2 minutes of this game and it felt exactly like banana blitz. Imagine playing banana blitz with the board
Thank you! Yeah it seems like the level design was completely made with the balance board in mind and then the Wiimote controls were almost an after thought. But because they re-used elements from Banana Blitz, I guess it made it not work too great with the balance board even with the level design suiting it. Oh god, Banana Blitz with the balance board would be a thing of nightmares!
Well now, this was a surprising outcome! Can't wait to hear your thoughts on Banana Splitz since I'm currently playing through it right now. Deluxe is my favourite because that's the one I have the most experience with but it was the PS2 version and since your mention of the differences way back in the other review I'm really curious to see what the Xbox or originals control like. Maybe in those versions I could actually beat those EX stages.
I know! I expected this to be one of the games on the more rubbish side of Super Monkey Ball but it turned out to be surprisingly decent. Still not a patch on the original games though! It might actually not be too long until I can play Banana Splitz because I'm borrowing a PSTV off of a friend soon.
The differences between the Xbox version of Deluxe and the PS2 version are night and day. The Xbox version is so much better it's nuts. The framerate is improved, the controls are way better, the loading is almost instantaneous and the graphics are even more crisp too! I really struggled to get past some levels in the PS2 version that I didn't even need to think about in the Xbox version, it's that much better! I would still go for the GameCube versions of the games though over the Xbox version of Deluxe though, but if you don't have access to those, the Xbox version is great!
0:45 A shame you didn't include more footage of you doing your best *leaning tower of Pisa* impersonation.
I was thinking I would have put more footage of that in there, but to be honest I was actually fairly decent at controlling it so it wasn't too funny or interesting seeing me on the board. Plus the game is way better if you don't use the balance board and I really wanted to highlight that!
@@PixelPursuit Maybe it was just the aforementioned scene with the western music that made it funny. Maybe it was more about feeling like an idiot than looking like one by your account.
Speaking of funny, it's funny how the situation sounds very close to your time with Croc 2 in terms of a different control scheme making it better for you.
It almost sounds that this game could've been on the Xbox 360's Kinect.
Banana Blitz 2?
Yeah it definitely felt like I was moving a lot more than what I actually was judging from the footage haha, I thought I was moving all over the place but I was actually pretty steady!
That is a good point actually, at least with Step & Roll and Croc 2 the game offers a better control method though, other games that only have one control scheme have probably been ruined by having flawed controls despite being otherwise good games.
Oh god I hope we don't see a Banana Blitz 2 haha! It would have been extremely interesting to see how a Super Monkey Ball game would have worked on the Kinect though. Kinda glad that never happened though because I would have had to buy a Kinect to review it!
I remember being able to hold A in order to skip the credits. Same goes for Banana Blitz.
If it actually is that easy then obviously I'm just an idiot haha! I swear I did try that though. Maybe you need to hold it for quite a while? Either way I don't think there's any indicator that makes it obvious that you have to hold a button to skip, so it's still a bit of an issue regardless! :D
@@PixelPursuit From what I recall, it was for like 4 seconds after the first time watching them.
Oh... The issue might have been that I tried to skip them the first time I watched them and then just figured you couldn't do it and never tried again. Surely it makes more sense to make the unskippable credits be the last ones rather than the first ones?
1:03 WHEN THE IMPOSTOR IS SUS 😳😳😳
Ball Posse is similar to Super Monkey Ball - available for iPhone, iPad and Android
Wow, yeah that does look super similar to Super Monkey Ball. The developers must be fans I suppose! There is a Super Monkey Ball game available on the App Store actually, but I don't tend to be all that interested in mobile games so I've not played it much.
I don’t have this one. But i want to get it. It looks like very fun exercise.
The balance board controls actually work way better in the minigames than in the main game, and even then it's not really all that great for exercise! It's fun for a laugh though! :)
Pixel Pursuit oh. Ok.
Pixel! I finally figured out what the 6th on the last row collectible is! Ready to see it?
Hello! Sorry about the lack of responses lately! I’ve been pretty busy with all of the Oddworld videos and going to work!
But yeah definitely! What is the collectible you found?
@@PixelPursuit Negative Primate: For giving up a lot.
To unlock this collectible, keep using the “Forfeit” icon many times as possible when you play in tough stages.
BTW, the collectible looks like the “Forfeit” icon.
@@MinaSmol Haha! That’s probably why I didn’t ever get that collectible then 😂 it’s not very often that I give up with stages!
@@PixelPursuit Remember, try using the Forfeit icon many times and see what happens at the end!
@@PixelPursuit You’re giving me a cold shoulder! 😨
Have you heard about the (possible) new Super Monkey Ball game coming out?
I have indeed! I'm interested to see a trailer for it and hopefully some gameplay too because the way it's being talked about sounds like a return to form. But we'll just have to wait and see I guess! I'll be getting it on day one and doing a review of it for certain if and when it eventually does get released!
@@PixelPursuit From what I have heard I think it will be good.
It's always nice to know that we are both idiots Rob :D
Haha, yeah that is definitely something we have in common! :D
@@PixelPursuit Hahahaha :D
Yes
Bonnie The Bunny oui
I know! I finally got around to playing it! It took a while! Also, you and Sammy were super duper fast with your comments, impressively fast!
Pixel Pursuit thank you
1:02 no way that is real... is it really?
You mean the start up noises? Yeah that's totally real! I didn't add any sound effects or anything there haha!
You know you have to HOLD DOWN the A button to skip the credits, right?
Oh jeez... Is it really that simple? It's still a little bit annoying how they don't make that obvious though, so I still think that's an issue regardless! Still... I wasted a lot of time sitting through all of those credits haha!
It's all good. It took me a while to figure out too.
What if this game got the same Treatment of Banana Blitz HD? 😕
I don’t think we would see that happen 😕 Step & Roll is a little bit too obscure to get a remake, plus it’s whole identity is basically all about using the balance board. Maybe we’ll see DLC for Banana Mania where we get levels from some of these other games though!
You should do a review of super monkey ball: Sakura edition for phones. It’s a pretty good game but... not the best.
I might be already working on a new Monkey Ball video that might be mentioning Sakura Edition along with a lot of other games in the series I haven't covered... But who knows! You'll have to wait and see I suppose! :D
i swear there was an SNES game really similar to this
You might be thinking of Marble Madness for the NES? Super Monkey Ball took inspiration from that game but modernised it quite a lot. I actually reviewed Marble Madness years and years ago before I got into the Super Monkey Ball series!
@@PixelPursuit i remember the character was a little monkey it almost looked kinda like Bomberman
@@PixelPursuit i may have been thinking of spankys quest thats the only game i see that looks similar to what I remember
Yeah maybe... I have no idea what else it could have been! My knowledge of SNES games isn't that great unfortunately :(
@@PixelPursuit im more of a psx nerd 🤣
These games make me dizzy. : /
Haha, it's not actually too bad when you're actually playing the games! :D