Review: Pikmin 4

Oatchi is the DOTY (Dog of the Year)

One of my favorite series to talk about with colleagues is Pikmin. Each game impacts everyone in different ways, as evidenced by our multiple reviews of the originals and re-releases throughout the years. Pikmin 1 is short and sweet. Pikmin 2 is interesting and long. Pikmin 3 — up until the release of Pikmin 4 —was my personal favorite given that it was a nice mix of both (with the always-welcome-in-the-Carter-household Bingo Battle mode in tow).

Whelp, I may have spoiled the Pikmin 4 review already!

Pikmin 4 (Switch)
Developer: Nintendo EPD, Eighting
Publisher: Nintendo
Released: July 21, 2023
MSRP: $59.99

After creating an avatar, it’s your job to find out what happened to a crash-landed Olimar and save the day. Pikmin 4 still has the classic “grab treasure to power up your ship so you can explore more” conceit but with some worthwhile twists. You’ll have a small team at your disposal for emotional support and mechanical bonuses, but you’ll start with a humble small force of Pikmin and…a dog. That dog (Oatchi) is a game-changer. Even though you’ll need to progress through the game and rescue research team members to fully upgrade it, it rules out of the gate.

Think of it like a catch-all Pikmin. It can fight, it can grab items (of increasingly larger stature as you upgrade it), and you can ride it like a vehicle. While that sounds overpowered, you do only have one of them. If you’re sending Oatchi on an errand, you can’t use it in a surprise battle in the moment, nor can you ride it and carry your non-swimming Pikmin across hazards like bodies of water.

Oatchi completely changes the way you approach the game, as you’ll be able to casually walk (and jump!) to corners of the map that you wouldn’t normally be able to reach in a typical Pikmin game. It adds a whole new layer of exploration to the franchise, and frankly, I bought in immediately.

It’s a rush to be able to zip around medium-to-large-sized sandboxes, look at something far off in the distance, and ponder how to get there through a combination of Oatchi finesse and Pikmin strategy. The micro of Pikmin 4 rules just as much as the macro, as you’re asked to practice the art of Dandori (“the art of organizing tasks strategically and working effectively to execute plans”) constantly. Dandori comes into play even if you aren’t actively noticing it, with piles of objects that have specific material counts alongside gates that require specific Pikmin to knock down, or enemies that require different Pikmin types to avoid mass casualties. Dungeons (underground levels) range from time trials, to CPU battles, to old-fashioned puzzles; all of which employ Dandori to some extent.

The more you play, the more you notice the philosophy sprinkled throughout the game. Some sandboxes require a specific amount of ice Pikmin to cross a lake, but you might need an answer to another puzzle on the other side. Select dungeons may task you with digging out multiple walls to progress while choosing just how many Pikmin to send off to get the job done in time. It’s all seamlessly integrated into the game, and when it all comes together and you start making better decisions, the positive feedback loop hits just right.

As for more new stuff, Glow Pikmin make an appearance in night missions, which remix existing levels into a castle-defense-like minigame. Creatures go berzerk at night and attempt to sabotage your home base, and it’s up to you, Oatchi, and your new Glow Pikmin friends to strategically take them out. Thankfully these night missions don’t overstay their welcome, and only a handful of clears are required for critical path completion.

Nothing about Pikmin 4 is a chore or a bore, in fact. Whenever I found my interest waning a bit, I’d just leave and warp to a new level, uncovering a new path or divine a new concept on the fly that would lead to a new area. Without spoiling anything there is a post-game; and when everything is said and done, the story component will take you around 15-20 hours to complete. If you’re going for a 100% rating (which includes all rescued captives, treasures, and so on), you can stretch it out even more.

The game is relatively stress-free too. While there is a degree of strategic knowledge required to beat some of the game’s later challenges, Pikmin 4 also has a handy rewind feature available at all times. Most players will never actually use it, but if you happen to lose, say, 50 Pikmin in one fell swoop because you misjudged an enemy, it’s nice to…undo that perilous mistake and move on with your life.

Although the fan-favorite Bingo Battle mode is not present in Pikmin 4, it does have a versus component called “Dandori Battle.” I was highly skeptical of this mode at first, as it seems like an innocuous “gather more items than your opponent” slugfest. But as I played through the main story and started to notice the level layouts a bit more (and subsequently unlocked more battlegrounds), I warmed up to it.

Dandori Battle is interesting, in part because it forces you to make sense of its chaos. Various objects will pop up as “BONUS POINTS” every so often, and success hinges on remembering where those items are, and if you can get to them quicker than your opponent. Items are still in (including defensive and offensive weaponry and tech) to add to that chaos, and micromanaging your Pikmin is as important as ever as you’re fighting against a time limit. Dandori Battle has concessions for CPU play, as well as 1P+2P versus a CPU in a co-op fashion. It’s enough to keep you preoccupied as you attempt to 100% the core story. Even if the game didn’t have Dandori Battle at all, I’d be satisfied.

The one big lamentation I have with Pikmin 4 is the lack of a true narrative co-op feature. In the campaign, “player two” can throw rocks and use items (a staple in many Nintendo games like Mario Galaxy), but they don’t control an actual player character, and as a result, lack any real agency. It’s a shame, but the general magnificence of Pikmin 4 more than makes up for it.

As I was playing through Pikmin 4 and things really started to click, I thought to myself (with a smile on my face) – “I just want to play this forever.” It’s a strategically satisfying game if you want it to be, and it’s a chill rainy-day adventure if you’re going for that vibe. This is one of the releases I’m going to set aside time to 100% this year, and like Pikmin 3‘s Bingo Battle (which I still play!), I’ll be jumping into Dandori Battle from time to time with my family.