Fucking incredible. As someone whose introduction to the franchise was 7 I almost put it down because I was too used to the turn based fighting as opposed to the beat em up style of the prior games, but I'm so glad I saw it through to the end. The story is incredible, each chapter throws another twist and turn at you and watching the whole thing unfold kept me on my toes for the entire playthrough. I still wouldn't say I've mastered the fighting mechanics but I managed to beat the game so I'll say that's good enough haha. Great game, would recommend.

Probably my favorite Pikmin game in the franchise, overall takes what I loved about Pikmin 2's caves and exploration and adds the satisfaction of playing with the revamped controls and mechanics. I will admit the game didn't have me on the edge of my seat in terms of difficulty (Except for Submerged Castle 2.0 that shit SUCKED) but it did really satisfy the completionist within me. This is the first pikmin game I've ever felt the urge to 100%, especially with the inclusion of every pikmin type + a couple new ones make me really really want to collect every onion. Although I completed the main story for this game I will definitely be returning to it very soon to finish up everything I still have left to do.

Technically this game improves on all of the mechanics in Pikmin 1 and 2, the AI is much better, the rally feature has been replaced with the new charge feature and you can lock onto your targets for more precise pikmin aiming and less accidents. Despite how much more satisfying it is to play, I really wish the game didn't hold your hand as much as it does. One of the biggest things I loved about Pikmin 1 and 2 was how the order in which your main goal could be accomplished was fairly loose, but in Pikmin 3 the game takes a much more linear approach and points you clear in the direction of each task (literally, there are arrows on the ground telling you where to go) which really took the fun out of exploring for me.