Pikmin 3 represents Nintendo's biggest hit of the summer, and the company is depending on the long-awaited game to help bring the Wii U's profile up and revitalize the struggling console. But has the game reached the pinnacle Nintendo has been hoping for?
In their review, The Guardian noted that, while the game has a fairly loose structure, it works well as a strategy game, and the game's visuals help convey a sense of wonder that many Nintendo titles have been lacking:
"As a pure strategy game Pikmin 3 is less complex and nuanced than its rivals, but Nintendo's primary aim was to make something more than a pure strategy game. Its wonder is to be found in exploring the whisper and scurry of small lives; the Honey I Shrunk the Kids world beneath the tall grass which, for the first time in the medium's history, is rendered in a glorious high definition that's more entrancing than any number of wide-angle shots of post-apocalyptic cityscapes. And it's wonder is to be found in the ritual of the day: landing on the planet in the morning, harvesting new Pikmin, food and progress before scooping up your diminutive family and fleeing the dangers of the dark for the safety of the sky."
Joystiq, in their write up, noted that Pikmin 3 allows players the chance to explore each level without much pressure to follow a rigid structure, and levels are endlessly replayable, as players try to find all the secrets and beat their own best times for clearing the level:
"It helps that there is no time pressure to punish my neglect. I need one spare container of fruit juice to survive each in-game day, and it's easy to bolster supplies. The days, roughly 20 minutes in real-time, feel distinct. I'm forming goals for each one, like building a bridge, or finally reaching a juicy-looking plum. While there's the priority of defeating each section's boss, the overall looseness lets me explore at my leisure, and when the sun sets my satisfaction is personal."
While the game is very enjoyable and one of the best titles in the Wii U's library, there are still some faults, as Destructoid points out in their review:
"There are a few other omissions that left me scratching my head a bit. It's strange that there is no option to aim with the second analog stick on the GamePad, or use touch-screen aiming like in the Pikmin Adventure portion of Nintendo Land. The game also feels a lot less populated than I expected. There's no arguing that Pikmin 2 had more content, with a larger (sometimes heavily armed) bestiary, 30 challenge levels, and more overall ground to cover. I'm guessing that it was cheaper to include all that content in Pikmin 2, as many of the assets were recycled from the first game."
Overall, if you own a Wii U, then you have very little reason not to pick up Pikmin 3. The game looks amazing, has many different ways to explore levels, and offers up huge amounts of replayability with the various co-op and multiplayer modes and loose mission structure. Nintendo has provided Wii U owners with the game they have been waiting for, now it is up to Wii U owners to make sure the game is a success.