After a first Evercade released in 2020 which conquered my heart as a nostalgic and materialistic gamer, Blaze Entertainment is regarding to release a new version of its cartridge console: the EVERCADE EXP. The great strength of the Evercade system is to offer consoles of good finish and at an affordable price on which games run under official licenses in cartridge format. These often include several titles from a publisher for less than €20.
Following the success of its first version and attentive to player feedback, the British manufacturer has made many improvements to this 2022 version. Although it is technically not much more powerful than its predecessor, it has a larger battery, Built-in WiFi, additional buttons and a slimmer, more successful design that surrounds the crown jewel: a beautiful High-Resolution IPS screen.
But the most important novelty of the machine is its ability to be played both in Yoko mode (horizontal screen) and in Tate mode (vertical). This allows (like the fabulous and too little known Wonderswan) to use the screen as the original developer had intended, without having to stretch/distort the game. ’em up.
And if in addition I tell you that for 129.99 € you will find in the box the console with 18 mythical Capcom games (Final Fight, 1943…) preloaded, its charging cable, the collection cartridge IREM Arcade 1 (R-Type , In The Hunt…) you will understand that it deserves its place on your Christmas list.
Do you remember that marble game you had when you were little? But let’s see: the one where you had to guide a ball to the exit avoiding holes, walls and other obstacles by tilting the toy. Well, for 20 years now the Monkey Ball saga has been the perfect heir to this concept and what might be better than a Maxi Best of episode with a banana supplement and bonus characters from other Sega licenses to celebrate this anniversary with dignity?
In SMBBM (for friends) you direct AiAi, a cute little monkey locked in a ball, by directly tilting the game board. Our hero must thus reach the end of a path full of pitfalls while collecting as many bananas as of his infernal descent.
The one-player mode takes up the 300 best levels of the previous opuses, you will be able as you progress to unlock many bonuses and admire several cartoon scenes with the most beautiful effect. In addition to this already generous mode, we find in SMBMM a dozen mini-games from Super Monkey Ball Deluxe. These delicacies are playable up to 4 on the same screen and send us back to these simple and effective pleasures that we have known in titles like Wii Sports to name only him. Laughter guaranteed!
Leave aside your AK-47s and your virtual footballs: you will see how this descendant of Marble Madness is addictive, fun and offers a motivating challenge alone or with others. The only banana peel on his journey: downloadable content at a price a little too high and the absence of an online mode (excluding ranking).
Game available on PC, Ps4, PS5, Xbox and Nintendo Switch systems.
