Pros:
- Great use of strategy with collecting Pikmin and utilizing their different abilities.
- Major quality-of-life improvements that make combat even more rewarding.
- Large areas that are an absolute joy to explore.
- Some pretty gripping boss fights that really up the urgency.
- Absolutely gorgeous visual design that is exploding with rich colors.
- As you'd expect with "Pikmin," the music is pretty lovely.
- Tightly written story with some very memorable characters.
- Underneath all the colorful visuals and quiet simplicity, this is maybe one of the most profoundly sad games that I've played.
- The "Deluxe" re-release on the Switch further helps adds more accessible options to help newcomers and make this easier to get into than previous entries.
Cons:
The final level was a real pace-breaker for me, and it did mess things up just a bit
Consensus: They did it; Nintendo got me to really dig a "Pikmin" game. In the past, I tried to get into the early "Pikmin" games but found them just a little tough to get a handle on (I played the "New Play Control!" port of the Wii and couldn't acclimate myself well with the controls). But I was sold on trying out "Pikmin 3 Deluxe," as I was told it was a lot more accessible and easy to get into. Yeah, they weren't kidding; "Pikmin 3" is awesome! Having a "Pikmin" game that's a lot easier and more accessible is great news for me, as it makes it a lot easier for me to really sink my teeth in and appreciate what the series offers. And there's so much to pull out of a game like this; the gameplay is strategic but fun and rewarding, the visuals are absolutely eye-popping and consistently left me in awe, and the story had so many fun character-based moments that were great. But as childlike as it appears on the surface, there is also a profound sadness with "Pikmin" as a series; a franchise whose namesake characters are creatures that exist to be killed, and even sing a song in a previous entry where they say "we won't ask you to love us." It seems like a weird diatribe for me to go on, but "Pikmin" is such a layered franchise, and I think "Pikmin 3" and all its greatness helped me to appreciate that. No matter your previous experience with the series, make it a point to check out "Pikmin 3," specifically the "Pikmin 3 Deluxe" re-release on the Switch.
Final rating: 9 out of 10 "Awesome"