Pikmin 3 Deluxe is the latest former standout Wii U game brought forward to the Nintendo Switch.  

A re-release of the series-best Pikmin 3, initially launched in 2013 on the Wii U as a follow-up to Pikmin (2001) and Pikmin 2 (2004), this offering includes all the DLC, some savvy additions and a robust package befitting the Switch's capabilities. 

Arguably more important of note is the arrival of Pikmin's whimsical setting and characters, as well as the engrossing real-time strategy present throughout the experience—on a big screen or on the go. 

While it doesn't stray too far from the original release in most ways, that's hardly a bad thing when viewing Pikmin 3 Deluxe as a whole. 

Graphics and Gameplay

Pikmin 3 wasn't a bad-looking game by any means, and that's true for the Switch iteration. It's still the colorful, if not goofy miniature romp through varied Earth-looking locales. 

Deluxe does seem a little clearer than the Wii U game and with better draw distances, but it feels like frame rates and such haven't seen a major upgrade. And again, not a bad thing—the world of Pikmin and its varied cast borders on distracting. 

Whether it's marching through the snow and tunneling through caves or avoiding monsters in sprawling sand dunes or beyond, Pikmin 3 never held back in its eye-catching creativity. It helps that the sound design is so unique and fun, with the main characters each sporting unique, funny quips and the varied Pikmin all sounding distinct, all with an amazing Nintendo-feeling soundtrack pumping in the background. 

Along those same lines, players with past experience in the series will feel right at home considering all that much hasn't changed in the gameplay department. 

Players command multiple scientists tasked with controlling armies of varied Pikmin via a whistle. Sounds simple and is at first, but the game gradually stacks more and more variables onto the gameplay to keep the challenge and pace right on clicking.  

Red Pikmin are the best fighters and resistant to fire, yellow are big jumpers and resistant to electricity and blue—get this—swim. Pikmin 3 added two more classes via a rock type that can shatter glass and do good damage when thrown and pink winged Pikmin, which could fly.

At the time of its release, Pikmin 3 was the pinnacle of gameplay for the series, albeit a very safe sequel that didn't pull off too many surprises. Players have to harvest fruit to keep the scientists alive, and Pikmin harvest the corpses of defeated enemies to produce more Pikmin (one of the scientists quips about nature being cruel early in the game, which is fair enough despite how cutesy everything looks). 

Both are critical because running out of fruit means running out of juice, which in turn means game over. And letting Pikmin go extinct by getting them all killed just makes things harder. 

Players face the same challenges as Pikmin 3 originally offered. Splitting up the scientists with different groups of Pikmin and solving clever puzzles, getting to hard-to-reach areas and even encountering some unique boss battles with memorable mechanics and moments is a quick summation of the fun journey. It's not a hard game to play by any means, but mastering the intricacies of sending off one group to accomplish feats while controlling the other one or two is what lets players start seeing their names pop up on all the online leaderboards. 

The lock-on system was maybe the biggest point of contention in prior games. But it feels like some small refinements for this re-release have helped shape the best-feeling system to date for the series. Players can move the cursor over something they want to lock on to, then hit ZR to do so. Hitting ZR again will cycle through lockable targets. 

Is it perfect? Far from it. At times, it can be hard to tell how the lock-on will cycle through targets, and unsticking it isn't always easy. But time investment generally makes it easier to understand and use, and it's still a step up compared to prior efforts.

There's also a new, in-depth hint system. Pop that up and the game will not only cycle through a few slides to show players what to do next, a GPS-styled overlay will also guide players to where they need to go. It removes a little bit of the guesswork that made exploration so fun in the series, but it's an optional thing that certainly doesn't detract from the experience if it makes it more accessible for all sorts of players. 

Gameplay can escalate into challenging, tense moments very quickly, to say the least. But the charm of it all, from the gorgeously crafted environments to funny sound effects, makes for a brilliant backdrop for an experience with some surprising depth. 

Story and More

Pikmin threw a curveball at fans of the series with its narrative, making past main characters Captain Olimar and Louie the guys in need of saving by the trio of Alph, Brittany and Charlie. The latter group crash-lands while seeking out food for their home planet because the population sucked it dry and, in the process of collecting as much sustenance as possible, stumble upon the Pikmin. 

And the story is absolutely hilarious with its charm. The main characters wistfully misunderstand real-world items they happen to find. They have fun banter between each other that we won't spoil here, and a rubber ducky manages to inhabit a central story beat. Those who have played the story in the past won't be caught off guard by anything that happens, but it's a blast to power through it quickly all these years later. 

It's a neatly packed narrative that hits good story beats as the game itself escalates the challenge by introducing different colored Pikmin at a time while gently starting to combine all of the mechanics as players near the end. 

Aptly named Side Stories offer a prologue and epilogue and add some nice context to the overarching story. These aren't massive additions to the game by any means, nor do they stray from the tried-and-true gameplay package. But it's fun to get Olimar and Louie back in the driver's seat briefly while playing more of the excellent overall strategy experience. 

There are also 30-plus additional missions outside of the main story mode. They're fun, if not brief romps through familiar territory that task players with defeating enemies, collecting treasure and other checklist-type items against a timer. 

When it comes to the limited new additions here, The Piklopedia originally from Pikmin 2 makes a return too and serves as a fun database for lore. It's just another way for the wittily written characters to take up more of the spotlight. 

There's also a small versus mode dubbed Bingo Battle mode which pits two local players again one another in a similar gameplay ecosystem with the objective being to collect more than the other to win. And (notice a theme?) it's fun to pop in and throw down from time to time, especially as Pikmin flood the screen and things get intense. 

Multiplayer is a focus in other ways too, as players can pop into a co-op mode quickly, and it's a riot to have another person there to take control of one of the protagonists and an allotment of Pikmin. It works well and makes for an easier time, provided said co-op partner isn't too happy to take major risks. 

Considering the original game was a pretty robust package in its own right, it's nice to see just about everything make a return here, plus a few new wrinkles. Whether one just wants to dip toes into the universe and enjoy it all or take it uber-seriously on the competitive scenes, the feature set has a robust, all-encompassing feel. 

Speedrunning Tips

Pikmin speedrunning is no joke. 

That's an important disclaimer to get out of the way considering Pikmin 3—released in 2013 on a somewhat-obscure console—still has world-record runs getting set as recently as a month ago. 

The appeal is simple: Players can tackle an any-percent run or something like an all-fruit run. Along the way, extreme precision, decision-making and even mechanical skill come into play to tackle some of the unique challenges no other strategy game really presents. 

And speedrunning it isn't easy, though some basic tips encompass beginner and even veteran runs. Skipping cutscenes and doing things like fast-forwarding through juicing are a must.

During gameplay, little things like constantly spamming the whistle to get Pikmin to stay on the player instead of going back to where they picked up something from means no going back and gathering up strays. Similar story for pushing along Pikmin who are carrying items to make them go a little fast, as well as throwing more than the required amount of Pikmin onto an item to make them carry it faster. 

It'll sound a little boring, but straight-up memorization is important too. Knowing how to tackle challenges within levels means better setting multiple characters to auto-complete tasks while working on something else. Knowing what players can get away with as far as camera angles, throwing characters to different elevations and what enemies to outright avoid means quicker runs.

Conclusion

Pikmin 3 Deluxe delivering such a strong package to players despite undergoing so few changes is a testament to just how great the original release was, even if it popped up on a niche system. 

While we could argue the merits of a simple re-release like this (hardcore fans surely just want Pikmin 4 already), it's never a bad thing to have a great game added to the Switch's library. And in this case specifically, Pikmin 3's core experience feels like a dream match for the Switch hardware. 

Re-release or not, this is the perfect entry point for new players to enjoy one of the most charismatic and unique franchises out there, never mind one of the better strategy offerings in gaming that has withstood the test of time.