Pikmin 4

 Switch
Metascore
87

Generally favorable reviews - based on 119 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 113 out of 119
  2. Mixed: 6 out of 119
  3. Negative: 0 out of 119
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  1. Gamereactor Finland
    Nov 9, 2023
    70
    Too childish, and too little new compared to previous games.
  2. Edge Magazine
    Aug 11, 2023
    70
    The real surprise is that Pikmin 4 is mostly content to coast on its strengths. As sequels go, it could have used more dandori. [Issue#388, p.104]
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  3. VideoGamer
    Aug 6, 2023
    70
    Pikmin 4 is an incredibly charming and fun experience for the most part, but its new additions aren't quite revolutionary enough to stave off a feeling of repetitiveness in the later hours.
  5. Slant Magazine
    Jul 29, 2023
    70
    Give Pikmin 4 enough of your time and these small joys work beautifully in tandem with the soothing repetition of real-time planning and execution, sustaining a pleasantly stimulating flow.
  6. TheGamer
    Jul 19, 2023
    70
    Pikmin 4 isn’t quite the best game in the series, but it’s certainly the most confident. With this new entry, Nintendo has decided to wipe away much of the past tedium in favour of ensuring moment-to-moment gameplay is more enjoyable than ever. But eradicating its past frustrations also removes much of the challenge and depth from the game’s battles and puzzles. Commanding its multicoloured armies and pilfering this planet of its treasures while gathering a motley crew of comrades kept me enraptured for hours, just don’t come into this expecting the harsh journey back home to be little more than a leisurely stroll.
  7. GameSpot
    Jul 19, 2023
    70
    That story, like most of Pikmin 4, is gentle and unobtrusive. It's all just very agreeable and sweet, and there's a certain gratification that comes from directing your little army of plant-people to gather treasures like fruits and Game Boy Advance cartridges. The more Pikmin 4 leans into fashioning itself after a more traditional game, with competition and fail-states, the more prone it is to getting in its own way. Sometimes, it's enough to simply have a relaxing activity.
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  1. 3DJuegos
    Aug 21, 2023
    A brilliant sequel that definitely deserves the years we were waiting for it. [Recommended]
  2. Ars Technica
    Jul 19, 2023
    You'll never have more fun being nagged to work faster. Buy it.
  3. Polygon
    Jul 19, 2023
    Early on, Pikmin 4 keeps its combat and puzzle-solving largely separate; when it brings them together, both halves of the game suffer. Yet despite these frustrations, the world of Pikmin 4 is so overflowing with cuteness and style that I couldn’t be unhappy for long.
  5. The Verge
    Jul 19, 2023
    It’s still cute and colorful, with all of that patented Nintendo polish — but now you might want to consider playing Pikmin with the lights on.

Awards & Rankings

12
#12 Best Switch Game of 2023
4
#4 Most Discussed Switch Game of 2023

User Reviews

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User Score
8.9

Generally favorable reviews- based on 613 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 526 out of 613
  2. Mixed: 48 out of 613
  3. Negative: 39 out of 613
  1. PikminQuentin
    Jul 22, 2023
    10
    I cannot explain how good this game is. From its concept, the its gameplay, to its visuals, everything is amazing. The game is about 20h longI cannot explain how good this game is. From its concept, the its gameplay, to its visuals, everything is amazing. The game is about 20h long and the post game adds over 10h to the experience.

    If you have never played a Pikmin game, i highly recommend you to start with Pikmin 4. It is beginner friendly.    … Full Review »
  2. iwishforducks
    Jul 23, 2023
    4
    I'm a huge Pikman fan. I played 1 and 2 on the Gamecube, 1 and 2 on the Wii, Pikmin 3 on the Wii U, and Pikmin 3 Deluxe on the Switch. This isI'm a huge Pikman fan. I played 1 and 2 on the Gamecube, 1 and 2 on the Wii, Pikmin 3 on the Wii U, and Pikmin 3 Deluxe on the Switch. This is easily the worst Pikmin game out of the series.

    1. The controls are overcomplicated and poorly implemented
    This game has a lot of buttons that you can press. I found myself fumbling the controls 10 hours into the game still. There's just too many buttons to remember, all of which are extremely contextual. The game stops you from throwing more than the minimum Pikmin required onto objects.

    2. The dog takes too much focus away
    There's a progression tree for the dog, and the dog can pretty much do everything the Pikmin can do. Pikmin latch onto the dog, which takes away the feeling of having a mass army trailing you. Some tasks REQUIRE the dog too.

    3. There is a really bad auto-lock on in this game. You can't turn it off.
    There's an auto-lock feature that causes your cursor to snap onto enemies and objects. It's really sticky and I couldn't get used to it. Some may find this helpful if they have trouble aiming in games, but it can be really hard to target the enemy you want with the auto-lock. The manual lock-on isn't great as it randomly decides to disengage.

    4. The game constantly backseats you
    The characters in this game never shut up. They will constantly backseat you. If you leave a Pikmin unplucked, they will remind you to pluck it every few minutes. If a single Pikmin catches fire, they will tell you to whistle it back. They state the obvious no matter how many hours you've been playing for.

    5. The tutorials drag out for forever
    Pikmin 1, 2, and 3 gave you access to Pikmin and the core "Pikmin" experience of growing your army fairly quickly after a minimum of 2 minutes. In this game, it takes about 30 minutes (if you don't skip the dialogue, about 10 minutes if you do) in order for you to get access to an Onion and grow your Pikmin. Even after this, the game constantly interrupts you for another hour with cutscenes telling you what each and everything does.

    6. The game tells you what Pikmin to use
    The game recommends what type of Pikmin you should bring. Every area in this game can be completed with the three recommended Pikmin. The dungeons in this game also tell you what Pikmin you should bring, and automatically sets your squad of Pikmin to those types. You can change it after the fact, but there's hardly any ever reason to change your Pikmin up. On top of this, there is a 3 Pikmin type limit that stops you from mixing up your squad in unique ways. There is no strategy or thought to what Pikmin you want to bring out.

    7. The writing in this game is atrocious, and the story is convoluted.
    All of the dialogue in this game is completely flat. It's not even memorable or laughable bad. It's just garbage text with no meaning constantly being spewed at the screen. All of the characters are one note. The story retcons the events of Pikmin 1 and so it desperately tries to make the stories of 2 and 3 make sense, but it fails to do that.

    8. The game is too long and has no replayability
    The entire game is progression based. Once I put this game down I got sick to my stomach at the thought of having to play the game again and do the progression mechanics all over again. The length of the game actively harms the good of it. To 100% the game's campaign, it takes about 20 hours. Speaking of which...

    9. There is no mission mode
    The campaign in this game is more or less the only way to play. You can play the Dandori Battles mode against your friend or against a CPU, but you have to unlock all the maps through the story. Get bent if you want to download this game and play against a friend. Gotta unlock it all first.

    10. The co-op in this game is not true co-op
    Player 2 is forced to throw pebbles and items. They don't get to play as a captain.

    11. Too many puzzles
    Half the caves in this game are puzzles. Not a whole lot of strategy, just puzzling. Some may enjoy this more, but I didn't.

    12. The music in this game is generic and forgettable
    The music in this game is... can I say this? Can I just say it's flat out garbage? Not a single one of the songs stuck with me. Almost all of it is generically whimsical. Any returning tracks are butchered beyond belief and don't fit in the game.

    13. You don't blast off into lower orbit
    This is a "returning fans" opinion, but one of the most memorable things about Pikmin was flat-out removed. You instead go off and land somewhere else on the planet. Doesn't ruin the game, but it's still worthwhile to mention, I think.

    Character limit stops me from talking about the positives, but the negatives end up outweighing the positives in the end. Pikmin 4 feels less like a strategy game and more like a puzzle adventure game. It feels like it wanted to be mainstream and streamlined too much and so all in all it was a fairly forgettable experience compared to the original trilogy.    … Full Review »
  3. PIKMEN4
    Jul 24, 2023
    10
    10 years and IT CAME OUT!1!1! No one out pikmins the hut!1!1 i love pikmen!1!1!1
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