Since its original launch in 2013 for Wii U, Pikmin 3 he managed to show off a great personality and passion. The work directed by Shigefumi Hino and developed by the team of Nintendo EAD has been able to reflect not only the quality of a series that has already been able to offer two excellent chapters on Gamecube, but also how Wii U has in its library several products not to be underestimated for fans of the sector. History and the market have not been kind to Nintendo's seventh generation at home, however many interesting products could not get the right exposure by the general public. For this reason we find ourselves today talking about Pikmin 3 Deluxe, edition revised and corrected of this particular RTS suitable for all ages and coming to Nintendo's much luckier hybrid console.
The return of a small masterpiece
The third chapter of this franchise then tells the misadventure of three inhabitants of the planet Koppai that, due to a tremendous scarcity of food resources, they leave towards the so named PNF-404. Unfortunately something unexpected happens in the landing, dividend in this way the small trio of protagonists. From this point on we take control of Alph, the little engineer of the expedition and who almost immediately begins looking for the Captain Charlie and that eater of Brittany. The main plot then presents itself practically unchanged, at least to the point where we encounter the menacing and dim Fantastrello.
The backbone of the gameplay remains mainly what we could appreciate now a good seven years ago, but with some small additions to facilitate the game for a less experienced group of players. History is thus structured in days, in which our task is to not only complete the round mission but also collect all kinds of fruit possible, find all kinds of collectibles or secrets in the game world and defeat the enemies who want to eat the little Pikmin. The days have a duration there about fifteen minutes each, in which you have to complete everything before the night comes and increasingly dangerous monsters roam the planet. To face the days you have to have enough food edible, to allow our protagonists to survive in this dangerous world. Regarding the aforementioned Pikmin, these turn out to be the the heart of the whole experience - it is no coincidence that they give the name of the entire franchise - and they are present of 7 different types: Red, Blue, Yellow, Winged, Rocky, White and Purple. All these versions possess special skills very simple to identify and remember, which serve to complete in the best way every kind of modality present in this product.
In the gameplay, however, it is possible to notice some small differences not present in the original version of Pikmin 3. More precisely we are talking about some small functions inserted for help the gamer in need, managing to facilitate the task of the three little astronauts. Some of these features are either that of being guided by a real line towards the target's destination, or one capable of recalling all the Pikmin missing in the map of the level. Additionally, there is a new aiming system that it greatly facilitates the engagement of one's own goal. All these little additions are somehow secondary and they can safely be ignored, but they are particularly invasive within the work and could annoy the player who would not want to use it. Pikmin 3 Deluxe, itself, he hasn't even aged bad or not even particularly simple in its development, therefore these additions are appreciated, but not indispensable for the product.
Olimar and Louie on an adventure for the third time
One of the biggest new features of this Pikmin 3 Deluxe is the mode extra story, which presents the possibility to play again as Olimar and Louie. To tell the truth, the two heroes had already appeared in the original title through the DLC package dedicated to them, but here we find a real one story mode dedicated to them. Currently it has not been possible to try it in full, but the first three missions of this completely new part they don't have a level design worthy of the rest of the game. We find ourselves, in fact, in front of real ones tutorial of the mission mode, in which you have to collect a certain number of fruits, within the time limit, in shrunken sections of the maps in the main game. The cutscenes that we were able to witness within this mode are not unheard of, since in the original game they were present as collectibles to find secrets.
A big addition to this version of the product, however, is the ability to play all modes in multiplayer. In the original product the story was conceived and designed exclusively for a completely single player experience, while for the occasion the team adapted it to made playable up to a maximum of two players. Here it is exploited split screen, with a view that is certainly limited but that manages to be functional and dynamic. Obviously, even the aforementioned extra story is easily playable in multiplayer, allowing a simplified and particularly fun gaming experience compared to that of solitary players. A welcome addition that will delight any fan genre who missed this in the original release.
A welcome return
Pikmin 3 Deluxe therefore looks like a expanded porting of the original product of 2013, given that in terms of graphics and performance there is no big news. The game artistically looks practically the same, with a style that has managed to resist more than worthily the passage of time. Visually speaking, therefore, this Pikmin 3 it is still irresistible both in portable and home mode. The command input, on the other hand, has been reproduced very well both with the Joy-Con and with the Pro Controller, showing an optimization work well done by the Nintendo development team that took care of it. Unfortunately you feel the lack of the Wii Mote + Nunchuck combination and the ability to observe the map on the gamepad at any time, but for obvious reasons this feature could not be brought back to this version. In any case, we haven't been able to test carefully yet bingo modes and missions of the work as well as the actual difference offered of the new difficulty system, but if you are interested the company has recently announced a demo which allows you to unlock the most difficult difficulty level of the main story when you first start the full game.
This little masterpiece has therefore a second chance to shine thanks to Switch, thus demonstrating to many players that even in 2020 it still has a lot to offer. To understand if the added additions justify longtime fans to return to this great product, but even just knowing that many young players have the opportunity to get to know the brand with this edition is a joy for the ears. Pikmin is a franchise that it is not never managed to throw himself into the heart of the mass audience, but perhaps with this revised and corrected edition of the third chapter the unthinkable could happen. Appointment then to the review!
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