Super Monkey Ball Banana Mania Theme Song Features Yakuza Creator Toshihiro Nagoshi
Super Monkey Ball Banana Mania is a celebration of the 20-year history of the series, and Toshihiro Nagoshi has been there from the start. Nagoshi is the creator of the Super Monkey Ball series, as well as Sega's beloved Yakuza franchise. As such, fans might expect him to have a role in the new game, but many probably wouldn't expect him to provide vocals on its new theme song! Nagoshi is just one of many voices in the song's chorus, however. The theme is primarily sung by Banana Fritters, a group comprised of three voice actors from the series: Koichi Yamadera, Noriko Hidaka, and Toshihiko Seki.
Yamadera voices antagonist Dr. Bad-Boon in the series, Hidaka voices main characters AiAi, MeeMee, Baby, and YanYan, while Seki voices Jet. The song is titled "Hello Banana!" and can be heard on the game's title and selection screens. In addition to Nagoshi, Banana Mania producer Masao Shirosaki also participates in the game's chorus. Nagoshi and Shirosaki's roles in the chorus were revealed during Sega Atlus' Tokyo Game Show 2021 presentation last weekend, where the theme song was officially revealed to the public. An image of Nagoshi from that presentation (at center) can be found below.
Of course, now fans can hear the song in the game itself, as Super Monkey Ball Banana Mania released earlier today on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. It will be interesting to see how the game performs, as Banana Mania might be the most highly-anticipated series entry in a very long time. The game features content from some of the earliest entries in the series, as well as new costumes, online features, and more. Banana Mania has released to strong reviews, and received a 4.5 out of 5 from my review of the Nintendo Switch version, which can be found right here. Readers can also check out the rest of our coverage of the game right here.
Did you pick up Super Monkey Ball Banana Mania today? Are you surprised that Nagoshi provided vocals for the game's theme? Let us know in the comments or share your thoughts directly on Twitter at @Marcdachamp to talk all things gaming!
[H/T: Siliconera]