Pikmin 4 is the fourth entry in a series of puzzle-solving, strategy-adventure games for the Nintendo Switch. The franchise has stayed popular because of its balanced play and its colorful, family-friendly storyline. The fourth entry sticks to that template and adds fresh tweaks to its adventure.
One of those tweaks is the game’s newest location. While looking for planetary resources for his home world of Koppai, a certain Captain Olimar has crash-landed on an oversized planet that looks suspiciously like our very own Earth. And not long after that, a corps of rescuers rockets in to, well, crash and scatter across the landscape as well.
So, in a last-ditch effort, they all call on you, a rookie adventurer, to find your way to this alien world, to rescue the lost space men and women, to repair their spacecraft and to get everyone back home. But there are many obstacles to overcome, perils to endure, and enemies to battle in this strange world. So it’s going to be a tough task. Thankfully, there are happy little Pikmin on this planet, too.
What is a Pikmin? Well, it’s a little plant being that generally looks like a cross between a chewed wad of gum and branchy flower or leaf. These smiling, humanoid critters come in a variety of colors, have their own specific skills and are ready to help out when someone is in trouble.
Red Pikmin, for instance, are resistant to fire and, when gathered in a group, make great diggers and builders. Yellow Pikmin can deal with electrified barriers. The blue ones are great with water challenges. Black, rocky Pikmin can bash through crystal and glass-like barriers. And the list goes on.
The rarer variants of Pikmin, such as Purple and White, take some special skills just to find. But with the right Pikmin in your group of helpers, your adventurer can open secreted away areas, find usable treasures, face off with dangerous foes and overcome the challenges on hand.
There’s also a large dog-like helper this time, named Oatchi, that can carry your adventurer and his squad of Pikmin to hard-to-get-to areas and help out with battles.
Pikmin 4’s world is oversized and vast. So the explorable locales, such as an Earth-like living room or kitchen area, a backyard playground or underground tunnels and the like, are all seen from a Toy Soldier-ish, miniature, ground-level perspective. That adds a childlike and kid-appropriate smile to the puzzle-solving and battling tasks.
Found treasures in this world then, are objects such as a misplaced rubber duck or an old Game Boy console. They are carried away and converted into spacecraft fuel and repair-worthy materials. And the initial, easygoing puzzle challenges become pleasantly more ambitious as the game progresses.
Pikmin 4 also offers new Nighttime Expeditions. They’re essentially individual tower-defense events that are rewarded with a substance that heals fellow crewmates who have been turned into plant-like beings called Leaflings. Kids and parents can play Pikmin 4 together, with shared joy-con play. The game also has a competitive multiplayer mode.
Pikmin 4 is an easy and approachable game with a childlike feel and lots of colorful fun. And it steadily continues to ratchet up the puzzle and adventure challenges in ways that kids and adults can all enjoy.
In addition, there are new interactions, such as the above-mentioned Nighttime Expeditions and new, timed Dandori challenges that deepen play with battles and gathering events against AI foes.
There are really only two areas in this game that might spark a bit of concern from parents. One is the ongoing and sometimes frenetic battling with insect-like foes that bite at Pikmin or blow fire or poison in their direction. It’s not messy or bloody, but if you toss leafy friends in the wrong place or at the wrong time, they can be gobbled up, be drowned or be set on fire while squeaking in pain.
Pikmin are also sometimes called upon to bash and destroy machines and creatures with their leafy or flowery head stalks. The battles can result in screen-shaking explosions. The events of a day or “mission” are timed as well. And running out of time and leaving some gathered Pikmin friends out after sunset can expose them to more aggressive enemies.
The second possible point of concern is much lighter, but still worth mentioning. The characters and narrator in Pikmin 4 talk in a “non-language” gibberish that is captioned. So some young players could have a tougher time understanding the story and missions without a little parental help. The tutorials do, however, effectively ease kids into the action of the game with simple illustrations.
Your favorite little plant pals are back with new rescue quests and some freshly tweaked challenges. From sandcastle stomps to kitchen counter clomps, it’s a whole new colorful world.
After spending more than two decades touring, directing, writing and producing for Christian theater and radio (most recently for Adventures in Odyssey, which he still contributes to), Bob joined the Plugged In staff to help us focus more heavily on video games. He is also one of our primary movie reviewers.
