PlayStation 2

Super Monkey Ball Deluxe

If you've never played any of the Super Monkey Ball games before, and you're into challenging puzzle-type games, then there's no doubt that this game is worth the MSRP of $30. If you've played the heck out of the originals, the new puzzles really aren't enough to justify the money, but it's still worth a rental. If there were a few new mini-games, or there was some sort of online play included, the package would be much more enticing. Hopefully the game will sell well and Sega will get to work on Super Monkey Ball 3 with online play.

Super Monkey Ball Deluxe is a good deal for Xbox owners, despite its shortcomings. There's an awful lot of gameplay here, thanks to the multiple single-player modes and good selection of party games. If your only option is the PS2 version, it's a less attractive option -- but if you're looking for simple, addictive brain teasing, you can't go too far wrong with this.

The mini-games and the main game all look like they have went on a TLC make-over show and had gone through a makeshift graphics transformation. Applying make-up doesn't necessarily mean the end product will be stunning. The game's graphics are still dated despite the new background changes and themed stages. But it's no biggie -- the monkeys are still sucrosely cute, and the levels are well designed. I could complain about the absence of online play, but the Super Monkey Ball experience really stems from the single-player mode. The bottom line is that this is an amazingly good way to spend a few bucks and many, many, many hours.

And if you're SEGA, you can have a slapped wrist for the lack of high score and replay uploads - particularly on Xbox Live. If you'd done that, this would be a blanket recommendation.

The biggest factor working against Super Monkey Ball Deluxe is the time between the original GameCube releases of the Super Monkey Ball games and their consolidated latter-day arrival on the Xbox and PlayStation 2. There are probably a few tweaks that would've made Super Monkey Ball Deluxe a more attractive package, such as enhanced graphics or online play, but the biggest help would've been if it had come out about two years earlier.

Super Monkey Ball Deluxe is a testament to simple game design. Anyone can pick up a controller and enjoy the early boards and mini-games. The game really shines when a group of friends get together for some multiplayer monkey action. If you enjoy gaming with friends the party mode alone may be worth the purchase.

Même si la sortie de cette compilation de Super Monkey Ball nous donne un peu l'impression que la série stagne depuis quelques années, il faut reconnaître que le soft vient combler une lacune en permettant à un nouveau public de s'essayer au plus terrible des jeux d'adresse qui soit sur consoles. Cette édition n'est toutefois pas à conseiller à ceux qui connaissent déjà les versions GameCube.

Sure, the game looks like a Dreamcast graphics demo, and its precepts haven't changed much since the arcade original based on similar hardware, but it's the gameplay that sells this title, almost as much as your love of monkeys. If you're a monkey baller with previous experience, and need those 46 extra stages, or you're looking for a unique puzzle challenge in-between bouts of Halo 2, then it's time to get down to some business: Monkey Business.