Blast Monkeys a Cute, Challenging and Hysterically Addictive Physics Based Puzzle Game
by Paul Wilks
May 23, 2011 9:00 AM –
Install
Blast Monkeys is a physics based puzzle game which requires buckets of good timing, logic and patience in equal measure. The premise of the game is to shoot a monkey out of a canon and into a rainbow goal full of bananas. In getting to the goal, you furry little friend must collect 3 extra bananas in order to eventually unlock later levels. The game in total has 90 levels of this potassium-fuelled goodness.
Price: Free
Tested on: HTC Desire HD
Content Rating: Everyone
Pros & Cons:
Pros
- The physics of the game is spot on.
- A whole 90 levels.
- 3 different worlds, Jungle World, Sky World and Factory World, with promise of more to come!
- Challenging gameplay.
- Fun graphics.
- Incredible level design.
- The manner in which you can progress without collecting all the bananas means you will not hit a seemingly ‘impossible’ level and not be able to move forward.
- Highly addictive.
Cons
- Sounds could be improved, they are a bit basic.
Features:
The thing about Blast Monkeys that struck me after playing it for about an hour was the intelligence behind the level design. They range from incredibly simple to outrageously fiendish yet each one clearly has a lot of thought gone into it. I have to take my hat off for the developers on this because it’s really impressive, but additionally they have crammed 90 of these levels into a free game. The game is great for children as the cute graphics and simple gameplay can attest, but the way in which you have to collect all the bananas to access the higher levels means adults (and incredibly bright children) will enjoy the challenge of the game too.
The basic concept is to shoot a monkey out of a canon. Before you feel the need to contend the ethics of this sort of behaviour, it’s not real, it’s just a game and I’m nearly completely certain no monkeys would have been actually harmed in researching the game. The premise then is to send the monkey into a glowing rainbow of bananas, collecting 3 extra bananas on the way. Levels are designed so that platforms, walls, cogs, etc. can help/hinder your monkey’s progress; the idea being you must aim just right for the monkey to get his bananas. Sometime the goal is very easy to reach, but collecting the bananas makes it much tougher than it looks.
Initially I found the game quite easy and, as I approached level 30 thought too easy, even with collecting the bananas. However, I realised I was wrong when I discovered there were 2 more worlds I hadn’t tried yet! Progressing to those worlds require monkey coins in order to unlock them. You earn monkey coins by playing the game but if you don’t have the patience and you badly want to try ‘Factory World’ you can earn these coins in other ways. This is an interesting marketing model to use and quite novel. You can earn more coins by a) rating the game in the Android Market, b) tweeting about it (on Twitter duh!), or c) downloading their other title called Zoo Club. These give you extra monkey coins to access the other worlds.
This all makes for a polished and addictive game that is thoroughly enjoyable and fun to play. The only thing I think that lets it down marginally is the lack of good sound. It’s currently just a set of basic beeps and tinkles to demonstrate progress of failure on the level. It’s ‘ok’ but it could perhaps be better, though I should stress this detracts not one jot from the gameplay.
Watch on Mobile
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Blast Monkeys In-game shot
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Blast Monkeys In-game shot 2
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Blast Monkeys In-game shot 3
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Blast Monkeys Those bubbles help you
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Blast Monkeys Don’t let Monkey hit the electricity
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Blast Monkeys Level complete screen
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Blast Monkeys World Complete screen
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Blast Monkeys Buying sky world
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Blast Monkeys Unlock worlds buy earning monkey coins.
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Blast Monkeys They tease us.
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Blast Monkeys Loading screen
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Blast Monkeys Menu
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Blast Monkeys Choosing world screen
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Blast Monkeys Level select screen
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Blast Monkeys News Screen
Fun Factor:
The game is huge banana-stuffed bags of fun. Kids and adults will enjoy the game which is easy to play but insanely tough to complete.
Addictive:
Painfully, painfully addictive. If you have one competitive bone in your body this game will poke it. You will want to try and collect all the bananas, on every level, and you might not be able to rest until you have.
Graphics:
The graphics are good and the physics of the game are exceptional. The game is a series of levels with a nonplussed looking cartoon monkey face being shot from a retracting canon. It’s basic- there are puzzle games with far better graphics but it’s themed a certain way and it is consistent to that. You won’t be writing home about the graphics but they are pretty good nonetheless.
Accelerometer, Vibration & Sound:
The sound is perhaps the only let down in a genuinely compelling game to play, but then I’d say I’m being a little picky here.