After a nearly 10-year wait since the last game in the series, Pikmin 3 is finally here
and it brings with it some big ideas even bigger expectations. As waiting 10 years between
games tends to do that
So Pikmin 3's is very much the same type of game as the previous two in that you still
manage an army of up to 100 adorable creatures called Pikmin that you can quite literally
throw at all kinds of tasks
It's basically a more action-oriented real-time strategy game
Now these tasks include taking down enemies, building bridges, destroying walls, and most
importantly, retrieving all-kinds of fruit that you need not only to feel yourself, but
also the starving citizens back on your home planet.
Yep, it's very much a Pikmin game, but there are some notable differences.
Like a new time-limit mechanic, which strikes an interesting compromise between the hard
deadline featured in Pikmin 1, and the complete lack of one in Pikmin 2.
In this case, the amount of time you have left is dictated by your remaining food supply,
which can actually be increased by finding more fruit. So if you run out, it's game over,
though the game does generously allow you to restart from any previous day you've played,
so the consequence for failure isn't nearly as harsh as it was in the first game, where
you had to restart the entire thing from the beginning
But, if you've played any of the Pikmin games before, it's unlikely you'll get anywhere
close to the Game Over point as fruit is in abundance here.,. By day 4, I had more than
enough food supplies that the time limit basically ceased to matter--which for me was a little
disappointing as a huge fan of the first Pikmin, but might appeal to fans of the more laidback
Pikmin 2
Another biog addition--or should I say additions--are the new Pikmin types, being Rock and Flying.
And unlike the new types that were featured in Pikmin 2 that felt a little gimmicky, these
guys are are essential to making it through the game, as their unique skill set complements
the 3 other types perfectly.
The Rock Pikmin are immune to being squashed and are able to break through walls the others
can't, while Flying Pikmin can reach otherwise unreachable areas--on top of just being way
too cute.
One of the bigger improvements, though, are the controls...at least if you're using the
Wii Remote and Nunchuk. With this method, you're able to move around and aim Pikmin
completely independently, whereas if you use the Gamepad, the two are tethered together,
greatly limiting your speed and accuracy. But if you've only played the GameCube versions
of Pikmin and not the Wii remakes, this may not bother you.
But for me, the Wii Remote controls feel fantastic and I couldn't imagine playing this game with
any other control scheme. In fact, the game's interface--for the most part--is much improved,
allowing you to easily switch between Pikmin types even while throwing them.
But it's not all better. For instance, you can no longer control the direction of your
Pikmin swarm--instead, it's been replaced by a new new feature that allows you to have
them all attack an enemy at once that you're locked on to.
It's a little more limiting than how it worked in past games, but the bigger problem is that
this command is tied to the same action as disbanding your Pikmin, which happens if you're
not locked on. And since it can be hard to tell in the heat of battle whether you're
locked-on or not, I often ended up disbanding by Pikmin causing them to stand around helplessly,
which is the exact opposite of what I wanted them to do.
But perhaps the most noteworthy change is the scale of the game.
Even though the amount of levels is comparable to past games, they absolutely dwarf them
in size. Whereas the previous levels were primarily made up of just one large area,
they now consist of numerous sections connected by a network of passageways and caves. These
levels are simply immense and even a little intimidating in their scope--and I'm not sure
it's a good thing.
But fortunately, the game provides a few different ways in which to cope with these huge worlds,
and one of those is by giving you three playable characters that you can use to control different
groups of Pikmin all over the map. Now I've never been a particularly great multitasker,
so I often found primarily using just one character at a time during my first playthrough
except in a few specific cases, or when the game required it to solve a few puzzles, but
it really does open allow for a large amount of variety in how you play the game. And I
imagine it'll be especially useful for speed-runners.
And one particularly cool feature of the multiple captains is the ability to have the captains-and
their Pikmin squad--automatically walk to any location you want on the map, while you
can use the other characters for more immediate tasks. This actually makes multi-tasking far
more useful than it was in Pikmin 2, though it isn't without its own drawbacks as the
group will not make any effort to avoid hazards hazards or resist enemy attacks along the
way, which can be a bit annoying. Oh, and the game makes particularly clever use of
this feature during the final level, though I won't say anything more to avoid spoilers.
Now another big tool the game provides for help with navigating this giant world is a
persistent map on the GamePad that displays all kinds of useful information, such as Pikmin
and Fruit locations. And it's certainly a huge help--hell, it's basically required in
order to get through the game, at least with any kind of efficiency.
The thing is, I really disliked using it. For one, unless you're playing using only
the GamePad--you have to keep it close--if not right in your lap--in order to make use
of the map, which while a bit cumbersome, but also the least of its problems
The bigger issue is that it's just not very good at what it does. Because there's no zoom
feature, you can only ever see a small portion of the map at any given time, forcing you
to scroll around it with your finger constantly. And because of the way each level is laid
out, with giant empty portions separating different areas, it can be especially annoying
scrolling through fields of darkness to find the one area you're looking for--especially
since the game inexplicably won't let you scroll through certain portions of the map.
And then there's the fact that the map isn't terribly easy to read. The map itself is far
more detailed than it needs to be, which obscures the information you actually want, such as
the Pikmin locations which are displayed as tiny dots that often blend right in with the
landscape, which is especially annoying when you're trying to recollect them before the
end of each day.
And on top of all this, the mere act of switching my focus from the TV to the GamePad and back
again was disorientating it and of itself--and frankly, annoying.
Taken altogether, I found using the map to be a cumbersome, sometimes frustrating, process
that greatly interrupts the flow of the game. It might sound like a minor thing, but its
annoyances quickly add up with how often I found myself accessing it. And it's especially
disappointing considering the two previous Pikmin games both had a map that suffered
from none of these problems and worked far better, despite the fact it was relegated
to a pause screen.
Putting aside the map's inadequacies, I'm actually not a huge fan of the larger worlds
in general. I found them confusing to navigate, especially with the various, nearly indistinguishable
passageways, and it was often tedious to traverse long stretches that ahd nothing left to do
It sometimes got the point where I would often set my entire group on autopilot to the required
destination just so I could avoid the tedium of walking there myself.
And it's in this respect that Pikmin 3 doesn't feel quite as tight or well-paced as the previous
games, even if the very core of the gameplay is as solid as it's ever been. I mean, the
series has never looked better, controlled tighter, or been more accessible in terms
of allowing for differing play-styles, and yet it doesn't come together quite as cohesively
as even Pikmin 2, which I also had some problems with.
But with that said, there are some things the game does extremely well, such as the
boss fights. These battles feel truly epic as you'll take on creatures that tower over
your Pikmin army in gigantic arenas. It provides a fantastic scenes of scale and also command
your full attention, as they're no pushovers.
And the game's overall presentation is fantastic, such as with the extremely polished opening,
complete with voiceover.
The Pikmin's AI itself has also been greatly improved--though they're still not exactly
savants still. Ones already in your squad are able to follow you perfectly without getting
hung up on the environment, though unfortunately this doesn't apply to Pikmin you've just summoned
back, who are as liable as ever to get stuck on a wall or something.
And of course, how could I not talk about how beautiful the game looks in HD. I mean,
Pikmin has always been about the little things, and the Wii U's HD visuals really helps bring
those details out. The environments, in particularly, look especially lush now, and the new ability
to snap a picture from a 1st-person perspective at any time really drives that point home.
The game is simply gorgeous.
In addition to the main story mode, there is also a Mission Mode, that provides a number
of unique levels that offer challenges such as Finding Fruit or Defeating Enemies within
a certain time limit. They didn't do much for me personally, but I can see them being
addictive for those who like going for high scores.
All in all, Pikmin 3 is a good game, The new Pikmin are fun, The controls have never been
better, and the entire experience is beautiful to look at. This is one instance where bigger
isn't always better, as the game's larger scope partially comes at the expense of the
more focused-design of its predecessors.
And it's dragged down even further by the game's cumbersome map system, which really
bogs down the entire experience, when just a few tweaks could have made it the entire
experience dramatically more enjoyable.
So I'm giving Pikmin 3's single-player mode 3.5 Stars out of 5.
But wait, the game has a couple of different multiplayer mode too for up to two-players.
First up, is the aforementioned Mission Mode, which becomes a cooperative experience with
2-players, and is even more fun for it. Especially because it demands a high-level of teamwork
if you really want to get some high scores
Then there's Bingo Battle, which is a competitive 2-player mode where both players battle it
out to retrieve objects in the environment to be the first to complete a row on their
Bingo card.
This mode is a surprising amount of fun if you can find 2-players of equal skill levels,
as things can get downright heated as you try to prevent your opponent from obtaining
the last item they need, while trying to complete rows of your own.
Regardless of which mode you plan, they are a pretty fun--if not particularly deep-diversion--which
is why I'm also giving it 3.5 stars out of 5.
Thanks for watching an make sure to keep an eye on GameXplain.com for more on Pikmin 3
and other things gaming too