Return to Castle Monkey Ball is exactly what you think it is

Ever sat there and thought "Man, Wolfenstein 3D is great but it really needs more Super Monkey Ball?" No? Well, maybe you should, because there's now a fangame which satisfies that exact need.

Thanks to creator Nickireda Return to Castle Monkey Ball combines all the chaotic physics-based fun of Super Monkey Ball with Wolfenstein 3D's Nazi fighting mayhem (thanks Kotaku). B.J. Bakowicz has traded in his arsenal of weapons in favour of rolling around in a plastic ball a lá AiAi. There are eight procedurally generated Nazi fortresses to roll through, with bananas to collect and enemies to bonk with your ball.

I had a go on the easiest difficulty, "Can I play, Daddy?" and quickly remembered how awful I've always been at Super Monkey Ball. It's a very strange juxtaposition, particularly Wolfenstein 3D's bleak castle being narrated by Super Monkey Ball's enthusiastic announcer. But there's something strangely compelling about barrelling monkeys into Nazis.

The fangame is available for free over on itch.io. It's a fun way to spend some time, and a bit of silly yet nostalgic goodness to brighten a bleak start to the year.

Mollie spent her early childhood deeply invested in games like Killer Instinct, Toontown and Audition Online, which continue to form the pillars of her personality today. She joined PC Gamer in 2020 as a news writer and now lends her expertise to write a wealth of features, guides and reviews with a dash of chaos. She can often be found causing mischief in Final Fantasy 14, using those experiences to write neat things about her favourite MMO. When she's not staring at her bunny girl she can be found sweating out rhythm games, pretending to be good at fighting games or spending far too much money at her local arcade.