Super Monkey Ball Banana Mania is the HD reimagining of the first three Super Monkey Ball titles all into one neat package. It’s loads of fun, has a ton of levels to beat and get frustrated at. As a bonus, there are a generous assortment of mini games called Party Games to play aside from the main game.
You can play these games alone or up to four people. And sure, the point can be made that these are just mini games that can be burned through in one session. There is depth to each game, though. Each one even has different levels, rule sets, and difficulties. Here is a list of each game available in the order of fun factor.
All Super Monkey Ball Banana Mania Party Games Ranked
1. Monkey Billiards
Cue the “Let’s play 8-ball” meme. Billiards makes so much sense when it comes to Super Monkey Ball. Let alone, this is the best game on the list. You can play with four different rulesets, ranging from US Nine-Ball, Japan Nine-Ball, Rotation, or Eight-Ball. It might be some kind of standard game, but it was kept so pure as the type of game where you can just partake in some quick 8-ball.
2. Monkey Shot
Man, this is such a throwback to those arcade days. Monkey Shot is an arcade-style, on-rail shooter game. Think of those games like the Jurassic Park arcade games. You shoot things that come up on screen. Periodically, boosters come up like extra ammo or weapon upgrades. If you successfully make it to the end, you’ll fight the boss. There are three levels in this, but it’s loads of fun. It’s definitely one of the top tier games of the bunch.
3. Monkey Fight
It’s a four-way Rock’em Sock’em blast! Monkey Fight is such a fun, mindless minigame where four players compete in a timed match of punching their opponents in a bird’s-eye view arena. Punching your enemies and knocking out of the ring nets you points. The most points at the end wins. Also, there are items you can pick up in the crates
4. Monkey Golf
Golf mini games are top tier. Trick shots are great, and the geometry is so satisfying to land. Monkey Golf has the option to let you play mini golf or normal golf. The fact that you have two for the price of one is great. It’s even funnier when you notice that your character swings their club as if they’re shooting the ball, just to shoot themselves wherever they aim.
5. Monkey Boat
So this one is an interesting game. Monkey Boat is like a kart racing game, but without the usual accelerate and steer mechanics. Instead, your character is rowing with two paddles. It’s your means of accelerating and turning. It’s a lot more intense because your fingers are focused on the left and right bumpers/triggers while you’re also making sure you don’t crash into a wall, turn the wrong way, or turn too much.
6. Monkey Bowling
This game is like your conventional type of bowling game, except there’s a timing twist to it. You don’t get to manually place where you want your ball to go. Instead, the initial direction in where the ball will be shot is dependent on good timing. The shot area will bounce left and right in a conal trajectory. Of course, the more aligned your ball is with the front pin, the more safe the shot is. However, if you missed your timing, you can correct your shot just before you toss by curving it. It’s no Wii Bowling, but it’ll do.
7. Monkey Soccer
Well, this game is no Super Mario Strikers, but it’ll barely do. It’s a conventional game of soccer where two teams face off. You can opt to go for a standard game against another team, play tourney style, or even a penalty kick shootout mode. There’s some variety, which is nice.
8. Monkey Tennis
This is a pretty vanilla version of Tennis. There really isn’t too much of a Monkey Ball twist in this party game unfortunately. You can play singles or doubles, customize the game rules, and go about it. You also have three different types of shots and a bit more ball control to beat your opponents.
9. Monkey Baseball
This Super Monkey Ball adaptation of baseball is actually quite interesting. It would be a bit too much to add a bunch of other bots to take up actual spots out on the field like the base men and fielders. Instead, the team on the outfield sets certain obstacles that act in place for the outfielder positions while the batter has to try and not let the ball fall into those traps. They have to aim for places where the ball would hit the bleachers, all marked with different routes. Some spots are home runs, some allow for one or two bases to be taken. Typical baseball rules apply.
10. Monkey Race
This might be one of the few times in Super Monkey Ball where you actually get to actually control the character. It’s like the Monkey Ball equivalent of a Mario Kart game, especially with the items in play. There are 12 different tracks, so there is some variety. However, it just makes you want to actually play a kart racing game instead of this. There are much more exciting games.
11. Monkey Dogfight
Move over Elite Dangerous, Super Monkey Ball is going to take it from here! But not really, though. Monkey Dogfight is a flying battle mini-game where you can go against three other players. It’s a standard dogfighting game where you can shoot other enemies with either normal shots or ordinance. The player with the highest score in the end is declared victorious. A major downside of it too is the fact that flight controls are inverted.
12. Monkey Target
This is a very one-and-done type of game. It’s an interesting game in concept. Monkey Target literally just has a player roll down a ramp into a sizable jump to get a lot of air. Upon liftoff, the player must then hit a series of targets while in flight to score as many points as possible. It’s something that goes by so quickly. It almost feels like a less interesting game of darts.
Super Monkey Ball is slated for an October 5 release. It’ll be on all major platforms like the PS4 and 5, Xbox One and Series S/X, Nintendo Switch, and Steam. If you preordered the Digital Deluxe Edition, it’ll be available starting October 1, 2021. Click here to check out additional content for the game including a review and other guides.
