Pikmin 3 is the second
big game that Nintendo has released in their own HD era of gaming, following
the launch title of New Super Mario Brothers U by nearly nine months. Pikmin 3
launched on August 4th, 2013 to a still small install base and was
met with success in relation to the small player base of the Wii U.The
last original Pikmin release took place in 2004, Pikmin 2, for the Gamecube.
Pikmin was never a wholly popular IP by Nintendo, but the fans it did hold
were, and continue to be, patient and true.
Pikmin 3 did many
things that made it fun as a game to play.
Aesthetics:
Pikmin
3’s graphics are beautiful from an objective standpoint. The characters and
enemies do not have a photo realistic quality to them, but rather seem like
cartoon characters thrown into the world in which they inhabit. The environments
have a much “realer” feel to them, and often times the player almost feels as
if they were shrunken down to explore an unknown alien planet, known in the
game, as PNF-404. The games environments, while all beautiful, do have moments
of weakness. Brighter areas and days in particular look less appealing than
their slightly darker counterparts. This is not to say that bright areas look
bad, by any means, they just look slightly less polished. This could be
credited simply to the fact that there is less light on screen to make the
blemishes noticeable. The weakest aesthetic is usually the ground textures.
These textures sometimes appear muddy, messy, or just less polished than the
rest of the world. The treasures collected, most of which are fruit, look
delectable when portrayed through the power of the Wii U. As much detail that
is paid to the explorers and Pikmin is also paid to the enemies in terms of
modeling. The normal enemies look nice, while the boss enemies look downright
intimidating at points.
Overall: The game is very good looking without the
need to look totally photorealistic. The character and enemy models hold a
certain charm when thrown into the real-feeling enviroments.
Story:
Pikmin
is not a game which has ever been about the story line too much. Throughout the
course of the Pikmin franchise, it always felt as though the story was simply
in place to give the player an excuse to be in the situation that they found
themselves in. This is not the case in Pikmin 3. Pikmin 3 employs a much more
cohesive story which progresses throughout the course of the game. The story is
not on par with games such as the recent BioShock Infinite or The Last of Us,
but it does not need to in order to feel like a fulfilling story. The player
controls three Explorers from a distant planet who come in order to find food
for their starving civilization.
Sound:
The
music found in Pikmin 3 is beautiful and matches the tone that one would expect
to hear when thinking of the perspective that the explorers view as they
explore the brand new planet in search of resources. The music changes from
hopeful to dire as the situation in Gameplay changes. Each type of Pikmin, of
which there are five, have distinct voices that they use when thrown. This
helps to characterize the Pikmin and adds a sense of personality that they
lack. Much detail was also paid to the explorers of the game. Each has their
own voice and personality. The language the explorers utilize gives the player
a sense of wonder, reinforcing the idea that the explorers truly are from
another whole planet.
Gameplay/Campaign:
The
“meat” of the “Pikmin 3 meal” comes from the campaign, this is where much of
the solo play will be spent for many players. The game consists of one
overworld with five distinct areas the player can travel to. Each area consists
of a different theme, and with that, contains different enemies, objectives,
and treasures. At first glance, five areas seems very small for a game which
places an emphasis on exploring, however, the lack of distinct areas is not
something which I missed on my first play through of the game. Each are was big
enough and held enough secrets where I did not feel as though I had been robbed
of content throughout the campaign. To add to the customization on ways to play
the game, the game is operable with one of five different control schemes. One
control scheme is the off-TV play, which requires no TV to be used in paying the
game. One other scheme uses the gamepad for the mad and controller, and the TV
for displaying the game. Other control schemes include a Wii Remote (preferably
with motion plus) and nun-chuck, and a Wii U Pro Controller. Both of the latter
schemes use the gamepad as a map during play. The Pikmin 3 bestiary is varied
widely, and while there are not an extraordinary amount of enemies as there had
been in Pikmin 2, each enemy is unique and requires a distinct strategy to take
down. This helps the player to feel as though they are not repeating the same
actions over and over again.
The
main gameplay is split into days, in which the player has a finite amount of
time on the map. Any Pikmin unaccounted for at the end of the game promptly become
dinner for the predator species of the night. The gameplay is kept varied from
previous installments due to new types of Pikmin being introduced, which change
the fundamental way in which the game is played.
One
of the staples of the Pikmin franchise is the constant feeling that time is
running out. This feature was absent in Pikmin 2 (due to the featuring of the
caves, which stopped time), but makes a return for the third installment in the
series. Many times while in the middle of a task, a player will realize that
there is no time, and must make choices about what to accomplish throughout the
rest of the day. The time places an emphasis on the need to multi-task. The
result is a very fun, tense game where there never seems to be enough time.
There
are a few technical problems which the campaign has, mostly dealing with the
Pikmin AI. The Pikmin AI is not bad, however, at times, the path-finding
becomes obnoxious, with certain Pikmin jumping into water because they were too
far behind the controlled explorer, and consequently, drowning. This leads to
many unnecessary Pikmin deaths, and often ends up frustrating the player.
The
difficulty of Pikmin 3 is nearly non-existant, in the sense that the vast
majority of the games enemy encounters are able to be won through attrition.
This does not mean, however, that combat is not varied. If the player wishes a
good score, they must use cunning in order to defeat their enemies. There is
seemingly one challenging encounter, but as many days as are needed can be used
to complete the encounter.
Overview: The return of beloved mechanics allows
players to experience a new adventure in an older formula, however, new
additions keep gameplay fresh. The campaign is friendly to both veterans and
new players of the series.
Extra Features (Mission Mode, Bingo Battle Mode):
Mission Mode:
Mission
mode is an extra mode which is exactly as it sounds. The players chooses from a
variety of missions which range from beating certain monsters to collecting
treasures. The mission mode may be played cooperatively, unlike the main
campaign. The mission mode ramps up the difficulty considerably, which is good
for veteran players looking for a higher challenge.
Bingo Battle Mode:
Bingo
Battle is the competitive multiplayer mode that comes packaged with Pikmin 3.
There is no online multiplayer, but the game does not truly suffer from it. It
is no surprise that Miyamoto pushes for local multiplayer, and after playing
many matches, I welcome the absence of online multiplayer. In Bingo Battle,
players try to collect items to fill out a bingo card and ultimately win the
battle. This battle is tons of fun if you are playing with someone equally
matched with you in Pikmin.
Basic Summary:
Pikmin 3 is a great game which uses the Wii U’s
gamepad to it’s full potential. This allows you to play the game with only the
game pad, as the controller, or as a supplement, and these controls truly work
well. The varied bestiary allows for varied game play throughout the entire
campaign. The explorers, as well as Pikmin are all likable and I found myself
truly caring for them as the game went on. The huge environments were fun to
both ogle and explore.
I would recommend
Pikmin 3 to anyone who enjoys tense pseudo-strategy games, loves huge alien
worlds, and isn't afraid to let a few cute creatures die at their hand.
*Disclaimer: I do not own the pictures used in this review*
*Disclaimer: I do not own the pictures used in this review*
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