Go! Go! GOTY! 2019: Game Three: Pikuniku
By Mento 0 Comments
Pikuniku is a chill game perfect for those of a young age or who don't play a lot of games; however, even though I'm neither of those things, I found it to be a very personable piece of fluff. The game's designers seemed to draw from Keita Takahashi's or Tsutomu Kouno's works, especially with the character designs and pastel palettes but in general with the friendly tone and easygoing level of difficulty, as well as something like Amanita's Chuchel in which it rewards mechanical experimentation - like seeing what you can kick - with some silliness and sardonic humor. Like Portal 2, the game's content is split into two equally lengthy modes: a single-player adventure that has a story to follow and NPCs to talk to, and a co-op mode which is strictly a series of two-person platforming challenges using the mechanics you'd theoretically already learned from the single-player. Even with my dabbling in the co-op, though, I don't think you'll be too lost if you decide to head there first with a companion in tow.
For its single-player adventure mode, Pikuniku divides its time between platforming challenges and adventure game puzzles; neither are particularly difficult, and the tougher platforming is usually relegated to optional side-areas. Platforming might involve pushing boxes around so you can jump on them or activate switches, looking for semi-hidden passages (there's a telltale zig-zag pattern that you start to intuitively look out for), swinging on hooks, kicking down fragile walls, and so forth. The titular protagonist (well, one of them) can also tuck in its legs to assume a ball form that is quicker on the ground and also smaller, allowing them to squeeze through gaps. A little tutorial area at the start imparts about 80% of everything you need to know going forward.
The adventure game stuff, meanwhile, generally boils down to using the right hat for the immediate task - you have one that lets you draw on things, for example, and another that produces water to grow plants - and you rarely have to move too far or use much brainpower to figure out what you need to do next. There's a handful of minor mini-games also, like a "baskickball" game where you try to defeat a useless CPU opponent by scoring baskets with your feet, or a dancing rhythm game. Though there are a few explormer characteristics - the world's open enough after the first few chapters and there's places you can go if you come back with the right item or ability - there's no big interconnected map and little reason to go off the story's critical path except for a few inconsequential bonus items like little 3D trophies of the game's characters or new costumes to wear.
Honestly, after the surprisingly involved Horace and the brain-scrambling Baba is You, the brisk and simple Pikuniku was something of a palate cleanser. It's not a game that will demand a great deal from anyone, but is more inclined to deliver a delightful time with charming dialogue, visuals, music, and a cute, round-edged world of low-key frivolity. It plays like one of those gateway games you'd use to finally get a partner or offspring into your hobby, and the world can't have enough of those. Ultimately it wasn't really for me and that's OK. I've got a lot more 2019 games to get through yet for this feature, after all.