Super Monkey Ball 2

Distributed by
Atari

Price: £39.99 Players: 1-4 (plus online) Widescreen: Yes 60Hz: No Super Monkey Ball 2 is another fun game for the Gamecube, but like most titles destined for the Nintendo, it's not one that'll be too complex plot-wise. It is one that gets quite difficult along the way though. This sequel is the first in the series I have played and is also the first to have a story mode. The evil Dr Bad-Boon's going to affect your little monkey world by causing all sorts of havoc and can only be conquered by roving through 150 separate levels, always attempting to reach the goal by tilting the world on which your monkey (choose from AiAi, MeeMee, Baby or GonGon) moves about in his ball, collecting bananas along the way. Remember that what you move is the world and not the ball. Sounds difficult but this is much easier to get to grips with than it sounds. Between the worlds there are cut-scenes (which can't be bypassed in case you've seen them before) about Dr. Bad-Boon and his dastardly plans, and the whole thing is as Japanese and bizarre as you can get.

Graphically it's absolutely gorgeous and runs like the wind. Colour is lush, from green field-like areas to the fiery pits of hell and under the ocean, just to name the first three worlds to conquer with 10 levels games per world. There are, however, some jaggies on straight lines which could have been avoided. All of this makes it an eye-catching experience, with all manner of curvy paths, two clever tracks being the Gravity Slider where you take a long deep path to the exit at an ever-increasing speed and also Inchworms, the track moving about in an erratic style. The sound grabs the attention, despite the Gamecube having a lack of Dolby Digital 5.1 capability, and it's a title that is relatively easy to get into but one that's difficult to master. You'll be falling off the edge of the world plenty of times before completing certain levels.

One thing I haven't been able to try is the online play, for which you need the network adaptor. That said, there's scores of party games to attempt, with six to begin with - Monkey Race 2 (circuit racing), Monkey Fight 2 (punch each other with big boxing gloves and knock them out of the ring), Monkey Target 2 (Open your ball to glide and land on the target), Monkey Billiards 2 (pool), Monkey Bowling 2 (10 pin bowling) and Monkey Golf 2. During the billiards game, when it's console's turn it was quite amusing to see the big colourful letters stating: "COM SHOT". Also, note that one of the unlockables is the Alan Partridge-esque "Monkey Tennis"! Back to the main game, though, and I have to say that this is something you should rent first before you buy. I found it starts off as fun but does become quite irritating quite quickly as you keep falling off the platforms. If you still want to play more after a couple of hours then make it a purchase.

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Review copyright © Dominic Robinson, 2003.