is giving out free money to the people of the world, only taking a few resources in return, but things aren’t quite as they seem and soon you’ll be dragged into a story of conspiracies and rebellion, as well as a few side-quests that will likely raise a smile. Soon after this introduction however, I found myself exploring the world of Pikuniku and enjoying its simple brand of platforming and its quirky sense of humour. Well, the more I think of it, the more I realise that if I met a big red oval with long, spindly legs, I’d probably want to run in the opposite direction too. Except that Piku is actually a bright red oval with long, spindly legs. You start by jumping, rolling and kicking your way out of your cave in the side of a mountain, before heading down to the village below, where the inhabitants believe you to be a “beast” and flee in fear of your terrifying form. Pikuniku is a side-scrolling, 2D platformer set in a colourful world full of wonderfully weird characters. Pikuniku revels in its bizarre nature, from the very beginning when Piku is awakened by a ghost inside a cave, all the way to the game’s amusingly odd ending. That’s not to say that it needed to make sense for it to work. Who would have thought, then, that a game with a visual style resembling the PSP classic LocoRoco, coupled with the humour of Katamari no less, would come with such a dystopian flavour? I’m not sure why I went with the food metaphor, but then, I never found my time with Sectordub’s Pikuniku actually made sense either. In ConclusionĪs an interesting take on a dystopia, I recommend picking up Pikuniku, but when on a sale as I don’t think its length justifies the $12.99 price tag.Dystopian tales are often depressingly “mature” games, aren’t they? Usually covered in a crispy coating of drab, dark visual styles, to boot. The other thing is that the Collector achievement on GOG seems to be unattainable, with Galaxy itself saying it was unlocked by 0% of all players, yet other achievements work. Another thing worth noting is that some parts of the game are inaccessible after first completing them, which may lock you out of some achievements. Despite being centric to the story, I don’t know the names of the rebels, and each rebel is lacking a distinct personality despite doing well as a group. While the dialogue is well done, some of the characters aren’t as fortunate. I wish the game had more content, especially post-game, where new problems and challenges can be introduced without changing much of the main game. The animations are also fluid and smooth, which you can see mainly in how How it uses bright colors, giving a childish yet extremely polished look andįeel. The art style is minimal, yet it works amazingly well with I drew a Minecraft Creeper when asked to draw the scarecrow’s face. The dialogue shines in how most characters are oblivious to the world around them but focus on issues that are small in comparison, or in how the valley village thinks Piku is “the beast.” The usage of lowercase in the dialogue is a nice touch. It treads the line between easygoing and dystopian surprisingly well, and it shows in the dialogue as well as the game’s minimalistic art style. What really sells Pikuniku is the setting and the humor. Piping to stealth missions! The other half is comprised of quests such as drawingĪ better face for the valley’s scarecrow, as well as minigames. By and large though, puzzles form half the game, ranging from electricity Though it does have slightly harder sections such as dungeons and the bossįights. (I beat it in just under 5 hours and that’s while liberally exploring the island), The game isn’t too difficult and can be completed in no time Such as puzzles, hidden pathways and metroidvania staples like areas that needĪn ability to be accessed. Or breaking boulders, or sinking in water by rolling. Jump, roll and kick, all three used for various activities such as pushing rocks Pikuniku makes clever use of platforming mechanics,Ĭombining both Piku’s available abilities and the world around them. taking away necessities such as food and housing, and even a rebel movement! It can be played in Adventure mode solo, or in a separate cooperative mode (which I am not covering here). As you progress through the game, you find the world is not as happy as it seems, with cameras emerging to watch your every move, Sunshine Inc. You play as Piko, who only just woke up after a long slumber, to find out that the nearby village is giving up its corn supply to Sunshine Inc. Pikuniku is a platformer game by Sectordub, with an interesting mix of a cutesy and dystopian setting. Available on: GOG, itch.io, Steam, Nintendo
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