We’re not sure how Nokia does it (well, we guess money) but they’ve once again managed to give Lumia users something for nothing again. Sega’s Super Monkey Ball 2: Sakura Edition, or just SMB2:SE for you shorthand types, is now live in the Nokia Collection and is completely free.
Now the big difference here is this is a non-Xbox Live branded version. That’s good news and bad news as it means you can’t grab those precious Achievements if that’s your thing. Luckily for us, it’s not (though our games guru Paul is surely in another camp). The good news, as we’ve outlined before in our ongoing Xbox games critique is this game can potentially be updated now more frequently.
SMB2:SE is a significant bump in quality over the original Super Monkey Ball though some may find the controls a bit challenging and the graphics a bit dated. The Xbox version does garner 4 out of 5 stars, which is actually pretty decent though.
The game’s conceit is simple: roll a monkey around in a clear ball through mazes while picking up bananas. Makes total sense to us. You even get to choose your chimp for that custom feel. As a nice throwback to arcade games of past, SMB2:SE does work well on mobile as a good time waster with fun and challenging levels. Plus it’s kind of adorable and so darn chipper it’s hard not to like it.
You can pick up SMB2:SE for free here in the Nokia Collection. For those with non-Lumias, you can pick up the SMB2:SE for $2.99 with a free trial (and Xbox status) here in the Store. Thanks, Er. Akshat for the tip!
