My appreciation of Pikmin 2 is the definition of dichotomy. I love what it adds to the Pikmin formula as much as I hate its sheer excess. I love its spunk and hate its rough edges. The only way I could love this game more is if it had been cut in half.
The first half is a fun romp of collecting, battling and exploring strange new territory. The new environments are far more ineresting to explore, with stronger theming than in the first game, so much so that I hardly noticed how most of them ARE from the first game, heavily revamped and tweaked. The game is at its best aboveground in my opinion, in these wonderfully realised pockets of natural beauty.
The debt mechanic is a fun twist, expanding on the themes of man's relationship with nature and the value of individual Pikmin lives in the first game in a literal sense. The caves are an awesome idea and I loved venturing through these smaller, self contained challenges to find goodies.
The addition of a second Captain to control is another welcome addition (though the mechanic is very limited in this entry) and the Piklopedia alone is enough to solidify this game's importance to the series.
Unfortunately, the second half is where the experience really starts to dip. The regular stress of Pikmin management is compounded by harder enemies, deadlier hazards and random elements that evoke fanmade kaizo content in ways that seem very out of place in an official Nintendo game.
The little foilables of the games controls that were tolerable in safer areas become infuriating hindrances that only serve to make Pikmin 2's gameplay even more painful. The becomes a marathon of cave after cave, each more demanding than the last. It was a struggle to finish this game, but finish it I did with 100% completion.
I have played Pikmin 2 since and like the first game it has grown on me with the benefit of experience. I have no desire to complete it ever again.
There are good ideas here and an edge that the series has lacked since. This game demands a lot of you and while that might be too much for my tastes, I can see the appeal for certain players.
For me at least, it sits as my least favourite Pikmin title, but that by no means makes it a bad game. Just an unforgiving one.
The first half is a fun romp of collecting, battling and exploring strange new territory. The new environments are far more ineresting to explore, with stronger theming than in the first game, so much so that I hardly noticed how most of them ARE from the first game, heavily revamped and tweaked. The game is at its best aboveground in my opinion, in these wonderfully realised pockets of natural beauty.
The debt mechanic is a fun twist, expanding on the themes of man's relationship with nature and the value of individual Pikmin lives in the first game in a literal sense. The caves are an awesome idea and I loved venturing through these smaller, self contained challenges to find goodies.
The addition of a second Captain to control is another welcome addition (though the mechanic is very limited in this entry) and the Piklopedia alone is enough to solidify this game's importance to the series.
Unfortunately, the second half is where the experience really starts to dip. The regular stress of Pikmin management is compounded by harder enemies, deadlier hazards and random elements that evoke fanmade kaizo content in ways that seem very out of place in an official Nintendo game.
The little foilables of the games controls that were tolerable in safer areas become infuriating hindrances that only serve to make Pikmin 2's gameplay even more painful. The becomes a marathon of cave after cave, each more demanding than the last. It was a struggle to finish this game, but finish it I did with 100% completion.
I have played Pikmin 2 since and like the first game it has grown on me with the benefit of experience. I have no desire to complete it ever again.
There are good ideas here and an edge that the series has lacked since. This game demands a lot of you and while that might be too much for my tastes, I can see the appeal for certain players.
For me at least, it sits as my least favourite Pikmin title, but that by no means makes it a bad game. Just an unforgiving one.