Pikmin 4 (NSW) Review

The pikmin are back with new friends.

 It's been a while since the last Pikmin game with the Nintendo Wii U's Pikmin 3, releasing in 2013. The long-awaited Pikmin 4 finally comes to us a decade and whole new console generation later for Nintendo Switch with a slew of features in store. It's another adventure where you need to find a way back home with the help of the pikmin and this time, you're joined with a larger cast of characters. I missed out on the game's release but finally got around to playing it recently. Is it just as great as the previous Pikmin games? Let's find out.

 The game follows a team of Rescue Corps astronauts, who visit a strange planet resembling Earth after an SOS signal from series hero Captain Olimar, who is left stranded after his ship's been wrecked. You play as your own custom-made character who's part of the rescue and unfortunately, their attempt ends in disaster when their ship gets damaged during the process. Now also stranded, you'll need to escape the mysterious planet while relying on the pikmin, small creatures that'll happily follow orders that include menial labor and risking their lives fighting against the planet's dangerous creatures. The story's was a good one as the sense of intrigue will keep you invested in exploring the world in search of answers and the cast of characters were all memorable in their quirky way.

 Pikmin 4 is a real-time strategy game where you control your custom-made explorer as you guide your pikmin across large-scale areas and caves searching for survivors and treasure alike. It won't be an easy feat as levels pack lots of hostile creatures that require you to carefully select the right pikmin for the job and utilize every item in your arsenal. The iconic red, yellow, and blue pikmin return as well as the others introduced in subsequent games. Each have their own unique abilities like reds being fireproof, blues can swim through water, yellow being resistant to electricity, and so on. 

The classic gameplay remains as fun as ever.

 You're timed each day from morning till sunset to scour around levels exploring as much as possible by building shortcuts, unlocking new base areas, and finding cave entrances as when nighttime nears, you need to haul back to base before aggressive monsters appear. Any pikmin left behind will be lost so you'll need to plan accordingly.

So what's new in Pikmin 4?

 To start, you're joined by trusty pup Oatchi, who can carry both you and your pikmin around, attack enemies by charging at them, and transport items along with your pikmin. Essentially, he's an invaluable part of your team as he offers new traversal and combat opportunities. Oatchi makes transporting materials a breeze and he's just fun to ride on when exploring. New pikmin types include the Ice Pikmin that can freeze bodies of water and enemies and Glow Pikmin, which I'll discuss later on.

You'll be best friends with the game's newest addition, Oatchi.

 You can equip gear to help you on expeditions like boots that let you move faster, collars for you and Oatchi that offer health upgrades, and a handy alarm that orders idle pikmin to come to you. Also, you get use bombs and mines to attack enemies as well as defend yourself. Dandori Battles have you competing with other castaways to get a high score by collecting things back to your base while defeating monsters and sabotaging your rivals progress before a time-limit. "Dandori" is described by the game as the art of efficiently organizing your pikmin when carrying on multiple tasks, as you must split up your forces to reach a high score.

 You can finally explore at night during Night Expeditions, where you're joined by the Glow Pikmin. Your goal is to collect glow stones to cure an illness and you're joined by the glow pikmin that can obviously glow dark and help you collect and transport glow stones instantly. It's a tower-defence mode where you must defend the Lumiknoll against challenging waves of enemies until sunrise, which is easier said than done. It was a good addition, though I didn't enjoy it as much as daytime exploration.

Pikmin 4's rewarding sense of progression makes it hard to put down.

 There are now side-quests that include the likes of fully completing an area, amassing over 300 pikmin, collecting over 50 treasures and things like that, which reward you with materials that you can use to buy more gear. "Olimar's Shipwreck Tale" is a game mode where you play as Captain Olimar himself as he recounts his unfortunate journey by collecting ship parts across levels in just 15 days. Pikmin 4 took a grand total of 27 hours to beat with me rescuing all castaways, collecting all treasures, and 100%-ing every level. Some drawbacks included the long load-times when transitioning between areas and the finicky camera during tight corridors. Other than those, the game was a polished experience.

 Pikmin 4 offers life-life backgrounds and colorful visuals like a sandy beach and messy house that feel like they've been lived in. The character models are charming with their cartoony look and expressive faces. Given the larger scope of the maps, they're littered neat treasures that include Nintendo easter-eggs like a Game Boy Advance. I played it on both docked and handheld modes, with no performance issues or crashes. For a Wii-like playstyle, I used the joycons' motion controls in docked mode and it was mostly responsive. Voicework is in gibberish in typical series fashion and the pikmin still have their adorable high-pitched voices. The soundtrack was pleasant, featuring acoustic and piano-based tracks that both fans and newcomers will dig. 

The presentation is fantastic with neat
lighting and beautiful backgrounds.

 Overall, Pikmin 4 was worth the long wait as it delivered a deeply engaging experience despite its simple look. The gameplay loop was seriously fun as exploring the large levels always felt exciting for me as I was greeted with new pikmin, enemy types, and some cool-looking treasures. It rewards your curiosity while testing your strategical skills especially during the late-game encounters. Pikmin 4 is a must-play for both fans and newcomers and easily stands as one of the best games the Switch has to offer. Here's hoping that the next game won't be another decade-long wait.