Monkey Game

Monkey Game is a jungle vine-swinging game. You play a cartoon monkey who grabs a vine, swings on it and lets go to fly to the next one, collecting bananas on the way across the river. The swinging uses real pendulum physics, so how far you fly depends on your speed and where you let go. You can play Monkey Game online free in your browser with no download, using a mouse, a keyboard or a phone’s touch screen.

How to play

• Jump off the island: each level starts on a grassy island. Press and hold (mouse, finger or Space) to jump toward the first vine, and keep holding.
• Grab a vine: while you are holding, the monkey grabs the nearest vine within arm’s reach. In the air, a dashed circle shows when a vine is close enough to catch.
• Let go to fling: release and the monkey leaves the vine moving in exactly the direction it was swinging, at the same speed. Let go on the forward upswing, about halfway up, to fly forward and up toward the next vine.
• Pump to swing higher: a swing on its own keeps the same height. It never grows by itself. To build it up, climb the vine (hold PUMP, Up or W, or put a second finger on the screen) as the monkey passes the bottom, then let it out again near the ends of the swing, like pumping on a playground swing. Get the timing backwards and the swing shrinks.
• Reach the flag: land on the island with the flag and the banana crate to clear the level.

Bananas, chains and hazards

• Bananas hang near the bottom of each vine’s swing and in the gaps between vines. Each one is worth 10 points times your current multiplier.
• Chains: every vine you catch without touching the ground adds one to your chain. Every two extra swings raise the multiplier, up to five times. Landing on an island resets the chain.
• Mushrooms stand on stumps in the river from level 3. Drop onto the red cap and it bounces you back up, a handy way to recover lost height.
• Thorny bushes hang from the canopy from level 4, punishing flings that go too high, and from level 7 some sit low between the vines. Touching one costs a life.
• The river runs along the bottom of the whole jungle. Falling in costs a life. You have three lives per level, and after a fall you restart on the last island you stood on. From level 5 there is a checkpoint island halfway.

Levels, stars and unlocks

There are 15 levels. Each is longer than the last, with wider gaps and more thorns. Every level has a banana goal (45 percent of its bananas, rounded up) and a par time. You earn one star for finishing, one for reaching the banana goal and one for finishing within par, for 45 stars in all. Finishing a level opens the next, and stars and best scores are saved in your browser.

Clearing levels unlocks new monkeys, and they don’t all play the same:

• Capuchin: the starting monkey, an all-rounder.
• Gibbon (clear 4 levels): long arms give it about 50 percent more grabbing reach.
• Spider monkey (clear 8 levels): climbs the vine further and faster when you pump, so each pump adds more swing.
• Golden tamarin (clear 12 levels): bounces 18 percent higher off mushrooms.

Stars unlock six hats: a leaf cap, party hat, explorer hat, flower, bandana and crown. Hats are only for looks. Endless jungle is a never-ending run of vines with three lives, scored on distance plus banana points.

Tips

• Let go on the way up. Releasing at the very top of the swing just drops you, so let go while you are still moving fast.
• Grab low on the vine. The further down you catch it, the bigger the swing. If the next vine is out of reach, stay on and pump a few times first.

FAQ

Is Monkey Game free?

Yes. There is no account and nothing to install.

Does it work on phones and Chromebooks?

Yes. On a phone or tablet, hold a finger on the game to grab and lift it to let go. Use the PUMP button or a second finger to pump. On a Chromebook or laptop, hold Space to grab and Up or W to pump.

Can I pause?

Press P or Esc, or use the Pause button. The game also pauses when you switch tabs.

Why does my swing get smaller?

Catching a vine at an angle loses some speed, because only the part of your motion along the swing carries over. Pump on the vine or bounce off a mushroom to get the height back.

Like games about momentum and timing? Try Ninja Climb for wall-jumping up a tower, or Stickman Parkour for fast obstacle runs.