Awwww... Pikmin
The only universal complaint about the original was that it didn’t last long enough. Nintendo has addressed this, and Pikmin 2 is more substantial as a result. Apart from the extra two-player modes and the fact that the single player mode is, quite simply, bigger, there is also a new 'challenge' mode to prolong the longevity. In combination, that lot is about as much as you could ask for from a game like this.
Oranges aren't the only fruit
So, we’re reaching the end of the review, and nothing bad has been said. Indeed, it is difficult to isolate any one thing that’s worthy of serious complaint; yet Pikmin 2 still might not strike a chord with gamers in search of a bit of grit. In truth, it’s probably the same things that make people like this game that turn off the people who don’t. Frankly, it can get a bit sickly-sweet.
Long standing Nintendo fans won’t have any problem bonding with the incredibly cutesy, dinky characters and graphics; but others might. At times, when your pikmin are incessantly chanting “maa ma ma maaa maaa, Pikmin!” in ridiculous high-pitched warblings, and the screen’s full of flowers and hippy things, you might just get that urge to kill someone. Or, at the very least, turn off your 'Cube and play a game with ninjas in it.
Strawberries are fruit too...
Perhaps the best comparison for this is a one-penny sweet scoffing binge. It starts off great, making you jibber and shake with artificial joy. Then you get to the tricky bit, where your jaw is wedged shut, full of gummi bears and cola bottles, and you get totally caught up in the challenge of simply chewing and swallowing this massive melange of gelatinous sugar, without ever thinking to just spit it out. But eventually, when your jowels start tingling and your eyes swell, you just want to throw up everywhere and not eat sweets ever again.
