I came home from work one day and my (at the time) 3? 4? year old nephew had removed about 10 disks from their cases and everything was strewn across my floor.

They were all ok though.

@Zero

Get that kid some Duplos! Cripes.

So I finally got around to picking up Pikmin 3 (curse you slutty Target 3 for 2 sale!).

My feeling so far? Might be the best game on the Wii U. Or at least up there with DKC:TF. I have to agree with Zero, that the game really does feel like an adventure. While the story is light (a good idea for Pikmin) I do find that I care about these little guys and their need to get off Earth and save their planet. It's a nice little story and I'm oddly moved, moreso than in the previous games, by the fact that they're coming to a human-less far future Earth. It's kind of awesome to see, say, Antarctica and Australia bumping uglies in far distant future, and to see characters who don't understand what happened to the inhabitants there.

I got a preview of the controls when I played Pikmin 2 NPC. I love them! Aren't these the most fluid controls possible for Pikmin? I mean, my experience with the original game was that I liked the idea, but hated using the analog stick to control it. With the IR sensor, Pikmin really sings. That was true with the NPC version, but it's perfectly tuned here. There's so much the game requires of you (multi-tasking is almost the name of the game) and yet it never feels like a chore.

It's also a beautiful game. I have my beef with the decision to underpower the Wii U in comparison to its competitors. But that's academic for this game. I've got no beef with the look of Pikmin 3. It's gorgeous.

Anyway, great game. That gives me two games on the Wii U that I unequivocally love (Pikmin 3 and Tropical Freeze) and two that are flawed but still highly rated by me (Lego City and Sonic Transformed). Not the best start in the history of consoles, but enough to make me a little happier about what the console is doing.

Only complaint so far? Pikmin 3 keeps me playing until the damn controller runs out of power. Boo, battery!

kriswright said:

. It's kind of awesome to see, say, Antarctica and Australia bumping uglies in far distant future

Watch out for carnivorous penguins.

@Shadowlink

So, just wrapped up Pikmin 3 and it's pretty much a masterpiece. The only real complaint I have is the final level/boss battle, which was incredibly frustrating at the time, but isn't so bad in retrospect because it's clear you're supposed to do it over multiple days. But the first few times through I thought I was really failing to manage the teams correctly. (It would have been perfect in multiplayer, though). Now that I'm through it, I see that really only an expert player who knew what they were doing every step of the way could complete it in a day - and I'd have to see that in action to be certain even that is possible.

It's hard to watch dozens upon dozens of Pikmin get killed because I've mismanaged them, but that says something about the level of buy-in I have at that point.

I'm considering writing a review of this, today. May or may not do it. It's definitely a high-scorer, though. Just under Tropical Freeze in my affections. It was probably the first Nintendo masterpiece on the Wii U.

EDIT: Also, it inspired my wife and me to go try some more exotic fruits that we've never had before. The conclusion. Papayas are nasty and I can't believe anyone would eat that stuff. Woof!

Guillaume said:

I'm seeing quite a bit of "anti-time limit" sentiment on my twitter feed concerning this game and Super Mario 3D World's later bonus levels. As if time limits weren't a valid game design conceit. I don't know about you, but I really disagree with that. Most of the time, I feel games should be unnerving. It's part of the fun. And it's one of very few ways to force a player to push his skills to the limit, and get better.

And in the case of Pikmin specifically, it's the whole point of the game: effective resource management with a time limit breathing down your neck. Asking for the time limit to be removed is akin to saying you'd like cover shooters if only the enemies didn't throw grenades at you or sneaked up on you while you're hiding. It's missing the whole point.

I know this is an ancient comment, but I totally agree with you, Gui. Complaining about the time limit in Pikmin is really missing the point - you're supposed to explore and accomplish as much as you can as quick as you can. If the levels were just left wide open for you to mosey through as much as you want, what would stop you, for instance, from setting up a chain of Pikmin collecting Spicy Berries and then just go have a nap? Come back and 99 Ultra Spicy shots ready to go. It's a totally broken game at that point. And, frankly, a whole lot less fun.

Count me in as another proponent of the time limit (lives limit, etc. - whither, arcades?!). I mean, it's not like the overall time limit in Pikmin 1 was particularly brutal. It came down to about 1 piece a day, right? And you could replay whole days and make them more efficient!

As long as they're reasonable, and the whole creeping dread thing doesn't go overboard, like with Art Style: Aquia, I like the time limit mechanic. An optional sandbox mode would be cool for time limit haters, though (as there are quite a few).

You know what game DID have brutal time limits? NSMB 2 Coin Rush. Super Luigi U also lights quite a fire under your ass.

Nintendo is the last hardcore company.

kriswright said:

Anyway, great game. That gives me two games on the Wii U that I unequivocally love (Pikmin 3 and Tropical Freeze) and two that are flawed but still highly rated by me (Lego City and Sonic Transformed). Not the best start in the history of consoles, but enough to make me a little happier about what the console is doing.

No love for 3D World?

Anand said:

Nintendo is the last hardcore company.

Nintendo is the most hardcore company, too. No freakin' "stand still to regenerate health" crap here!

I'd really like to see those guys who play other systems try their hand at Super Luigi U. Huge piles of torn out hair.

@Anand

Well, I wouldn't say I had no love for 3D World. Just to underline my feelings, its omission here wasn't me making a statement. I simply forgot about it. That sort of says it all, though.

I'd put it in the second category, though I think its flaws are harder to spot. Mostly it just felt like Mario by-the-numbers to me. Or, in the case of the ridiculous cat suit, not enough like Mario for me to emotionally connect with it. Maybe it comes from being a dog person. I dunno.

I don't want to sound too cranky about 3D World. I do like the game. But it's definitely not in the same category as the two Galaxy games or, indeed, Pikmin 3, for me. I don't consider it a masterpiece. It's just a good Mario game. I'd probably file it above Mario 64 but below SMWorld in my personal ratings. Middle of the pack somewhere.

That's just my opinion, though.

3D World shines with 2-3 players. It is so much fun.

I'm glad you picked up Pikmin 3, this game deserves more love. I loved it, but wished it had a more fleshed out ending. Definitely my favorite (solo player) Wii U game so far.

kriswright said:

Or, in the case of the ridiculous cat suit, not enough like Mario for me to emotionally connect with it. Maybe it comes from being a dog person. I dunno.

*GASP* DOG MARIO WOULD RULE. I hadn't even thought of the possibility!

@Marsh

Have you tried Zombi U?

@Marsh

I played the whole game in 2 player with my wife. We enjoyed it, but both felt it was a little empty. But different strokes for different folks.

@kriswright

Yeah, count me as someone who tried to do it all in one day too. What an excercise in frustration. Many resets were had.

Stupid blob.

@kriswright

My opinion is very similar to yours on DKTF, Pikmin 3, and SM3DW. *throws confetti*

@Mr_Mustache I tried the demo, it felt really solid and lovely but I have a weird thing where I don't buy or play much survival horror. I tend to rush through them and I think they stress me out too much? Maybe when it's on sale again...

@Marsh

I talked to my buddy the other day about the Zombi U demo...and I CAN NOT believe what they have you doing. (For you guys that don't know, apparently the Demo takes place in the Nursery.) I thought they'd go a completely different direction with it.

But yeah, the game is pretty tense, haha. I don't think Zombi U is a game that you'll want to rush through though; you'll probably play more like me and take little baby steps. On top of being scared, I didn't want to miss anything. If you can snake it on a sale, go for it. If you liked what you played.

(I don't really do much Survival Horror either. I think I only own Resident Evil 4, actually.)

@kriswright

Interesting that you don't find Cat Mario to be "Marioish". For me, there's no real difference between that and Raccoon Mario, except one obviously being more iconic. How do you feel about Bee Mario?

@Jargon

I don't want to clog up the Pikmin 3 thread with a finger-pointing debate about whether I'm a hypocrite for liking Bee Mario and not liking Cat Mario.

I like Bee Mario because it's clumsy, silly and only appears on a handful of levels. I like the more controversial Spring Mario for the exact same reasons. I don't really like Cat Mario because it just about turns Mario into a beat 'em up and, unlike Bee Mario, you can use the costume in damn near every level. In fact, dozens of levels are built around it.

But this isn't really a philosophical debate. I dislike it because it never felt "right" to me - an opinion I'm entitled to. Simple as that.

And that's the extent to which I'm interested in talking about it in this thread.

@kriswright

Is everything alright man? I just don't know how you could read what I wrote and act like it was some kind of insult. I'm honestly perplexed. Finger pointing? Hypocrite? Philosophical debate? What in the world...

@Jargon I didn't take it that way, I think he was using the word lightly. But I could be wrong.

I agree with the Cat Mario being a bit overpowered, but it fits in the game because a lot of the levels were designed with the powerup in mind. It makes traversing the somewhat larger areas more fun too because of the Cat Suit's superior speed. And it makes completing certain areas so much more fun because you can do it however you feel, given the circumstances.

I think I can see where the game lacks the usual magic and charm, some bits seemed phoned in and not as original as others. I enjoyed playing with my sister, however we got into some intense arguments on some of the levels. Usually it was the ones that just aren't suited for more than one player (the dash pads in the lava level for example).

@Mr_Mustache I own Resident Evil 4 and that's about it. Oh and Eternal Darkness, haha. I tried Dead Space on PS3 and couldn't get through the demo. I wish I wasn't such a pansy. The genre still intrigues me though, feeling that sort of fear is a rare and exhilarating experience for me.