I've been looking for a Super Monkey Ball-like experience for a long time and Y2ROLL caught my eye. With the tight gameplay, Y2K visuals, amazing DnB soundtrack, and relative simplicity of it all, to my delight Y2ROLL delivered exactly what I wanted and more while also establishing its own identity.
The Y2K vibe is incredibly genuine. Sometimes when playing this game, I'd forgot I was playing a game released this year and not an older PS1 game. All the menus are snappy and instant, and there is virtually no loading, allowing you to get right into and out of the game very quickly. This is something I miss from older cartridge-based games - and, given the resources of current generation computers, something I'd had hoped for from modern games as well. The soundtrack for each world is incredible, hitting a fine balance between being fresh enough for repeated listens as you try again and again for gems and gold medals while also not being distracting. There is also a settings toggle that applies a retro filter to the soundtrack, making it sound more muffled like it was on a CRT. The soundtrack is great in both forms, so give it a try and see what you like best!
Regarding the visuals, one thing that stands out is the blur filter being on by default. It hurt my eyes so I turned it off. You also have a choice to remove a dithering effect for more N64-style visuals. The models are just what you'd expect from a Y2K-era game, and the backgrounds are lovely and abstract. However, I personally would've liked to see more animated parts in the backgrounds.
Gameplay-wise, if you like Super Monkey Ball, you will probably enjoy Y2ROLL. Y2ROLL has very well-designed levels and a nice difficulty curve that welcomes both newcomers and veterans. Some of the later levels really test your skills, and it feels very rewarding once you figure out how to beat them and pull it off. There's a Campaign mode with infinite tries that lets you play each level as many times as you want. Each world is split into sets of 10+ levels with a different theme. You can also try your hand at Arcade mode, which has what I feel is a very rewarding lives-based system. For levels you're less confident in doing fast, you can grab all the gems to gain a life; or if you're a pro at one level, you can fly through it to get a Gold Medal, which also grants a life. I really love this design, as it gives me a choice in how to manage my lives throughout each Arcade run while nicely balancing the risks and rewards of each approach.
What differentiates Y2ROLL is a drift mechanic that adds more depth to the core gameplay, especially for those who want to try to get faster and faster times. The drift also involves moving the stick, so there's a choice to make between making tight turns or performing just a bit more drift to squeeze out a better time. If you're like me and like doing levels fast, you may find your thumb getting tired with constant drifting.
Speaking of which, I played on a GameCube controller, and I'd wholeheartedly recommend playing this game with a controller for the most accuracy and best experience. Since I have a two-port GameCube adapter, I had some trouble getting the game to work with the right controller and the right buttons. After enabling and configuring Steam Input, I got it working as expected.
There is a level editor, but I haven't used it yet. You can upload or download levels to Steam Workshop or download them locally (big plus!). I'm looking forward to seeing more custom level packs in the future!
Regarding cons: some of the same flaws from Super Monkey Ball were carried over. The camera may be difficult to work with and obscure the ball at times, and there's no way to see what's coming up next until you commit to moving. Y2ROLL mitigates this by having settings to slightly adjust camera damping (how fast the camera moves). On some of the more precise levels, I found this to be helpful.
Another one is gem placement. Some of the gems were tedious to collect repeatedly when going for All Gems since they were just lined around the platform at the start of the level. They weren't difficult nor interesting to collect, and I'd say too many levels have something similar. Another downside is one specific later level that I still can't figure out how to beat reliably. Considering the other levels in the game don't have this problem, I can't help but feel this one-off must've had some plan that's not obvious to many players.
Furthermore, when scrolling through menus, holding down the direction doesn't scroll through the menu automatically and you have to press the button each time, which can get cumbersome. I would also like to see wraparound for the menus. This isn't the biggest deal since there are very few menus, but it can get in the way when trying different levels in campaign.
Lastly, it doesn't show which times you need to get a Gold Medal. For one specific level, this was especially painful because it requires a lot of drifting for a long period of time, which made it hard to continue because of how tired my thumb was getting. I'd recommend the developer relaxes the Gold Medal requirements for that level.
If you like Super Monkey Ball and want a genuine experience with an incredible soundtrack oozing of Y2K vibes, give Y2ROLL a go! Maybe you'll buy the soundtrack and listen to it on your own like I have. Or maybe you'll rage at the difficulty and try again later. Either way, if you like these types of games I think you'll have a (Y2K) blast.
