History VideoGame / SuperMonkeyBall

[[quoteright:256:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Super_Monkey_Ball_Coverart_5180.png]]
[[caption-width-right:256:The four main monkeys from the [[UsefulNotes/NintendoGameCube Gamecube]] era.]]

* InsurmountableWaistHighFence: [[AvertedTrope Averted]]. While several stages have fences that are just tall enough that you can't roll over them, there's usually nothing's stopping a clever player from gaining some speed, pinging off a bit of geometry, and [[DungeonBypass hopping over it]], even if that's harder than just doing the level the intended way.

* AllThereInTheManual: According to the official Japanese website for the first game, the monkeys discover a special chant that encapsules them in plastic balls so they can 'safely' travel through many obstacle courses to reach the mythical Banana Sanctuary, which is seen after clearing all of the floors in challenge mode. [[spoiler: Banana Sanctuary was also implied to house the infamously dreaded [[ThatOneLevel Master Stages.]]]]

** [[spoiler:The final level in Story Mode]] in ''2'' and ''Deluxe'' features the [=AV=] logo. A recurring Extra level in the first game does, too. Both had to be changed in ''Banana Mania'' as [=AV=] was no longer involved with the series.

* GameMod: It's possible, but not easy, to make custom levels and even custom backdrops for the Gamecube releases. There are a ''lot'' of romhacks for 2, but there are a few that are known to stand out among others. Some of the more notable ones include:
** ''Monkeyed Ball'' by Bites is one of the most popular romhacks of ''2'' with completely different story mode levels and worlds, which was regarded well enough to get in [[SpeedRun SGDQ]] [[WebVideo/GamesDoneQuick 2018]]. Later that year, an UpdatedRerelease of the romhack titled ''Monkeyed Ball 2: Witty Subtitle'' was released which not only features story mode levels but also challenge mode with more levels than the game it was based off of. This romhack was known to be more difficult than the original games.
** ''Super Monkey Ball 651'' by [=scrap651=] is another popular romhack that is entirely a story mode. It became well known due to plethora of creative ideas that would be explored in later hacks as well as it being a NintendoHard hack of a game that was already known to be very difficult. The last two worlds, ''especially'' [[BrutalBonusLevel World 10]], are known to feature some of the most difficult ''Super Monkey Ball'' custom levels ever made. It received an UpdatedRerelease with improved backgrounds, textures, and music made for the hack.
** ''Super Monkey Ball Gaiden'' by Cutsman quickly became very popular and successful upon release thanks to interesting and unique level designs as well as featuring SceneryPorn throughout the hack. Like ''651'', ''Gaiden'' is known to be NintendoHard but rather than having the player rely on pure skill, many of the levels are [[MarathonLevel incredibly long]] and feature many puzzles. Most of the hack consists of a story mode, but there are eleven Master stages as well.
** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yC2_u9MK2lE Someone even ported]] ''Deluxe'' to ''Super Monkey Ball 2'', which not only allows Gamecube players to finally play the ''Deluxe''-exclusive levels but also has the game playable with the Gamecube controller.
** A few community packs exist as well. One of the very first completed packs was a pack that consisted of all the levels that were made upon its release in early 2017. Other community packs would be later released later on, with one organized by several custom level creators that was released in the summer of 2020.

* CreatorCameo: [[spoiler:The final level in Story Mode]] in ''2'' and ''Deluxe'' features the [=AV=] logo. A recurring Extra level in the first game does, too. Both had to be changed in ''Banana Mania'' as [=AV=] was no longer involved with the series.

* DevelopersForesight: In ''2'', every world had it's own textures for bumpers and warp goals, even if most worlds don't feature them. ''1'' also features a few unused warp goals.

* ProductionThrowback: Kazuma Kiryu's GuestFighter appearance in ''Banana Mania'', as the game was developed by Ryu ga Gotoku Studio, developers of the ''Yakuza'' franchise. This makes for a funny wrap-around since Ryu ga Gotoku Studio is the current form of Amusement Vision, the studio that developed ''Super Monkey Ball''.

* SceneryPorn: Exaggerated in ''2'', with pretty much every single location in the game has intricate details, even where ''you normally can't see the scenery''! [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9H0OKQROxYU&list=PLIT2qNV3U8ljaqPf1aFQy2E3zsGBSxJDK&index=15&t=0s World 8 is a pretty good example of this.]] Considering that Amusement Vision worked on [[VideoGame/FZero F-Zero GX]] after ''2'', it's no surprise.

* ShoutOut: The statues in the background of the "Storm" stage in the original game depict various enemies from ''VideoGame/{{Slashout}}'', whose designer also worked on ''Super Monkey Ball''.

* TheRival: Several games tried to copy it, like Neverball, but none were as successful as Super Monkey Ball and Marble Madness.

* SchizophrenicDifficulty: While minor difficulty spikes occur normally, ''Deluxe'' throws it for a loop thanks to combining the levels from ''1'', ''2'' with some new levels. It's Story Mode will still have Beginner levels appear into World 3 while ''1[='=]s'' Expert levels don't appear until World 6. As for its Challenge mode, every 5[[labelnote:*]]Beginner and the first half of Beginner Extra plus two unique stages and Advanced Extra[[/labelnote]] or 10[[labelnote:*]]All other difficulties[[/labelnote]] levels would alternate between ''1[='=]s'' levels and ''2[='=]s'', with some of Deluxe's original stages thrown in as well, which can result in an inconsistent difficulty curve. This creates some odd situations where a stage like ''Exam-C'' (a long level with thin wires and a diagonal block section) is played before ''Wormhole'' (the first stage of ''2[='=]s'' Expert mode).

* SpeakingSimlish: The dialogue in the cutscenes of story mode in ''2'' and ''Deluxe'' for example.

* ContinuingIsPainful: To reach the extra stages in ''1'' & ''2'', you need to make it through all the stages without a continue.[[note]]In ''1'', Beginner Extra and Advanced Extra instead require you to ''[[NoDamageRun not die at all]]''.[[/note]] Turned UpToEleven if you want to unlock [[spoiler: the Master Stages]], which requires you to beat all 50 Expert Stages, AND the 10 Expert Extra Stages to reach them! This is especially painful in the original, since you only have 3 lives.

* SceneryPorn: UpToEleven in ''2'', with pretty much every single location in the game has intricate details, even where ''you normally can't see the scenery''! [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9H0OKQROxYU&list=PLIT2qNV3U8ljaqPf1aFQy2E3zsGBSxJDK&index=15&t=0s World 8 is a pretty good example of this.]] Considering that Amusement Vision worked on [[VideoGame/FZero F-Zero GX]] after ''2'', it's no surprise.

Not to be confused with ''Film/MonkeyBone''.

* ''Super Monkey Ball'' (2001, UsefulNotes/NintendoGameCube): A remake of ''Monkey Ball''. Introduced Party Mode and
[=GonGon=] as a character.

* LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters: Played straight in ''Adventure'', with over 30 characters to pick from in minigames. Downplayed in 3D's Fight and Race, which has 16 characters to play as.

''Super Monkey Ball'' is a series of arcade-style platform games created by Creator/{{Sega}}'s Amusement Vision division (now known as [[VideoGame/{{Yakuza}} Ryu ga Gotoku Studio]]). Though dating back to an UsefulNotes/ArcadeGame running on the UsefulNotes/SegaDreamcast-like NAOMI hardware, ''Super Monkey Ball'' was ironically Sega's first major franchise debut after they left the console business, first landing on the UsefulNotes/NintendoGameCube instead. The gameplay is similar to the famous ''VideoGame/MarbleMadness'' arcade game, with one important difference: '''MONKEYS!''' As well as something about tilting the world instead of having direct control of your character. But mostly monkeys.

''Super Monkey Ball'' is a series of arcade-style platform games created by Creator/{{Sega}}'s Amusement Vision division (now known as [[VideoGame/{{Yakuza}} Ryu ga Gotoku Studio]]). Though dating back to an UsefulNotes/ArcadeGame running on the UsefulNotes/SegaDreamcast-like NAOMI hardware, ''Super Monkey Ball'' was ironically Sega's first major franchise to bypass their own consoles entirely, first landing on the Nintendo [=GameCube=] instead. The gameplay is similar to the famous ''VideoGame/MarbleMadness'' arcade game, with one important difference: '''MONKEYS!''' As well as something about tilting the world instead of having direct control of your character. But mostly monkeys.

* ''Super Monkey Ball'' (2001, UsefulNotes/NintendoGameCube): A remake of ''Monkey Ball''. Introduced Party Mode and [=GonGon=] as a character.

* ''Super Monkey Ball Deluxe'' (2002, UsefulNotes/PlayStation2, UsefulNotes/{{Xbox}}): A remake of ''Super Monkey Ball'' and its sequel. It also featured a number of original levels as well as adding brand new levels exclusive to the game.
* ''Super Monkey Ball Jr.'' (2002, UsefulNotes/GameBoyAdvance): The first handheld installment, ambitiously retaining full 3D graphics.

''Super Monkey Ball'' is a series of arcade-style platform games created by Creator/{{Sega}}'s Amusement Vision division (now known as [[{{VideoGame/Yakuza}} Ryu ga Gotoku Studio]]). Though dating back to an UsefulNotes/ArcadeGame running on the UsefulNotes/{{Sega Dreamcast}}-like NAOMI hardware, ''Super Monkey Ball'' was ironically Sega's first major franchise to bypass their own consoles entirely, first landing on the Nintendo [=GameCube=] instead. The gameplay is similar to the famous ''VideoGame/MarbleMadness'' arcade game, with one important difference: '''MONKEYS!''' As well as something about tilting the world instead of having direct control of your character. But mostly monkeys.

* ''Super Monkey Ball: Banana Mania'' (2021, UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch, UsefulNotes/Playstation4, UsefulNotes/PlayStation5, UsefulNotes/XboxOne, UsefulNotes/XboxSeriesXAndS, PC): (A VideoGameRemake of ''Super Monkey Ball'', ''Super Monkey Ball 2'', and ''Super Monkey Ball Deluxe'' with the art style and characters of the modern games. Features Sonic as a guest character again, alongside new guest characters, including Tails, Kazuma Kiryu from ''VideoGame/Yakuza'', and Morgana from ''VideoGame/Persona5''.

** DLC for Banana Mania includes a pack where assorted Sega consoles become playable characters.

** In Challenge Mode of ''Super Monkey Ball 2'', [[spoiler: the final level in Master Extra takes place on a rotating [=GameCube=]. ''Deluxe'' changed it into into a six-sided die]]

''Super Monkey Ball'' is a series of arcade-style platform games created by Creator/{{Sega}}'s Amusement Vision division (now known as [[{{VideoGame/Yakuza}} Ryu ga Gotoku Studio]]). Though dating back to an UsefulNotes/ArcadeGame running on the UsefulNotes/{{Sega Dreamcast}}-like NAOMI hardware, ''Super Monkey Ball'' was ironically Sega's first major franchise to bypass their own consoles entirely, first landing on the Nintendo [=GameCube=] instead. The gameplay is similar to the famous ''VideoGame/MarbleMadness'' arcade game, with one important difference: '''[[EverythingsBetterWithMonkeys MONKEYS!]]''' As well as something about tilting the world instead of having direct control of your character. But mostly monkeys.

* EverythingsBetterWithMonkeys: The games are pretty much ''VideoGame/MarbleMadness'' in 3D with monkeys.

* MadMarbleMaze: The game is basically ''Marble Madness'' [[EverythingsBetterWithMonkeys but with monkeys]], so this is to be expected.

''Super Monkey Ball'' is a series of arcade-style platform games created by Creator/{{Sega}}'s Amusement Vision division (now known as [[{{VideoGame/Yakuza}} Ryu ga Gotoku Studio]]). Though dating back to an UsefulNotes/ArcadeGame running on the UsefulNotes/{{Sega Dreamcast}}-like NAOMI hardware, ''Super Monkey Ball'' was ironically Sega's first major franchise to bypass their own consoles entirely, first landing on the Nintendo [=GameCube=] instead. The gameplay is similar to the famous ''VideoGame/MarbleMadness'' arcade game, with one important difference: '''[[EverythingsBetterWithMonkeys MONKEYS!]]''' Oh, and something about tilting the world instead of having direct control of your character. But mostly monkeys.

As mentioned above, the setup is quite similar to ''Marble Madness'', with the player tilting their monkey character through a series of themed worlds. The game's challenge is in the fact that the vast majority of levels have no walls, forcing the player to avoid falling off the edges of the floor. Oh, and a majority of levels feel like they were designed by an insane physics professor.

* ''Monkey Ball'' (The arcade game that started it all. Used a banana-shaped control stick and introduced [=AiAi=], [=MeeMee=], and Baby as characters.)
* ''Super Monkey Ball'' (A UsefulNotes/NintendoGameCube remake of ''Monkey Ball''. Introduced Party Mode and [=GonGon=] as a character.)
* ''Super Monkey Ball 2'' (Obviously, the sequel to Super Monkey Ball. Introducted Dr. Bad-Boon, but he wasn't a playable character and more [[BigBad a central antagonist]] for the game's Story Mode.)
* ''Super Monkey Ball Deluxe'' (A remake of Super Monkey Ball and its sequel, for [=PS2=] and Xbox. It also featured a number of original levels as well as adding brand new levels exclusive to the game.)
* ''Super Monkey Ball Jr.'' (The first mobile version, it featured full 3D graphics...''on the UsefulNotes/GameBoyAdvance.'')
* ''Super Monkey Ball Touch & Roll'' (Another attempt at a mobile ''Monkey Ball'', this one on the UsefulNotes/NintendoDS.)
* ''Super Monkey Ball Adventure'' (An adventure game with less emphasis on the party and regular modes.)
* ''Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz'' (A UsefulNotes/{{Wii}} launch title, ''Banana Blitz'' featured a new cel-shaded look, motion controls, and [[SturgeonsLaw tons upon tons of party games.]] Introduced Doctor and [=Yanyan=] as characters. A HD remaster was announced in 2019 for UsefulNotes/Playstation4, UsefulNotes/XboxOne, UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch and PC. Oh, and VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog acts as a cameo playable character.)
* ''Super Monkey Ball iPhone'' (retains the look and motion controls of ''Banana Blitz'', using the iPhone's tilt motions.)
* ''Super Monkey Ball Step and Roll'' (Another Wii game, using the Balance Board this time. Introduced Jam as a character.)
* ''Super Monkey Ball 3D'' (UsefulNotes/Nintendo3DS launch title outside Japan, introduced Jet as a character.)
* ''Super Monkey Ball: Ticket Blitz'' (Another arcade game. Used a trackball for the controls.)
* ''Super Monkey Ball: Banana Splitz'' (A title for the UsefulNotes/PlaystationVita. You were able to create your own stages by taking pictures of, well, whatever you wanted.)
* ''Super Monkey Ball Bounce'' (A Peggle clone for iOS and Android devices.)
* ''Super Monkey Ball: Banana Mania'' (A VideoGameRemake of ''Super Monkey Ball'', ''Super Monkey Ball 2'', and ''Super Monkey Ball Deluxe'' with the art style and characters of the modern games for UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch, UsefulNotes/Playstation4, UsefulNotes/PlayStation5, UsefulNotes/XboxOne, UsefulNotes/XboxSeriesXAndS, and PC.)

''Super Monkey Ball'' is a series of arcade-style platform games created by Creator/{{Sega}}'s Amusement Vision division (now known as [[{{VideoGame/Yakuza}} Ryu ga Gotoku Studio]]). Though dating back to an UsefulNotes/ArcadeGame running on the UsefulNotes/{{Sega Dreamcast}}-like NAOMI hardware, ''Super Monkey Ball'' was Sega's first major franchise to bypass their own consoles entirely. The gameplay is similar to the famous ''VideoGame/MarbleMadness'' arcade game, with one important difference: '''[[EverythingsBetterWithMonkeys MONKEYS!]]''' Oh, and something about tilting the world instead of having direct control of your character. But mostly monkeys.