Return to Castle Monkey Ball is a fan game I didn’t know I needed

This unholy union of Wolfenstein 3D and Super Monkey Ball works surprisingly well, and it’s playable right in your browser

As much as I try to stay off video game blogs and forums on the weekend to give my mind a breather, I can’t help but peek. Sometimes I’ll see a story that I know I want to cover first thing Monday morning.

The idea of a Wolfenstein 3D-meets-Super Monkey Ball fan game blew me away on Sunday, and wouldn’t you know it, I’m still in love with this surprisingly successful mash-up of two very distinct games. The fan game in question – Return to Castle Monkey Ball – was created by developer @Nickireda. You can play it for free, right in your browser, via Itch.io. It doesn’t get much easier.

From the story (“You stand over the guard’s body, grabbing frantically for a banana…”) to the faithful gameplay (you’ll collect bananas and slam your ball into Nazis to extend the timer) to the classic Wolfenstein presentation, so much about this project feels right. It shouldn’t work, but it does – wonderfully. Even the thrill of soaring through an end-of-level gate translates to this game.

I’m not sure who else at Sega needs to hear this, but you know we want a proper Super Monkey Ball sequel when folks are out here putting this much time, energy, and creativity into their fan games.

What’s next in the world of outlandish video game mash-ups?