Pikmin 4 Reviews
While every Pikmin game has followed the winning formula that was established two decades ago, each has added its own tweaks here and there. Pikmin 4 seems to have taken the biggest leap in that regard, and yet everything feels like a logical and fitting next step. The core of the gameplay is the same and provides the hours of whimsical RTS challenge and fun that fans expect, while the new modes and mechanics keep it from feeling stale. Every mainline game has been an improvement on the last, and Pikmin 4 is no exception. Other than the co-op, there’s really nothing negative about the game, besides perhaps the loading times. But it’s really a testament to how great Pikmin 4 is that waiting 30 seconds to get back into it is too long.
The Pikmin series blossoms anew, in a bouquet of fresh gameplay and the best of its roots.
Pikmin 4 adds variety to the series' traditional gameplay by offering options other than the grab-and-throw formula of the past, and brings an extra helping of top-tier levels after the credits roll.
Pikmin 4 isn’t quite the best game in the series, but it’s certainly the most confident. With this new entry, Nintendo has decided to wipe away much of the past tedium in favour of ensuring moment-to-moment gameplay is more enjoyable than ever. But eradicating its past frustrations also removes much of the challenge and depth from the game’s battles and puzzles. Commanding its multicoloured armies and pilfering this planet of its treasures while gathering a motley crew of comrades kept me enraptured for hours, just don’t come into this expecting the harsh journey back home to be little more than a leisurely stroll.
Pikmin 4 isn't just another Pikmin game. Nintendo has taken the formula and twisted it by adding new challenges, ways to play, and a whole new character. It's cute and packs a great RTS punch despite multiple ways to make it more approachable overall.
Pikmin may never rise to the top of the Nintendo heap, and it’s probably unfair to expect it ever could, but the latest Pikmin is the best effort yet.
Pikmin 4 is a pleasant, relaxing game that serves as a nice entry point for newcomers, with occasionally odd high-pressure segments.
Pikmin 4 is a game for those who want to take small things too seriously.
That mood is one that brings together both established and new ideas to create a Pikmin that is, I think, absolutely the most well-rounded title in the series. It takes a series that for its second and third entries I appreciated but didn’t love - and brings back that adoration. It’s a revitalizing sequel - though also exactly the sort of entry that’ll be difficult to follow.
As the game continues, there's just enough enemy variety to keep this routine from becoming too boring. A particularly tough enemy might require you to throw tough Rock Pikmin to break through, for instance. Or you might need to clog up the blowhole of an elephant-trunked enemy to stun it and expose its armored weak point.
It's easy to say without hesitation that Pikmin 4 is the strongest the series has ever been.
Yes, the co-op is disappointing, and the campaign's not gonna be challenging enough for some diehard fans, but overall Nintendo has nailed it here, serving up a magical Pikmin adventure that we reckon could see the series finally getting all of the attention it fully deserves.
Pikmin 4 is the culmination of all that's come before it, modernised in a truly magical way. There is so much to do, it's hard to think anyone wouldn't find fun here.
Pikmin 4 is an incredibly charming and fun experience for the most part, but its new additions aren't quite revolutionary enough to stave off a feeling of repetitiveness in the later hours.
Pikmin 4 is a sequel lives up to the saga, an expansion that naturally integrates a greater amount of content, presenting new mechanics that, through Ochín, enable the creation of new challenges. A must have for the fan of the saga, and a great sequel which is perfectly capable of attracting new looks.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Pikmin 4 almost always had fun surprises in store with me for each day’s adventures. Every biome, cave, and challenge brought about new threats and surprises, and my versatility between my own upgrades and those to Oatchi and our Pikmin made sure we almost always had new and fun ways to approach each situation. Pikmin 4 does a good job of retracing steps in the series, bringing back features that players liked, and making them feel good in the new setting. It also keeps the new adventure compelling with fun objectives and loads of secrets. Oatchi is a clear contender for Shacknews Best Pet of 2023, and Pikmin 4 might just be the best blend of charming and intense that I’ve played all year.
Pikmin 4, despite some minor flaws, is the classic video game experience that you would never want to stop playing and remains in many ways the best episode in the series.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Although the first Pikmin seem too harsh in its gameplay, this experience is much more pleasant without "insulting" our gaming capacity. In addition, it is much more beautiful and enormously varied. It has it all, explorers.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
There's a pleasing mixture of the familiar and the new within Pikmin 4. The fresh camera view and tweaks to the gameplay make it feel more accessible, but for returning players, the focus on the Dandori ethos of planning, efficiency and adaptability provides new arenas to test your skills. Oh, and Oatchi's a real cutie too.
Though faithful fans might be put off by a more laid-back sequel that’s over-eager to hold players’ hands, Pikmin 4 is a purposeful reconstruction of Nintendo’s most niche series. A stressful comedy of errors becomes a digestible puzzle-strategy hybrid that gives players valuable organization strategies that are just as useful in real life as they are on their Nintendo Switch adventure.