Categories: NintendoReviews

Review: Bomb Monkey

Sometimes simple is the best. Bomb Monkey fits that description to a tee and hey, that’s not a bad thing by any means.

Coming from developer Renegade Kid, the team behind the fantastic Mutant Mudds, this puzzle title is definitely worth your attention.

The premis is fairly simple, stack same colored ‘bloks’ until you get a bomb, throw down a bomb and the bloks are destroyed. By holding the 3DS sideways (like a book), you control the monkey by moving left and right with the D pad and pressing down to drop the item. If you let the bloks get to the very top of the screen, you lose. You never know what colored block you’ll get, and you’ll never know when you’ll get a bomb so you have to be strategic about your placement. Sounds simple? It is, but there’s more to it.

Bomb Monkey is a fantastic buy for those looking for a twist on a traditional puzzle video game.

You’ll get these red colored directional bloks that are meant to link up as combos. They’ll either be horizontal or vertical. When you bomb that blok type, you’ll destroy blocks all along that row or column. On top of that, lettered blocks will appear as you’re playing the game. Collect these to spell out the word “BOMB” and you go into a frenzy with bombs. You can drop only bombs for a limited time to clear your way of bloks.

The game isn’t light on modes either, there are actually quite a few. The first is Endless mode, which is pretty self explanatory. You play the game until you lose and your high score is displayed on the main menu as well. The other three modes are called Rescue, 3 Minute and Numbers. Out of the three modes, Rescue and Numbers are the most interesting.

Rescue mode is essentially endless mode, but you’re trying to free your monkey friend from a cage. Once you bomb the cage enough and free him, the game is done. Likewise, this mode’s high score is also displayed in the main menu.

This is perfect for playing on your morning or afternoon commute.

3 Minute challenges you to get the highest score you can obtain in, as you might have guessed, 3 minutes. This mode is absolutely perfect for short bursts of play, especially if you’re on the go. This is perfect for playing on your morning or afternoon commute.

The last mode is called Numbers. Numbers is all about bombing the numbers 1,2,3 in order. You keep trying until you eventually lose. This mode also keeps track of your high score. I found this mode the most difficult of the three because sometimes you’ll bomb a different number by accident because of it’s proximity to the other numbered blok.

Lastly, the game features two types of multiplayer modes. The first mode is a 2 player versus mode that has you and a friend battle each other to see who lasts longer. The way that the multiplayer works is pretty interesting as well. You use one 3DS and one player uses the touch screen and D pad, while the other player uses the top screen and the ABXY buttons for movement. It works well and you’ll definitely have a lot of fun playing with a friend.

The other 2 player mode is a co-op mode, where you and a friend work cooperatively to try to get the highest score you can. Much like the other modes, once you lose the game is over and the high score is displayed on the main menu.

Although Bomb Monkey is a ton of fun for a low price of $4.99, it’s not without it’s flaws. The game only features two musical tracks, one for the main menu and one for the main game. It’s not a huge issue, but the music for Mutant Mudds was so fantastic, that this is kind of disappointing. The other flaw is that there’s no online multiplayer. This will be an issue for some players, but if you have your 3DS on you often, you can whip it out and play with another player without the hassle of them having a 3DS too.

Without a doubt the largest downfall of the game is the lack of integrated leaderboards. There are leaderboards on Renegade Kid’s website, but it would’ve been nicer to have them integrated into the game. Not being able to compare your high scores with your 3DS friend’s scores is a shame, this could have made for an interesting bit of competition between friends.

Bomb Monkey is a fantastic buy for those looking for a twist on a traditional puzzle video game. Considering the game is only $4.99, it’d be foolish not to recommend the game, despite it’s lack of leaderboards, it’s still great fun and well worth the price of admission.

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Why it may be helpful for people with anxiety.

  • Simple design
  • Pick up and Play
  • Play in short bursts
  • $4.99, you can’t go wrong

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Why it may not be helpful for people with anxiety.

  • Fast pace as you get to higher levels
  • Can get stressful when it’s hectic

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Why you need to play this game.

Bomb Monkey is a fun and simple puzzle game that anyone can get into. It’s easy to pick up and play and understand. It’s challenging and engaging and offers enough at the affordable price. It’s definitely worth owning even if you’re remotely interested in puzzle games.

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This review was based on the 3DS version that was provided by the reviewer.

Video Review

Haziq Agha

21 Year Old, Avid Gaming Fan, Technology and Open Source Junkie.