Title: Pikmin: New Play Control!
Platform: Wii
ESRB Rating: E
Publisher: Nintendo
Developer: Nintendo
Review by: Kevin Haverty
Seven years ago, Pikmin invaded the Gamecube to critical acclaim. Now Nintendo has thrown in some tweaks and re-released it for the Wii as part of the New Play Control! lineup.
Pikmin is the story of the stranded Captain Olimar. He must find the parts to his rocket ship so he can get home. On this bizarre planet, Olimar gets help from the plant-based natives known as Pikmin. Each color Pikmin has its own abilities. This adds a strategy element to the action/adventure gameplay.
The biggest addition for this version is the ability to use the Wii Remote to point where the Pikmin are thrown. It adds speed and accuracy to throwing Pikmin, which makes the game 
less frustrating and a little easier. It also gives the player the ability to throw Pikmin in a direction that Olimar isn’t facing. The controls are tight and feel natural.
Other changes are 16:9 widescreen support and improvements to the save/replay system. Olimar’s life support only lasts 30 in-game days (each day roughly 15 actual minutes) so the 25 ship parts must be recovered in that time frame. In the Gamecube version, the player would get the bad ending if he failed to get the pieces in that 30-day window. In this version, the player has the option to replay days, which relieves a lot of pressure and allows room for exploring the world.
Pikmin is a welcome re-release to those who haven’t previously had the pleasure, but it is too bad there isn’t enough added for those who have played it already to bother with the New Play Control! rendition.
For more info, www.pikmin.com
May 26th, 2009 at 11:23 am
At $30, this game is an absolute steal. The pointer is obviously the future of the Pikmin franchise, and I am very glad that we are getting a taste of it here. As someone who missed out on the game the first time around, I could not be more pleased with this upgraded port.