Pikmin 1 + 2 Review and Analysis: Purpose, Improvements and Conclusion
Pikmin is one of Nintendo’s most mythical franchises, there is no doubt about that. With Shigeru Miyamoto himself as the creator of this popular series. We have seen various seasons released over the years, taking full advantage of his particular concept of strategy.
Today we are here to talk about its most recent release. Pikmin 1+2, a kind of preamble to the long-awaited Pikmin 4 that allows us to play the first two seasons of the franchise for the first time on Nintendo Switch, providing a level of convenience never seen before. to enjoy Olimar’s first adventures like never before. So if you want to know if this compilation is worth it, whether you are a new player or a nostalgia who returns, we leave you with our analysis of it.
The purpose of Pikmin 1+2
In addition to serving as an appetizer for Pikmin 4, Nintendo has launched Pikmin 1+2 intending to make all seasons of the series available on its current generation console, since as you may remember, Pikmin 3 Deluxe is already available on the console for a few months. This marks the first time we’ve seen the first couple of Pikmin titles adapted to high resolution, being GameCube games that were later given new life on Wii with the New Play Control initiative!
Next, we are going to do a brief review of what you can expect from each of the two deliveries:
Pikmin 1, the beginning of the adventure
Captain Olimar crash-lands on an unknown planet due to a malfunction in his spaceship. Thereafter, he will have 30 days to repair it piece by piece, or else it will be too late for him. Luckily, he has the help of the Pikmin, friendly creatures that will help him in his mission, being guided by Olimar to collect different objects and attack fierce enemies that lurk around this planet that hides more than meets the eye.
In this season, the red Pikmin, resistant to fire, the blue Pikmin, capable of swimming without drowning, and the yellow Pikmin, capable of reaching greater heights than the others, were introduced. Good management of these mandrake-like creatures will be essential to make our way through the different areas of the planet and returning home safe and sound.
Pikmin 2, improvements everywhere
In Pikmin 2 things get complicated. Captain Olimar manages to return home. But as soon as he returns, he discovers that a badge that he brought as a souvenir for his son from the planet of the Pikmin is worth a million dollars. For this reason, his boss forces him and his co-worker Luis to return to save his company from a gigantic debt.
Building on the bases of the previous game, this second title in the series introduces different novelties, such as new types of Pikmin such as the purple ones, much more powerful in battle, or the white ones, smaller and with red eyes, which allows you to dig up treasures more easily. In this game, we can also enjoy a local mode for up to two players, which becomes tangible in modes such as challenge or battle.
What’s new in this version? And what things do we miss?
These new versions of Pikmin and Pikmin 2 have been developed taking the Nintendo Wii version as a base in both cases. The games have been brought to high definition and adapted to the Nintendo Switch screen and controls, even adding motion controls to make it easier to manage our army of Pikmin. In addition, various quality-of-life improvements have been included, such as the ability to get all of our Pikmin off the ground by holding the A button, without having to keep pressing the button consecutively. Without a doubt, we believe that this is the best way to play both titles today, surpassing other versions in comfort by a wide margin.
However, if we were to put any downside to all of this, it is that we would have liked to see some kind of new original content for this particular version. We say this because the only alteration of the original content is not exactly something to celebrate; various treasures based on commercial items have been modified due to license expiration, and the occasional joke has also been slightly changed to fit today’s sensibilities.
Conclusion
Both Pikmin and Pikmin 2 are two classic games that every gamer who is a fan of strategy has to experience. With its high-definition graphics and quality-of-life improvements, this is the best version of both titles to date. Although we regret the absence of new original content with this release, we do recommend that you include both games in your collection, since they will surely end up making you fall in love with their charismatic proposal.
Pikmin 1+2 is now available digitally via the eShop, both individually and as a bundle with both games for a reduced price. Also, if you wait until September 22, you can get them in physical format.
