There’s one way that I can think to describe this insane game.  It’s like a vividly awesome remix to the brick breaker genre except with monkeys and a gorilla.  So instead of controlling just a rectangle box, you get to control a fully formed Gorilla named Ape.  I know you guys are aware of my gaming awesomeness and how I tackle just about every platform there is so when I tell you that Chillingo’s Monkey Slam is a fun time on iPad then believe me.

The object of Monkey Slam is to literally slam the monkey into bricks and collect as much fruit as you can.  If you can aim the monkey just right, you’ll clear out the entire level.  It’s pretty basic in control so it lends itself to just about every age group.  You simply move your finger on the iPad or other iOS device left and right to move Ape.  Although easy enough, at times I ran into a bit of lag when getting Ape to move quickly to the fruit.  It didn’t matter much because the monkey bouncing around was just too funny.

The 3D level design and the characters are a lot of fun to see and play with.  The levels are beautifully done.  To be honest, the game is just downright cute!  When you gain the power ups, the game gets even more fun.  Throwing bananas, seeing a huge Ape bounce Monkey around … it’s all just a blast to play.  And you get to play around in four worlds; Monkey Reef, Far East, Jungle Island and Space World.

Although the levels and detail are done well, Monkey Slam can’t escape from lacking things to really do.  As with most games of this genre, there’s really only so much you can do.  In this case there’s only so much fruit and destruction to cause before it sets in that you’re still only catching fruit.  Those who enjoy the genre won’t find many that do it better than Monkey Slam though.

Chillingo has a house full of awesome titles to choose from and this one adds to the stable of quality.  It’s available for 99 cents in the App Store.

8.0
“Standout”