➤ Pikmin 4, the review of the colorful real-time strategy game for Nintendo Switch 🕹

Our analysis of Pikmin 4, undoubtedly the longest and most substantial game in the series, but also the least bucolic of this colorful Nintendo series.

For the first time in the Pikmin series, in this fourth chapter Shigefumi Hino, one of Nintendo's veterans, is not among the directors of the project. In the first two he was accompanied by Abe, in the third by Kando, and the latter took up his legacy as director of Pikmin 4. It could also be a coincidence, but this change of course has produced a game with continuity with the previous ones. , but also structurally different. Richer and fuller-bodied, but less evocative. Hino was a born designer, he is the creator of Yoshi, as well as the creator of Yoshi's Island (and, as already mentioned, director of the first three Pikmin). Kando, on the other hand, and untypically for Nintendo, arises from programming; In Pikmin 4, he is assisted in directing by Eighting's Tetsushi Tsunoda, who helped Nintendo EPD in game development.

Pikmin is a particular title: despite always receiving excellent reviews from critics, it has never recorded pyrotechnic sales. The only episode that has exceeded two million copies is the recent one. Pikmin 3 Deluxe on Nintendo Switch. However, it is a series that, to perform at its best, requires a decent budget: they are games in which graphical performance is important, because the representation of nature (realistic, despite the characters) is a fundamental part of the experience. . Therefore, Nintendo tried to make a change with this fourth episode, sculpting a more immediate and dynamic title; Less bucolic, more dense and rhythmic, perhaps in the hope of making it attractive to a wider audience.

Pikmin is a real-time strategy game, in which you control a space captain (alien and tiny) who in turn commands pikmin troops to attack and survive: small three-centimeter beings, halfway between animal and creature. vegetable, who faithfully obey his orders. It is essential to proliferate them, and the most common methods of achieving this are to transport the corpses of enemies (and the "enemies" are more like hostile animals than monsters) to the base; Alternatively, there are tablets that provide a similar effect. In Pikmin 4, the protagonist must save, on a rescue mission, an entire lost crew: in particular Captain Olimar, hero of the first two chapters of the saga. To do this he needs to collect treasures, in order to extract the necessary material to repair the spaceship and expand its radius of action. In addition to the pikmin, next to him he has Occin: a tiny dog that greatly alters the historical mechanics of the series and, as we will see in Pikmin 4 review, represents the greatest novelty of this chapter.

Occin

Pikmin 4, the review of the colorful real-time strategy game for Nintendo Switch — Pikmin 4: moving in Occin is easier and faster

Occin is rescue dog And it's no marginal introduction: it took the fundamentals of Pikmin, simplified them, and made them more dynamic, allowing for level design options that previously would have given completely different results. Despite the multiple abilities that we will talk about shortly, his most important ability, the one that most alters one's enjoyment of the game, is also the apparently most banal: we are referring to the possibility of taking the entire troop with him (including the captain).

Why is this so important? Well, first of all you will no longer have to wait for the slower pikmin, nor for those who are still in the leaf state (when sucking honey, their head is decorated with a flower, which makes them stronger and faster). Secondly, the space that pikmin take up is much smaller, which makes it easy and quick to cross any type of terrain, including rivers (because Occin quickly learns to swim): you will no longer have to worry about losing pikmin along the way, no have to distract them with honey, throw the red ones near the water so they don't drown. All of this makes the game more dynamic, but it also takes away the relevance of the study of the territory and the subsequent strategy to navigate it. With enemies it is particularly evident: being able to scale them all. on the back of occin It allows you to avoid them by controlling a single character, a very different experience from the previous one. Some of them, the most powerful ones, will be able to scare them and disperse them: it is precisely one of those cases that we talked about earlier, of design choices that in old episodes would have been excessive or uninteresting.

In addition to serving as a mount, Occin is a cross between a captain and a pikmin. This is the first chapter since the parent has a single protagonist, so there is no possibility of exploring different sections at the same time with two (or three) different captains: this role can be played by Occin himself, who is capable of separating himself from his owner and, like him, leading a pikmin troop in total autonomy. Being very useful as a mount, however, the sections where you will prefer to separate from it to operate in parallel will not be many: you will do so more if you are forced - to solve a puzzle, or when Occin cannot pass. to its size - than to the advantages derived from the division of commanders. Multitasking, a key feature of Pikmin 3, has taken a back seat here in favor of dynamism and action.

Occin can also be used as a pikmin: in this case he will follow the captain like all other allies, but with slightly different and broader abilities. He is stronger than a pikmin, both in combat and in carry items. You can also perform special tasks, such as following clues (for treasure, for a lost crew member, for a rare pikmin). Even in this case, there are more sections in which you are forced to use Occin as a pikmin, than those in which you are eager to do so: such as, precisely, when you follow him to reach something he has smelled. In this case, the typical mechanics of the saga resurface, and return, precisely because they are masked by the mount, more terrifying than ever: suddenly you will have to ask yourself if the pikmin behind you are suitable for patrolling the surroundings, or will they run the risk of fall, drown or get caught in a spider web.

Occin can also be trained. at the end of each day of exploration, taking advantage of the skill points earned by completing particular tasks (such as rescuing a missing colleague). You can decide to increase his speed, his strength, his ability to transport objects: it is an optional operation, but almost mandatory to finish the game. Just think that by maximizing the relevant characteristic, Occin will be able to carry an item with the strength of a hundred pikmin: this is to make you understand how much his abilities change from the basic version to the final one.

Incipit and structuring

If you've tried the demo, you'll know that Pikmin 4 has one of the worst incipits from any Nintendo game; We probably haven't seen one like this since The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword. Slow, but above all verbose and pedantic beyond words, full of dialogue containing obvious advice, solutions that the player could have easily arrived at on their own. Fortunately, this is just the beginning: the hand of the developer, as soon as the incipit is finished, and unlike Skyward Sword, leaves us free to experiment, make mistakes and discover with total autonomy.

The first thing you should do is create your own. avatar, because in Pikmin 4 you choose the protagonist captain (name included): he is similar to the Mii editor, but more limited and, obviously, respectful of the strange morphology of the alien protagonists. You will be able to choose various details, such as hair cut and color, skin tone and spacesuit tone, and the possible presence of accessories (such as glasses).

The protagonist is not alone, because each member of the groupcommitment whom he saves and then accompanies him to the base of operations, to which he returns at the end of each day of exploration. Some companions are essential, such as the one in charge of pointing out the areas to explore (those close to members yet to be saved), or the captain capable of training Occin. Some have secondary but useful functions, such as the engineer who builds objects and devices (such as a drone to visualize the territory of an area, or a bomb, or a suit to resist heat): you have to pay him with material to collect in all parts, within the areas, but some tools are almost essential to finish the adventure. Others show you information about creatures found (the Piklopedia) or about treasures collected: it's worth it even just for the descriptions, all composed from the perspective of the little beings. A baseball, for example, could become a "dangerous white meteorite." Some will be there just to tell you stories, others to give you quests that will encourage completionists with secondary objectives.

exploration

Nintendo asked not to anticipate the total number of areas of Pikmin 4, we just tell you that, as in all other aspects, this one also proved to be more substantial than its predecessors. In this game they are more artificial than in the past because, with rare exceptions, everyone is near a house (and the house itself is an area to explore): be it a bench, a sandcastle, a sidewalk or a barbecue. , the presence of the human and the artificial is more marked, making the experience less pastoral. The feeling of isolation is also alleviated by the presence and dialogues with the crew.

The areas are structured in a similar way to their predecessors: little by little they become more complex and rich in details, whether due to the water (which can only be faced with the blue pikmin, or with the ice ones introduced here), the level design creatures that are more vertical or intricate, or simply more threatening. The starting area is an emblem of the differences between Pikmin 4 and its predecessors: its design is richer and denser than ever, daedalic and vertical, but the sensation, on a visual and sound level, of exploring a natural environment is completely lost. . The creatures themselves, basically insectoids, don't make much sense, except from a playful perspective, for them to be there. In all areas, as usual, they search for us and collect treasures, which must be abandoned before nightfall (collecting all the pikmin that are left around, which otherwise will die). The location of the space base can be moved to various areas, often manned by a particularly insidious creature, in order to speed up the gameplay experience.

During exploration you can only carry three types of pikmin (red, yellow and purple, for example) up to a maximum (which will increase as you collect onions) of one hundred specimens. Know that they are there in Pikmin 4. all kinds of pikmin They appeared earlier in the series, in addition to the ice ones and the iridescent ones: we are not here to list them all, just know that they are varied in abilities and forms, and the latter are well exploited both in puzzles and in combat.

Unlike Pikmin 3, in the areas of Pikmin 4 there are focal areas, which must be visited to complete the game, because most of the treasures and missing companions are hidden there: the trapdoors that lead to the subsoil.

The caves

Le cave They are essentially a world apart, firstly because underground the passage of time is practically suspended: it goes six times slower than normal, and even reaching the limit of day it never turns into night until you leave the quarry. Secondly, at the entrance of each trapdoor it is necessary to alter the composition of the troop: often the theme of the cave is evident from the beginning, so decisions must be made accordingly. For example, if the dominant setting is marine, you will need blue and ice pikmin, and the game will even force you to use them. In the initial caves you will have the appropriate pikmin for the situation, in the final ones sometimes the logic will be pleasantly distorted, in the sense that accompanying (for example) the canals there will be enemies that breathe fire, to encounter the worst possible pikmin for confront certain creatures.

Some types of pikmin, like those white and purple, can only be found in caves and therefore, even on the surface, must be handled with special care. They cannot be generated by bringing corpses or pills to the base, but instead you must use colorful flowers (which treat five specimens at a time) to mutate existing pikmin into the new species.

Even in terms of level design, the game in the caves is different than on the surface. There is no room for exploration or investigation, here you have to solve puzzles and battles Focus Firmly: Whether the floor contains a series of puzzles or a larger-than-usual creature, the surrounding landscape is nothing more than a simple artificial decoration to contain these challenges. We write "floor" because all the caves are structured on multiple levels, connected by trapdoors. The quality of the level design is high, nothing like the caves in Pikmin 2: here they are "drawn by hand", and are much longer and more complex.

The possibility of rewind in time is in line with the general direction of the game: it ruins the catharsis of the experience, because the death of the pikmin is sometimes bloody and moving, both emotionally and practically, however, in addition to speeding up the pace, this option is fundamental in the caves (and well exploited by the developers). On the sixth floor of a quarry, losing fifty pikmin in one hit would force you to leave there, regenerate other specimens, and return to the same area. At the same time, this allowed the designers to create particularly difficult or dangerous areas, knowing that you will have the opportunity to try again without too many complications.

Dandori and multiplayer

Some caves contain Battaglie Dandori against castaways who have been corrupted by the environment around them, called pamphlets. In these cases the screen is divided into two vertical halves (in the other you can see your opponent), and it is essentially a game within the game, a timed Pikmin rally (each battle lasts a few minutes). The area is completely functional for the recreational part of the experience, it is separated from the rest even more than the caves, and your objective is to score more points than your opponent: as expected, the score increases by bringing treasures, enemies, objects to base. . Some of them sometimes take on a higher value (than bonuses) to make the battle more lively.

It is essential to think and act quickly, taking advantage of Occin's capabilities and the shortest paths. There are objects enclosed in spheres and Unexpected events of different types., almost in the Mario Kart style: by transporting bombs to the enemy base, for example, you can make them lose a large part of the points, which will be converted into numbered batteries (more or less large), which the rival will have to charge. Waste time collecting again to restore what was lost and what you can steal. Aware of the differences in pace and design of these areas, Nintendo has included the possibility, once defeated, of automatically overcoming these challenges - with the excuse of the help of a crew member.

Dandori Battle is also the main mode. multiplayer of the game, accessible from the initial menu, obviously to compete with another user. Since there's no online feature, while nice, it'll be difficult to fully appreciate it: it takes two experienced Pikmin players to enjoy it, and Pikmin's mechanics, distilled and concentrated here like never before, aren't easy to learn without. have completed them at least. minus one. Unfortunately, the cooperative mode has been considerably reduced compared to Pikmin 3 Deluxe, where two players could act in parallel in the story: here the second user is relegated to secondary tasks.

Night exploration

Another new feature of Pikmin 4 is thenight exploration, which is also quite far from the main adventure: even in this episode, as already mentioned, it is mandatory to return to the base at the end of each day. However, once there, you can also embark on night missions: in this case you will be alone with Occin and the iridescent pikmin. These have a different behavior than the others: they are first generated by collecting pointed spheres in the surrounding area. Secondly, they can teleport, so they will immediately return to you as soon as a task is finished (without having to go find them), or alternate controlling the captain with Occin.

They are the same areas you explored during the day, but you will hardly notice. Because the objective of these sessions is very different: more than "conquering" the unknown territory, here we must defender bases of the furious enemies who will attack them. Basically, you need to spawn some iridescent pikmin and hope there are enough to defend these structures all night long. Never more than in these phases is it important to alternate control of Occin to the captain: not so much to act in parallel, but to quickly defend two different bases without having to move. If you succeed, you will have the medicine to cure the explorers who have been turned into pamphlets.

Longevity and aesthetics.

Pikmin 4 is the game of the series. more time: Upon completing the entire story, but without having collected everything, our counter showed almost twenty-five hours. However, the extension does not reveal more numerous and dense contents compared to its predecessors: we must always take into account what was written at the beginning of the review, that is, that this Pikmin is faster and more dynamic in exploration, so It's much simpler. and reach areas of interest faster compared to the past. If it had been possible - paradoxically - to use Occin in the first three chapters, none of them would have reached ten hours: this should help you understand how much more substantial Pikmin 4 is.

On a technical level, the game, developed with Unreal Engine, is a clear step forward compared to the past: the scenarios are more detailed, realistic and better lit, and the 30 frames per second are marble, even at the highest performances. complex and there are a hundred Pikmin in action (carrying out the most disparate activities). TO artistic level This fourth chapter, however, is the least refined of the series. Like level design, because accelerated exploration takes away the admiration - and study - of the environment around us, increasing the pace of the action. As aesthetic coherence, because some caves alternate different themes without any logic and in general represent a too clear break with the main spaces. In the death of the pikmin, being able to turn back time is much less impressive. Even in the writing: as simple as it is, Pikmin 3 skillfully tackled a delicate and contemporary topic such as the environment, which is completely abandoned here.

Conclusions

digital delivery Nintendo eShop Price 59,99 € Holygamerz.com 8.5 Readers (36) 8.3 your vote

There are good reasons to consider Pikmin 4 the best in the series. It is, by far, the longest, most challenging, fullest and richest episode, the densest and most fast-paced. The caves and battles of Dandori are a distillation of the game's strategic mechanics, exploited and explored here like never before. There are all the known types of Pikmin, plus two new ones, and Occin is much more than just a helper: the ability to ride him energizes the entire gaming experience. At the same time, he makes certain aspects more evident that were not evident in the past: the study of the territory and the choice of the ideal pikmin to travel through it. The calm advance of the troop and the thoughtful parallel exploration with multiple captains have been placed on the margins of the adventure here. The same appearance, although technically improved in every way, has less coherence than its predecessors. If you especially appreciate Pikmin action, you'll love this chapter; If, on the other hand, you prefer the pastoral and bucolic aspect, generally "artistic", you may find that you like some situations less than in the past.