TGS: Super Monkey Ball DS Hands-On

It was only a matter of time before SEGA’s Super Monkey Ball franchise made it to the DS. The system’s touch screen was inevitable for a Marble Madness-like trackball control system, and the puzzle platformer would work undoubtedly well with the right level formulas.

The TGS demo in Japan of SEGA’s upcoming DS title has us surprised about which direction the series may be headed, and what kind of innovations Nintendo’s dual-screen handheld can help open up. There were three different gameplay types, that well, aren’t Monkey Ball your traditional mix-bag of puzzling/action that we’ve all been accustomed to. They’re fun demo mini-games, but the disappearance of the familiar classic gameplay premise has us wondering whether or not SEGA has changed their minds on re-creating an already working formula. Already announced for the DS, and supposedly having 100 classically-inspired stages to be challenged with, the Super Mario Monkey Ball DS demo certainly innovates on several factors, hiding away the classic gameplay that the DS version should include anyway.

The first gameplay type of the TGS demo was a simple race of Monkey Ball racers on a 2D/3D course. The ball gets controlled by the stylus via the touch screen, as each direction and swipe of the stylus indicated exactly how the ball should roll. Swiping up would accelerate the ball, and swiping down would slow down the ball. Of course, the course we played had some sharp turns – but really made us wonder whether or not this was the classic game we’ve all been used to already. The course didn’t need to be tilted at all, and steering the racer just felt like a totally different game – a themed Monkey Ball title at best.

Although Super Monkey Ball has been known to show off several fun mini-games included with its original single-player mode, we certainly didn’t expect SEGA to highlight those features specifically for one demo. We were right. The second gameplay type was a huge FaceBall 2000 rip-off, where monkey balls are scattered around a 3D world, and the stylus was needed to eradicate these enemy targets. Using the control pad for rotation and aiming seemed a bit weird, as the various environments for the level didn’t seem to impress very much.

Lastly, the third gameplay type was a simple game reminiscent of an air hockey game. Players needed to draw their own paddles with a certain amount of ink to use, hence creating a push in creativity, but also conservation for strategical decisions. You could draw a simple line but the usual paddle, but the possibilities were there to draw things such as a hook, which would be possible in catching the puck and throwing it back. Even better, bonuses were also scattered around the table, for more emphasis on hitting as much surface area as you can when scoring. Still, the question remains, where is the Monkey Ball that we’ve grown to love and cherish? It’s hard to imagine a Monkey Ball game with these type of games as the only gameplay modes, but then again, the multiplayer implications could be huge if SEGA were to go that route. Another difference was the fact that the ball models were done in 2D, instead of the perfectly round 3D sphere that the monkeys were encapsulated in the GameCube version. Still, the levels are done quite nicely, with vivid colors and anime-like backgrounds. The frame-rate for the game remained near-perfect, especially during the racing game. We’re still curious how all of it will look on the supposedly coming classical level-schemes, but the engine was impressive enough to warrant a longer look.

Super Monkey Ball DS ships in December in Japan, but we’re still unsure why SEGA decided to show off these new gameplay additions, rather than the main one itself. Hence, we’re only expecting improvement and fulfillment of promises at this point. Either way, the game is bound to turn heads, especially when SEGA finally unveils the game’s multiplayer mode.

DS Advanced will be sure to keep you updated on the puzzle platformer soon.