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Super Monkey Ball Deluxe (Xbox)
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4/5 |
Refreshingly old school fun
(June 21, 2006) |
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With the modern games market seemingly polarising into "adult" games - usually FPSs trying to be "Halo 2" or sub-"Res Evil" "horror" games which are so dark that you have to have black blinds drawn over your windows just to be able to see what's going on - and twee games about looking after animals which are unlikely to appeal to anyone over the age of 5 - which turn up on Nintendo consoles with alarming regularity - it is refreshing to see, for once, a game which does not pander to any demographic, and instead seeks only to entertain and challenge, just like games did back in the grand old '80s and '90s.
While cutesy in appearance, "SMBD" does not compromise on difficulty. While the easy mode is relatively straightforward (but still not a walkover by any means), the intermediate and expert versions of the challenge mode will be a stiff test to all but the most dextrous of gamers. Some of the levels are puzzling and maze like, but by and large it is the physical diffiulty of rotating the landscape to accomodate the monkey's ball-shaped prison as it hurtles towards oblivion, that will have you throwing the controller around the room in joyous old fashioned frustration.
The downside? Alongside the main challenge and story modes, the game has a number of minigames which are generally rather poor. The baseball is farcical - it is so easy to get strikes or catch batters out that home runs are rare events indeed - while the golf is just a question of watching your opponents' mistakes, and learning from them - by copying exactly what they do to achieve success. Monkey see, monkey do. Many of the minigames are simply arbitary, and it feels like a bewildering lottery as to whether pr not you win.
That said, the main course of this game is so sumptuous that few will be left too bothered about the dessert. |
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4/5 |
Good Fun
(May 30, 2006) |
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I read one of the previous reviews for this game claiming it was a second rate platformer.It isn't a platformer -think about those games where you have to get a marble into a gap and you've pretty much got the basic concept. This simple idea is then made much more complicated by a varied array of level design which kept me entertained for a long time and provides a good challenge. The game also has a multiplayer aspect with various minigames. The football and tennis games are simple but very enjoyable with some friends but me and my mates spent most of the time playing monkey target and race.
The only reason I haven't given this 5 stars is because some of the levels become boring towards the end but in terms of fun and value for money this is one of the best games available. |
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5/5 |
AWESOME
(May 27, 2006) |
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My mate bought this and we all ripped him for it, turns out it was the best £8 he ever spent. I never thought a game could be so addictive. My favourite is four player monkey flying and we must have played over 200 games. Ruined my exams, enhanced my life....buy it, buy it now. |
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2/5 |
great for a 7 year old
(January 16, 2006) |
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Deeply dissapointing simplistic button basher. Fine for a youngster, very little for anyone else. All of the sub-games are okay once or twice, but not much more and the main game is a poor platformer with cute graphics. Whatever happened to gameplay? |
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5/5 |
ULTIMATE BESTEST GAME EVER
(March 18, 2005) |
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I know its not out yet on Xbox, but basing my review on gameplay alone, this game has it all, het a few mates round theres no need to teach them buttons its pretty much just thumbstick and play away. THIS GAME IS ADDICTIVE! |
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