Originally released for Nintendo’s Wii U in August 2013, Pikmin 3 was overlooked mostly by the gaming world due to the failure of Wii Us install base and the overall train wreck that was early 2010’s Nintendo marketing. Miyamoto was quoted in 2013 in an interview with Time magazine, stating Pikmin 3 would have been best served as a launch title. Although this would have been some great exposure, most Wii U titles were doomed from the get-go.
Pikmin 3 Deluxe
Enter Nintendo Switch, providing life support and recovery for missed Wii U opportunities. Its launch title was previously a Wii U exclusive in the Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Switch showed consumers that Nintendo was back in action. They could provide a ready-made back catalogue for titles which were for a product that most thought was a Nintendo Wii Accessory.
Pikmin 3 Deluxe follows a trio of space explorers that crashland on planet PNF-404, a new Earth-Like biodome discovered by probes. Launched by their kind to find resource-rich environments to save their home planet, Koppai, Pikmin 3 Deluxe is a statement regarding the environmental health of our planet.
Beam me up some Juice
Unlike previous entries to the franchise, Pikmin 3 Deluxe sees protagonists Alph, Brittany, and Charlie amassing hordes of Pikmin to help collect fruit and defeat enemies within a day cycle. This can be extended dependant on how much juice is harvested from the day’s collection. This is about as far as the narrative does in terms of depth, which is a little disappointing but not surprising for the series in general.
Animal Crossing gets the accessibility vs playability balance down perfectly, and its sales figures reflect this. Pikmin has always danced on the line of action vs puzzler to a frustrating degree. Whilst players can expect environmental puzzles involving fruit harvesting to pass the time, they must also battle various bugs and bosses to achieve this.
Puzzling Fruit?
Harvesting enough fruits create a juice that allows players to forage for longer. One jar of juice equates to an extra day foraging for example. Rather than having an open-ended amount of time to carry out this addictive gameplay loop, players are instead rewarded for their effort by being given more time to carry out a said loop. Classic Nintendo. The game itself is a typical charm-over-quality Nintendo risk, which could be likened to the more recent Yoshi and Kirby titles. Environmental puzzles are the major gameplay driver in Pikmin 3 Deluxe, with enemy battles littered throughout to break up the gameplay.
Polished up for Switch at a solid 720p, it’s clear when looking at Pikmins NPC count that it’s a demanding title. Coupled with Nintendo’s going against the grain attitude, it’s great to see the game running so smoothly in handheld and docked mode. The game’s textures and environmental design stands up against today’s standards of level design and presentation.
Pik Co-Op
More Content has been packed into Pikmin 3 Deluxe for players to enjoy such as side quests and Co-Op in single-player mode. Designed to bring people and families together, Pikmin 3 Deluxe puts the finishing touches on some eagerly sought after features. All previously released DLC is also included in Pikmin 3 Deluxe, including the continuation of previous Pikmin protagonists Olimar and Louie.
Players will instantly notice the modified control scheme due to a lack of second screen and perma-map. Using Joy-Con to aim cursor or thumbstick or using a combination of the two with the pro controller will be a players choice for the Deluxe outing. No touch controls in handheld mode is a missed opportunity, but locking onto enemies has been transitioned to the ZR button. This tends to work most of the time but can occasionally be finicky when enemies and Pikmin begin to flood the screen.
Ultra Spicy Additions
Whilst the new Ultra Spicy mode provides an extra level of challenge for seasons players of the franchise, players can also press up on the D-Pad at any time for hints. The Piklopedia marks its return from Pikmin 2, which serves as a diary for Alph, Brittany, and Charlie. Reading the crew members first-hand accounts of their interactions with the creatures and flora on PNF-404.
