Pikmin 4 [NS]

[kryss]

It's been a long time since I actually started AND finished a game, but the magic that is Pikmin truly is with this one.

TL;DR some of this is going to be in spoiler tags, but it is well worth playing through.

Captain Olimar has sent out a distress signal and the Rescue Corps. respond by sending one of their ships...which crashes once it hits the atmosphere of this strange yet somehow familiar planet. You, the rookie, are the only one mobile so are tasked with gathering the crew back up and finding Olimar. You also have a Space Pup named Oatchi to help you. Oatchi can work independently and be sent places with Pikmin in tow for better "Dandori" (planning and time management).

Oatchi is invaluable in your quest as you spend each day gathering treasures, castaways, and resources to fix climbing walls, bridges, etc. But he can also carry you and the Pikmin around on his back to jump up small ledges and swim across water. . The more castaways you rescue, the more skills you can teach Oatchi, to have him carry more or to fight harder. You also get gear by trading resources at the science lab, which is also where you can buy items like mines and bomb rocks to use on your quest. Castaways are hiding in caves underground where time passes more slowly than on the surface.

Oatchi isn't the only new addition, as there are now Ice Pikmin, who can freeze enemies when attacking them, and Glow Pikmin who are only out at night and in caves. The more glow Pikmin you get during the night, the more glow seeds you get that can be used at night or in caves to bolster your Pikmin numbers if necessary. Glow Pikmin are immune to all things bar getting eaten or squished. Very useful!

You see, some castaways have been victim of a transformative process and are now Leaflings. The only way to cure them is to gather glow sap at night and create a treatment. But at night the creatures go into a frenzy and attack the Illumiknoll (where you can get the glow sap), so you have to defend it. Night expeditions are unlocked when you unlock new base locations in that area.

->Open Spoiler<-

You think rescuing Olimar is the end of the game? Well, you do get the credits at least!
Then you are sent back to the planet to solve the problem with Oatchi, and finish rescuing all the other castaways.
Olimar is someone you NEED to talk to as the key to getting the last two Onions and actually being able to 100% the game depends on the Sagely Leafling challenges, and there are ten levels of that. BUT WAIT! The last cave, where Louie is hiding then has 20 levels to get through, and a 5-stage boss at the end. Hint: use all the glow seeds you need to.

I've really had a great time playing through Pikmin 4. As a long-time Pikmin fan, it takes me back to the beginning and adds a bunch of new stuff which really works well.

[briareos_kerensky]

Might as well copypaste this, although already posted...

Yesterday I completed Pikmin 4, including all side quests and side missions, with the exception of those you have to report after completing the last boss. It could have taken 5 minutes at most to report those in, but nah.
I like Pikmin but I don't go crazy about it, I must say I've left the second and third games unfinished, so me going for a 100% completion rate is a bit strange. I think it's thanks to the improved companion AI (Oatchi and Pikmins) , the somewhat lower tempo in fights, more streamlined structures, and probably because Pikmin 4's overall low difficulty was a nice counterbalance to Armored Core VI. Also the fact I could just pick the Switch up and play without changing monitor & amplifier input, adjust audio levels, and all that stuff I need to do when switching from PC to any console, made playing effortless. One point for the Switch concept, I guess.

Anyway, I've found Pikmin 4 a pleasant experience, with the right amount of action, management, and puzzles. The game often remixes enemies and puzzles, and after you've gathered all Pikmin types there's nothing reall new to see (and even before that, it's not all that different from previous Pikmins), but the game realizes that and it doesn't overstay its welcome, I've clocked in 20 or so hours and probable the hardest to go through, in terms of repetition and strain of game mechanics, is

->Open Spoiler<-

the final cave. It's 20 floors long and you fight all bosses you've faced before in harsher environments, and you'd wish there were half the floors, because it's the old same bosses, nothing new.

The game is surpringly friendly in some occasions, like with the final boss: without spoiling what that is, quitting the fight will not make it restart from the beginning but only from the latest phase you're reached before. The non-respawning enemies, items that remain where dropped, the lack of grinding (with the exception of one Pikmin type if you don't go through a side mission and only if you want to 100% everything), make Pikmin 4 a very straightforward game in which you don't waste a single play session.

There are a couple of things I didn't like. Well, one in fact, and it was more of an annoiance: dialog speed. I'd wish Nintendo would have made text come up much faster and allow you to mash through it without skipping the whole dialog, and getting in and out of shops is a bit of a pain as after every line there's a split-second wait; probably made for children, but as an adult, it's a bit annoying.

Environments take quite some time to load, but on the other hand Pikmin 4 looks lush, one of the best-looking games on the platform, and runs at a constant 30fps. Yeah, it'd be better at 60 but Pikmin 4 isn't exactly an action-packed game, so 30fps are enough. There might be drops here and there, but I've never noticed them, and I played the majority of the game in handheld mode.

[dataDave]

Me and the kid have been bumming this. Unfortunately I lost four Pikmin and didn’t realise until I’d exited the pipe, so no rewind. My OCD forced me to start a new game where I’ve been rinsing back up to where I was - compressing 22 days into just 6.

James is much further than I am, but then he’s basically Himmler with his Pikmin.

[Super Monkey Balls]

Always loved Pikmin so I jumped at this and shelved Zelda until I'd finished it. 25 hours later, I've finished it and I've completely forgotten what I was doing in Zelda and can't be bothered to go back to it, because I'm an old man now.

Anyway, Pikmin 4 is great. They've thrown a ton of new ideas in. Possibly too many, but it's never complicated or difficult. There's a bit of recycling with the caves later in the game but apart from that I can't fault it.

[kryss]

Me and the kid have been bumming this. Unfortunately I lost four Pikmin and didn’t realise until I’d exited the pipe, so no rewind. My OCD forced me to start a new game where I’ve been rinsing back up to where I was - compressing 22 days into just 6.

James is much further than I am, but then he’s basically Himmler with his Pikmin.

333 met their end in my service.

[Cepp]

I didn't think I'd enjoy this, it always struck me as a series I would play for five minutes and then drop but I had a really good time with it. I've beat the main story and still need to do the post game content and 100% each level.