Review: Super Monkey Ball (iPhone)

By Richard | July 28, 2008

Super Monkey Ball was one of the many cool games that Apple chose to show off many months ago when they announced the new iPhone firmware. The developers talked about how they were able to upgrade the graphics even more from what they were showing, which was already impressive for a cell phone game. The problem is that they should have spent that time working on the controls. There are a bunch of other games on the App store that use the motions sensors in a similar fashion and they feel tight and responsive. Unfortunetly SMB’s one major flaw is that the oversensitive controls ruin most of the fun you can have with this game.  I have played plenty of SMB in my day and they get everything else right, but the controls just aren’t good enough to handle some of the more difficult levels. Heck even easy levels can be frustrating!

I gave this game plenty of opportunity to grow on me and I tried over and over to get used to the controls, but it just didn’t work. If you want to play a similar game with simple and responsive controls then download Labyrinth, which has a free trial version so your not stuck with buying a game you will never play.

If this games controls were retooled then Super Monkey Ball would be one of the best games on the App store. As it stands now it’s a pretty game that can show people what the iPhone is capable of, but just don’t let them play it.

The Good

+Great Graphics
+Cute Music
+Well Polished

The Bad

- Oversensitive Controls
- It Costs $10!