Pikmin? You pick flowermen out of the ground. Pick men... Pikmin. I get it.
Written: Jan 04 '04 (Updated Jan 04 '04)
Product Rating:
Pros: Devilishly addictive, quirky, immersive, funny and strategic gameplay...
Cons: ...that's too short. Youngsters may be overwhelmed, but this game isn't really for kids anyway.
The Bottom Line: Pikmin's a Player's Choice title many passed over unfairly. Forget the cartoony graphics, this game is not for kids. Excellent, deep strategy game from the top genius in games.
For those in the know, that's a sad translation joke from the sad translation that was The Legend of Zelda. That was what Shigeru Miyamoto's name was translated, poorly, as in the game's credits. Remember, this is the same game that had "Grumble, Grumble" translate from "Hey, get me the bait that looks like a piece of prehistoric meat and I'll let your elfin butt through this door, even though you killed all my friends, family and anyone who looked at you wrong with that sword AND stole their boomerangs. Because I like meat. And little elfin boys in tights."
Since then, Mister Miyamoto has made a name for himself and it's surprisingly not Miyahon. He's known for creating some of the greatest games ever to fall into my grubby and suspiciously well-moisturized hands and has changed with the times and revolutionalized gaming as we know it. No matter who the geek is, that geek's life is not complete until they have an incredibly geeky picture with the genius behind the games.
So, when Shigeru Miyamoto announced that his first project on the Nintendo Gamecube would not be a Mario title like every Nintendo system before it (save the Virtual Boy, which virtually made a laughingstock out of the Big N), everyone was a bit shocked.
Thus is the history of Pikmin. What? I was ranting and said almost nothing about the game's history? Oh... that's because it really came out of nowhere. The only thing people really knew about it was that Miyamoto was attached to it, which made it instantly in good company.
Here I am, now, entertain me.
You play as Captain Olimar, an alien from a distant planet (the name escapes me, but every time I see it, I think it said "chocolate") whose space ship was struck by a meteor as he was going home to his family. His ship crashes on this strange planet and 30 parts have scattered across the land. Luckily, his space suit has enough power to hold for 30 days, otherwise he'd have to breath that toxic "oxygen" gas he fears so much.
After exploring the world in which he now finds himself trapped, he stumbles upon a strange pod that resembles, to him, an "onion." Out from the "Onion" pops a strange seed that quickly grows into a small plant. Out of morbid curiousity, Olimar pulls the Super-Duper Miracle Grow specimen out of the ground and finds it to be a sentient and, strangely, anthropomorphic plant.
Olimar notices that the creature is friendly and willing to follow him. He also notes, quickly, that the goal of the creatures he dubs "Pikmin" seems to be reproduction. Every time that a Pikmin feeds flora or fauna into the onion, seeds are planted. Seeds, when left in the ground, can be picked early for a young Pikmin or left in the ground to turn into mature, fully-flowered Pikmin. The more mature a Pikmin, the faster they travel. The faster they travel, the more time you save when they return items back to the campgrounds.
Be aware, however, that you can only have 100 Pikmin out at one time and the seedlings count towards your total, so you may want to pick them from time to time just to add to your army. Otherwise, it may not be at full strength and you may find yourself overwhelmed by the native monsters.
So, Olimar utilizes these strange, red creatures to get his ship back into working condition and blasts off in search of the other 29 parts.
Later throughout the adventures of Olimar, you run across yellow and blue variants of the Pikmin. It appears each version has their own strength and weaknesses. The red Pikmin are tolerant to fire and heat and are the best fighters. Yellow Pikmin can carry and plant bombs and are able to be thrown high. Blue Pikmin fight about as well as the red variants and are the only Pikmin that can survive in water, due to their gills.
This is how we do it.
Control is simple. You can even lead your Pikmin formations in a Pied Piper of Hamelin way with the C-Stick. This is great when you're trying to get your Pikmin out of the way of enemies as they pounce or when you're merely crossing a narrow bridge. I still recall "The Great Yellow and Red Pikmin Tragedy of Day 9" in which nearly 75 of my Pikmin died a painful death. I can still hear their death cries, the polar opposite of the playful "hello!" they'd greet Captain Olimar with as he plucked them from the ground for the first time.
And, thus, this is the kind of game that nearly requires multiple save files as it can often be mercilessly unforgiving. Also, you'll find yourself running a day or two only to want to replay those days as you discovered a better route to utilize now that you know the ley of the land and the obstacles before it. Most areas pretty much require you to spend a day or two there just to clear the land of enemies and other obstacles, such as walls that must be blown to smithereens.
Other controls, such as splitting the formations and calling out to your Pikmin so they'll recover quicker are simple, intuitive and quickly feel like second nature. The only problem I could find is that calling out to your Yellow Pikmin when they're holding a bomb seems to startle them and they drop their bombs on the spot. So, if you're not careful, you may end up blowing up your army.
A majority of the game ends up having Captain Olimar hurling his Pikmin army towards obstacles so they can build a bridge for the Pikmin or him to cross and at enemies so the Pikmin can headbutt them to death. Also, Olimar can join the headbanging party. However, should Olimar have his space suit's power completely depleted, then the day will end prematurely and all Pikmin left on the landscape will be left out of their respective onion pods.
This wouldn't be a problem except that the native monsters have a hunger that is impossible to quench. All Pikmin left out of their pods at the end of a day die in graphic ways, be it smashed, beaten to death or just plain eaten. This also happens if you don't get them back before dark. So, in all reality, this could REALLY instill the "get home before dark" factor into your young children, if only for fear that they'll be eaten by gigantic ladybugs. But, that means they're just another casualty to war.
And this IS war.
Fighting, like almost everything else in the game, involves you throwing your Pikmin at the enemy when their vulnerability is exposed. When they land, they'll instantly go to bludgeoning the enemy. Should they get shook, you regroup and go at them some more.
Let it be known, you're going to watch a lot of your new friends die a horrible, painful death. However, they shall not die in vain for their deaths lead to new births. When an enemy is defeated, you can have your Pikmin carry either the corpses back or the Pikmin tablets they may drop. Also, boss monsters are scattered throughout and they'll drop a ship part in addition to the aforementioned items.
Pikmin tablets are all numbered and colored. The numbers represent not only how many Pikmin are required to carry it back to their pods, but how many Pikmin seeds will be planted afterwards. Also, when the pods receive a tablet of the same color, some bonus Pikmin are dropped. Most often, though, you won't have time to sort through it, but should you have the time, it's well worth it.
If there would be more than 100 Pikmin on the playfield, the seeds aren't planted and the Pikmin are born inside the pod. However, this means that they are never given a chance to mature in the ground and, thus, are still young.
Luckily, these crafty little things are well aware of the world around them and will excavate for minerals that will instantly mature them. Of course, when you're trying to hurry through an area, their apparent ADHD can be upsetting. Still, it's good that the game gives you hints to items of interest by peaking the interest of the Pikmin.
Map design is spot-on and will often make you think about the best route through an area, how you'll get to that area and wonder about how the hell you're going to reach a high ledge after you cross the water.
However, sometimes the game gives you hints. Scattered throughout the landscape are other flowers that can be fed Pikmin of any color. Once eaten, the flower will spit out seeds of the same color as the flower. It's not used often, but is great for small clues.
And, really, that's what great about this game. It makes you think the entire time and feels fresh throughout. Also, the end boss and last area (which can only be accessed should you get the other 29 ship parts) is pure genius that utilizes every trick that you've learned throughout the game to take out the biggest threat to your little plant friends. To me, it's the most epic battle I've fought since Final Fantasy VI, even though it didn't have the sadistic buildup that Kefka had.
Also, the game is slightly forgiving in one aspect. Captain Olimar starts to reveal around day 20 that he knows not all the parts to his ship are necessary for him to leave the planet (five or six items aren't needed, but that's not revealed until you get through the game). That last part isn't necessary for his survival, but you don't feel truly complete until you get through and make sure life is safe for your allies.
All in all
If nothing else, this game shows the genius of Shigeru Miyamoto more than Christina Aguilera shows her butt. As a Player's Choice title, it's well worth every penny of the thirty-five bucks a strategy gamer will pony up to play such a marvelous little game.
Also, for the completists out there who own Super Smash Bros. Melee, you'll get a Captain Olimar trophy if you have the save game file on your memory card. Keen.
Pikmin 2 is due early in the year, so pick it up now to get prepared for what may be the next big thing.
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