This article was originally written for TheNintendoVillage.com, a website I founded and ran from 2018 to 2021.

Back in October SEGA released a remake of the Wii’s Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz, giving it a visual makeover and subsequently sticking a HD at the end of the title. Whilst it was good to see the series returning, a few questioned the selection of that particular game for a remaster.

The game’s producer and director Masao Shirosaki has now told Crunchyroll that he’s well aware of the love for the earlier games in the series, and even hinted that there could be a brand new game if sales of Banana Blitz HD are high enough:

“I am aware that the most favored titles are the first two games. If there is enough support for Banana Blitz HD, this will open up doors for remaking the first two games or even a whole new title to the series. But for now, I’d be happy if everyone has fun playing Banana Blitz HD.”

Obviously there’s no indication on whether more remakes or a new game has actually been discussed at SEGA, or whether this is just Shirosaki speculating on basic business principles. Still, we’d love to see a brand new entry into the series, and we’d bite someone’s hand off for a remake of the original two games!

Sirosaki does state that the reason for remastering Banana Blitz was that it was the easiest one to do given the limited time and budget available. So it makes sense that if the testing of the waters with that game does well, it will open up opportunities for bigger Monkey Ball projects.

Did you pick up Banana Blitz HD? Let us know what you think of it - and whether you’d prefer more remakes or a brand new game - down in the comments.

Source: Crunchyroll