It’s that time again, we have an all new sale featuring games across the PlayStation Store and the Nintendo eShop! The sales are only available for a limited time – the Nintendo E-shop promotion ends on March 31st and all PlayStation Store promos close on April 1st. Check out what’s available, head to the shops on your console, and grab any games you might have missed!

The sale is open to United States, Canada, Brazil and Mexico customers.

Nintendo E-Shop

Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed Wii U – Current Price $39.99 / Sale Price $29.99

PlayStation Network

Super Monkey Ball Banana Splitz PlayStation Vita – Current Price $29.99 / Sale Price $14.99
Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed PlayStation Vita – Current Price $29.99 / Sale Price $19.99
Virtua Tennis 4 World Tour PlayStation Vita – Current Price $29.99 / Sale Price $14.99
* Sale prices vary due to local currency

As always, we love to hear if you are picking up any titles in the sale, so drop a comment below and tell us what you are picking up!

We’re still singing the praises of Super Monkey Ball Banana Splitz, and are happy to unveil the final part of the Super Monkey Ball Musical! Be sure to check out the first and second parts before jumping into the thrilling conclusion!

We’re still singing the praises of Super Monkey Ball Banana Splitz and are happy to unveil the second part of the Super Monkey Ball Musical! Be sure to check out the first part before jumping into the second video below!

Stay tuned for the third and final musical next week for the stunning conclusion!

Super Monkey Ball Banana Splitz is out worldwide for the PlayStation Vita! The game is a return to form, offering a much increased challenge for all areas of the game – something fans of the series have been asking for since the Gamecube releases! Banana Splitz also features an extensive level creator for those that want to devise some devilish levels for friends, and our DLC updates gives you new tools to help realize those insane creations.

The Downloadable Content Packs

The DLC updates are broken out into packs with different tools, props, and textures to help make your levels all your own. Find the pack that best suits your needs!

SEGA Grey Pack – Include the SEGA Saturn system and Logo in your designs!
SEGA Black Pack – Include the SEGA MegaDrive / Genesis system and logo in your designs!
SEGA White Pack – Include the SEGA Dreamcast system and logo in your designs!
Sonic Pack – Update your levels to include a Sonic the Hedgehog statue!

Hard Pack - Tons of new slimmer elements, including L, T, and + (plus) shapes.
Professional Pack -All new elements, that are even more challenging than the Hard Pack, can be found in this Professional Pack!
Variety Pack – Update your levels with pyramids, bumps, cones and more!
Puyo Puyo Pack – The update adds a tile containing PuyoPuyos that are hard to navigate across!

DLC Pack Availability in North America

All packs will be available on October 30th in the PlayStation Network store for the low low price of $1.99! PlayStation Plus users can pick them up at 80% off! What a deal!

DLC Pack Availability in Europe

The DLC Packs will be available across the PlayStation Network store in weekly releases. All updates will be completely free in the weekly releases and available at a later date in a bundle pack for purchase, so don’t miss out! Check back each week for two new packs!

October 31st: SEGA Grey Pack & SEGA Black Pack

November 7th: SEGA White Pack & Sonic Pack

November 14th: Hard Pack & Professional Pack

November 21st: Variety Pack & Puyo Puyo Pack

For more information on Super Monkey Ball Banana Splitz, visit http://www.sega.com/supermonkeyball/

The Super Monkey Ball Banana Splitz Demo is now available for Europe! Built from the ground up for the PlayStation Vita system, Super Monkey Ball Banana Splitz takes full advantage of key features including motion sensor function, dual analog sticks, screen (touchscreen), rear touch pad, Wi-Fi and the camera.

What’s in the Demo?

・Enjoy up to six levels in Challenge Mode and Two exhilarating mini-games.
・Create your own stage using the camera in Edit Mode.

Let us know what you think!

I’m Jun Tokuhara, the producer of Super Monkey Ball Banana Splitz. Today’s update is about the edit mode. In SUPER MONKEY BALL SPLITZ, you can easily create your very own stage by using the PlayStation Vita’s camera feature. Once you have created map data, not only will it be saved in your PlayStation Vita, but you can also upload it to PlayStation Network to share it, and also to play the match on that map with players around the world!

It is fun to take pictures of things around you randomly, but today I will teach you the know-how necessary for creating stages in an intended design. Reproduce the interesting shape and difficult level designs so you can surprise your friends and opponents!

First, I will teach you the points you should be careful of, when shooting the photo. The stage is created based on the light, shade and color of the photo.

Below are examples of photos that would be hard to create an intended stage design.

Shadow is halfway in the photo

It would be difficult for the game to recognize a shape when a shadow darker than the object appears in the photo.

Too slim/too small
If the game determines that there is no object, a minimum sized map will be created.

Similar colors adjoining

If the object and the background merge, the camera will focus on a different area.

Shoot the photo as you keep in mind the points listed above, and you’ll be able to create a stage with an intended design.

Now I would like to show you 2 examples of an edited stage. One is based on a face everyone would think of trying. The other is trying to design detailed stage by drawing the design on a paper.

When created based on a face

To create an intended design, using a face, shoot the photo so the line and brightness of the face is clearly displayed.

When created based on a sketch

The area filled out in dark colors will be the island. However, based on conditions, the stage may reflect only the outline of the sketch, or the island and sky may invert, so keep trying until you get it the way you want it to look like.

Although using the same object for the photo, the difficulty of the stage changes based on how hard you shake the PlayStation Vita, while the stage is being created. Shake harder than your previous edit and you’ll see changes such as, parts connecting the islands changing from a rope to a rail, the route to the goal increasing in length, even moving floors appearing in the stage! All will increase the difficulty, so experiment and see what you can come up with!

Edited stages are formed by combining square shaped parts.

The varieties of these parts are limited at the start. However, after the game is released, we will be adding parts as DLC so look out for them![m3] [K4]

If you have any questions, feel free to leave comments. OK then, see you next time!

I’m Jun Tokuhara, the producer of Super Monkey Ball Banana Splitz – the game consists of the familiar Monkey Ball mode in which you roll and guide the ball to the goal and a Party mode which you can enjoy various types of games. Today, I would like to introduce the games included in the Party mode. It’s going to be a bit long, but are you ready?!

SUPER MONKEY BALL SPLITZ contains 8 party type games with a wide variety; from the games you can quickly play to the games full with volume which you can spend a great deal of time on. Every game supports ad hoc and Wi-Fi multiplayer battle, so not only you can party with people near you, but with people all around the world. Oh, of course, Monkey Ball supports ad hoc and Wi-Fi as well! Now, I’d like to pick up one game and go in details.
*Multiplayer battle for Pixie Hunt supports ad hoc only.

Monkey Target

A well-known game, where you glide through the sky and try to neatly land on the target located on the sea. This time, you can interrupt your opponent by flicking their ball!

Monkey Bingo

Compete with your rivals in placing the balls into holes located in the stages. If you accomplish a bingo, you’ll receive high scores!

Monkey Bowling

After you throw the ball, tilt the PS Vita to make the ball curve! Will you be able to get a strike in all of the lanes?

Monkey Rodeo

A game where you flick the ball to gather bananas by using the rear touch pad. Unleash power charged jump attacks to snatch bananas from your rival as well!

Number Ball

Touch the numbered balls in the correct order to win! How high can you go?

Battle Billiards

The goal of this game is to drop your rivals using 3 balls. Make good use of the balls that contain monkeys, since they give you more points!

Pixie Hunt

Search and capture pixies hiding around you by using the camera. Drag them continuously to earn high scores!

A game full with volume: Love Maze. Supports 2 player co-op play! Development team’s favorite!

We have made a game so fun that we want to sell it as a different game entirely! (lol) Rules are simple, easy to control, but your brain and hands will be in absolute panic!

There are 2 mazes, one in the left, one in the right, and a ball for each maze. The left stick controls the left ball, the right stick controls the other and both player head to the goal. However, left and right balls are connected each other with the band, so you need to be very careful not to move away too far from the other ball unless the band is cut off.

If you play on your own there are no time limits so you can enjoy a great deal of time on solving puzzles. 30 crazy stages await you with tough challenges, such as floors that move around in high speed and paths that switch the right and left of the balls around. How confusing!

Not only is the clear time saved in the console, but you can also compete with players around the world as the game supports PSN’s high score ranking.

When playing multiplayer battle, you will be competing by time, just like a time attack in a race game. Play through the stage carefully as you check your opponent’s progress. One small mistake may lead to your defeat.

You can also play the single player mode as 2 player co-op by controlling each analog stick separately between 2 people. Sit close together, communicate and aim for the goal.

After you reach the goal, your synchronization level will be displayed. When played as single player, it shows how skillful you are, and when played as 2 player co-op, it shows how well you and your partner have cooperated. If you played as a couple, then I guess it’s all about love power!

Thank you very much for all of the various comments on the previous blog! About the request for information on each world’s composition and level design, I will give them out later on.

The next blog will be a how-to on creating nice stages in the edit mode. If you have any questions on the game, feel free to leave comments. Ok then, see you next time!

Hello everyone. And to those who saw me at E3, long time no see! I’m Jun Tokuhara, the producer of Super Monkey Ball Banana Splitz. For the next few updates, I’d like to introduce the fun factors of Super Monkey Ball Banana Splitz and tips to play the game.

Let me start from the original concept of the Monkey Ball world.

A time machine has finally been made. However…!?

Doctor, a monkey good at making machines, has invented a time machine and the development has finally finished! Above is an image of AiAi trying it out right after the development was completed.

They were supposed to warp into the dinosaur age, however….what they saw instead was a world of tin plate toys, with trees and rocks made of papier-mâché, and dinosaurs moving with spring gimmicks.

Yes – the time machine made by Doctor was actually a toy time machine and that seems to be the reason why they have warped into a world of toys. Travel beyond time, and step into an adventurous journey you have never seen before!

Introduction of the Worlds

World 1 “Tinny Jungle”

An ancient jungle set in the age of dinosaurs. The world is made of tin plates, and it moves by using spring gimmicks. The level design of the beginner course is somewhat “old style” and you can play the good old stages you may have seen before in the past. In the final stages of the intermediate course and over, a battle against a dinosaur awaits you!

World 2 “Clay Civilization”

An ancient civilized world with a symbolic giant monkey statue. The texture of the clay seems very realistic, but the floor is made of timber so the ball will roll just fine. lol

World 3  “Block Kingdom”

A middle age kingdom, of swords and magic, formed with wooden blocks.

The world may look cute, but the difficulty is pretty hard!

World 4 “Cardboard Canyon”

An age of Western settlement, but the world is made by cardboard, creating a somewhat warm atmosphere. The final stage requires hard actions such as jumping across running trains. …hey, I have a feeling I’ve seen that monkey on the driver’s seat before?! lol

World 5 “Polygon Galaxy”

In the future, the world is right in the middle of a space war. The world feels like a good old video game. Unfortunately you won’t be able to control planes, but later on, you will be boarding a mother ship awaiting far away, so be aware!

World ? “Super Monkey Hall”

This is the interspace of time, during time travel. You won’t be able to play this world from the start, so go for it!  The path to become a Monkey Ball master is long and tough!

If you have any questions or comments towards the article, please comment below.

OK then, see you next time!

We’re pretty excited about the upcoming exclusive PS Vita release of Super Monkey Ball: Banana Splitz on October 23 – the game is coming along nicely! We have a lot of familiar Monkey Ball features returning along with some fan favorites, as well as some new tech and new goodies to take full advantage of PS Vita.

Super Monkey Ball has always been built on the premise of accessibility and challenging gameplay – easy to pick up, difficult to master. We’ve made the transition for new players a lot easier, with a gentler difficulty curve in the beginning that helps you master the tough challenges that will eventually come your way. And don’t worry, we’ve got some punch in there for the veteran Monkey Ball fans looking for a challenge, from more varied levels with new routes and shortcuts, a higher degree of challenges, and the ever- popular minigames!

While the full game is built on personal challenges, the minigames have always been about multiplayer with your friends. Super Monkey Ball: Banana Splitz enables both local multiplayer and online multiplayer over Wifi — a first for the series! We’re bringing back all the minigame hits too, from Monkey Bowling, to my personal favorite: Monkey Target. There are eight total modes to play and compete in, all of which leverage PS Vita’s unique hardware strengths.

We’re also making sure that Super Monkey Ball Banana Splitz uses a lot of the built in Vita tech for controls across the mini-games and main game modes. You can use full tilt control to navigate the entire game or opt to play with the control sticks – it’s entirely up to you. My favorite feature of the game is the level generator that uses the camera – simply take a photo of anything and you’ll be able to craft a level generated from the photo. It’s pretty amazing, but wait, there’s more! The difficulty can be set by shaking the Vita device, the harder you shake, the more difficult the level becomes! Shake lightly and you’ll have an easier time – it’s entirely up to you. Pretty impressive and a lot of fun both in creation and playing the levels you’ve made.

There’s ton to do in the game and we hope you enjoy our newest trailer, featuring a lot of the same stuff I’ve talked about today.

We’re very happy to announce that Super Monkey Ball Banana Splitz will be available on PlayStation Vita systems on October 23. AiAi, MeeMee, GonGon and Baby all return in the most advanced Monkey Ball title yet.

Super Monkey Ball Banana Splitz contains more than 100 stages of puzzle mayhem and eight mini-games (including such fan favorites as Monkey Target and Monkey Bingo) as well as a full complement of Vita-specific features that take advantage of the powerful handheld console. Tilt control functionality allows gamers to step inside the Monkey Ball and negotiate the game world using motion control, while the PS Vita’s camera can be used to capture real-world objects to create custom stages within the game.

Online multiplayer means gamers will not only be able to challenge their friends and family, but also go bananas at each other just about anywhere in the world and Global Leaderboards – accessible via GPS – will set the precedent for the most talented monkey manipulator around!