How to Play BOMBANANA!
Your first bomb should not end in friendship counselling. Here is the shortest honest path to defusing it.
BOMBANANA! is a paid $7.99 co-op game on Steam (Windows and Mac, full controller support). You need exactly three players — the official description says a “3-player co-op team”, with no solo or 2-player mode. One of you hosts, the others join; voice chat is part of the game (v1.0.1 fixed several voice chat issues).
Step 1 — Pick your role
- Blind monkey 🙈 — can touch the bomb, cannot see colours or screens. Best for players who like being hands-on.
- Deaf monkey 🙉 — sees the bomb and all its panels, hears nothing. The natural caller.
- Mute monkey 🙊 — the only one who can read the manual. Best for a calm player who reads fast.
- Full role details: roles guide.
Step 2 — Agree your vocabulary before the timer
- Pick a counting direction for cables and switches (this wiki's default: left-to-right, top-left = 1).
- Pick who decides when the blind monkey has a 50/50 — the mute monkey, holding the book, is the natural referee.
- Pick a confirm gesture: “yes” = nod/thumbs up, “no” = wag, and test it in the lobby.
- Keep commands short: “cut third left”, “wait”, “switch up”. Full sentences die under the timer.
Step 3 — Understand the manual loop
Each bomb is a set of modules; each module's rules live in the manual, which only the mute monkey can read. The loop is: deaf monkey reads the panel state → mute monkey finds the page → team negotiates the action → blind monkey performs it → confirm. Practise the loop on one module before running the campaign.
Step 4 — Choose your mode
| Mode | What it is | Recommendation |
|---|---|---|
| Campaign | 30 handcrafted levels of rising difficulty | Start here — the tutorial-to-challenge ramp |
| Endless | Procedural, wave-based, keeps getting harder | After you can clear mid-campaign levels |
| Custom | Tune bomb difficulty, timers, module types, hazards, mistakes | Drill the module you keep failing, or full chaos |
First-bomb mistakes to avoid
- Not agreeing a direction. “Left” means three different things to three monkeys. Decide, decide, decide.
- Arguing instead of reporting. The mute monkey holds the facts; disagreement costs the timer.
- Trusting “fixed answer” guides. Module states are randomized — a script cannot be right twice.
- Forgetting the game is about the chaos. Every monkey is half-blind by design. Laugh, then retry.
FAQ
Common questions about this topic.
How do I play BOMBANANA! for free?
There is no free-to-play version — BOMBANANA! is $7.99 on Steam. A free demo ran during Steam Next Fest but is not available as a permanent free mode.
Can I play BOMBANANA! with 2 players?
No. The official description specifies a 3-player co-op team; there is no solo or 2-player mode.
Can I play BOMBANANA! on mobile?
No official mobile version exists. The game is on Steam for Windows and Mac (official platforms list).
Does BOMBANANA! work on Mac?
Yes — Mac is in the official platform list, alongside Windows.
Can I play the mute monkey well as a beginner?
If you read fast and stay calm under pressure, mute is a fine first role — the manual is the single source of truth.
Is voice chat required?
The game ships with voice chat (and v1.0.1 fixed several voice issues), but the developers deliberately allow any method — wave, shout, throw bananas.