In the past couple of years, Nintendo has begun doing an omage to all of their old series. I’m unsure of why this is; this is a category I would also put titles such as FE Engage, Kirby Star Allies, and Pokémon: Legends Arceus into. I can’t explain why they’re doing this, but one thing I can guarantee is that Pikmin 4 is easily the strongest out of all of these titles. With 3 fake ending moments, hours of QUALITY postgame content, fun new mechanics and enemies, a cute two player mechanic akin to Super Mario Galaxy’s starbit shooter (great for kids with younger siblings), all of the Pikmin not only being present in the same title but required to work together in order to defeat one of the coolest boss battles this series has seen, and constant references to all of the previous titles, this is the penultimate entry for the Pikmin series (Olimar is expected, seeing Louie is always a treat, and the blatant references to Pikmin 3 protagonists was an amazing surprise I won’t soon forget).

The only weakness this game has is a weakness I’ve seen throughout all of the titles I’ve listed above, in which the narrative ends up falling short in order to provide one of the strongest gameplay experiences one could imagine. All of the new characters ended up falling relatively flat, paling in comparison when presented alongside their older counterparts. The most enjoyable dialogue was hidden in the post-day conversations, where we would get glimpses of the character’s personalities beyond their one trait assigned to them. However, I also recognize that Pikmin is not supposed to be a masterclass in storytelling; still, this entry was weak even compared to all of the previous games. I personally was not a fan of the RPG-style upgrading of abilities, but I think that they did it in a way that didn’t feel like tedious grinding but rather a fun way to spend unused material. I came into the game expecting to hate Oatchi, but actually rather enjoyed his (and Moss’) inclusion. The score wasn’t anything to write home about, but the title theme and final boss theme will be remembered very fondly.

I think probably my favorite part of this game is the introduction of an entirely new vocabulary term, mechanic, and way of life: Dandori. It doesn’t seem like much: try to do things in a way that saves you effort and time. But what I love so much about this mechanic is how heavily the game encourages you to take Dandori into your daily life: organize your tasks in order to complete them with the most efficiency! Start with the most time effective items, and then continue outwards! Try to do your best in every day so that you can find time to be happy in every day.

In the end, this is most certainly my favorite Pikmin title. I never used to consider myself a very strong Pikmin fan, but now that couldn’t be further from the truth. Pikmin 4 truly is a Pikmin game for both beginners and masters, a game players of all ages can come to enjoy. May everyone find the Dandori in their every day!