I can't overstate how much this game feels like the impossibly perfect Pikmin game of my 12-year-old self's dreams. Every Pikmin type is present and has a corosponding onion, loads of old enemies are back, and you can brave the surface at night.

They even bring caves back and they're infinitely better now that they're designed by human hands and not a robot. And have also really toned down stuff like enemies and hazards dropping from the ceiling. It's easily the hardest Pikmin game without succumbing to 2's shenanigans.

My only complaints is that this game really shows why 3 didn't have White or Purple Pikmin return in the main story; outside of caves and Dandori challenges, not every Pikmin is quite treated equal (Purples especially feel present out of obligation, beyond a couple 100+ weight objects). And the soundtrack is easily the weakest in the series.

That and I wish the autolock was something you could toggle off. I'd just rather not have it on and it repeatedly has me throwing Pikmin onto the wrong object, or at a couple points feels like it's actively trying to get my Pikmin killed.

Other than that, this is easily the best Pikmin. Like they REALLY knocked it out of the park with this one.