Who would have thought a little GameCube game with a little monkey in a little plastic ball would end up becoming something so huge? The Super Monkey Ball puzzle games may not fly off the shelves when they're released, but it's rare that we get a game that has across-the-board significant other appeal (read: it gets girls to play games) in our offices. Of course, it took us a while before us PlayStation 2 owners got their own dose of simian rolling, but it did finally happen, and we're thankful for it.

And now, for something a little different. In the tireless quest to broaden the appeal of the Monkey Ball franchise, SEGA went to platforming mainstays Traveller's Tales (or, if you will, TT Games) and tapped them to bring the monkeys out of the puzzle arenas and into something a little grander. The result is Super Monkey Ball Adventure, and though it's already met with a less-than favorable reception on the PS2, that's not stopping the Double T and Big S from pushing it to other platforms -- namely the PSP.

And it is the same game on the PSP, make no mistake. The same world, same storyline, same environments, all crammed into the sleek innards of the PSP (or at least onto one of those cute little Universal Media Discs). The PSP version of SMBA has officially shipped, and includes the same 5 worlds, 50 puzzle levels, mini-games (playable with friends via Ad Hoc wireless if you're so inclined) and 60 missions.

We'll have a proper review of things in -- yeah, you guessed it -- the next few days (why do all our news stories end the same way these days?), but if you just can't wait to get monkeys on the go, the game should be in a local store by tomorrow.