The developers have taken the core mechanics and pasted them onto so many weird, wacky and random scenarios, you can’t help but find enjoyment. Where Pikuniku sets itself apart is in the variety it presents. It’s heavily influenced by the 2D side scrolling classics of the SNES era and, looking at just the base gameplay, it does nothing new. All of this can be played in co-op as well, adding a bit of teamwork, or mayhem to your play through.Īs a basic puzzle/platformer, Pikuniku is nothing special. I died on a couple of occasions due only to poorly timed jumps, or a deadly set of spikes. None of what I’ve just mentioned is at all challenging in Pikuniku, nor are there any fresh gameplay mechanics.
In some cases you’ll also interact with special items such as exploding acorns to defeat robotic foes. Offense is limited to boss battles where you’ll use your jump and kick moves to attack. A pencil hat is used to help an artist draw a picture of a scary face that will be used on a scare crow in a field of corn. A watering can hat allows you to water small flowers so they can grow into platforms, allowing the player to access new areas. Players will stumble upon or be gifted hats that grant new abilities as they progress. There are also stealthy sections where you have to move through vents to avoid enemies. You’ll also warp through tubes and pass through hidden holes in walls to access concealed and secret areas. At times it was difficult to judge how fast and quickly items would move and made some points in the game feel less challenging and more tedious. Puzzle solving is limited to pushing objects around and using a kick move to hit switches and levelers. Players will manipulate objects such as rocks, barrels, and acorns to interact with switches, levers, and elevators. It uses a very simple set of controls and mechanics to move around the world and get past obstacles. This cheery puzzle/platformer from a team of four developers at Sectordub Studio is out January 24th and is sure to have you smiling start to finish.Īt its core, Pikuniku is a puzzle-platformer.
Pikuniku arrives just in time for the PC and Nintendo Switch. It’s time for a pick me up – something light hearted, simple and silly. We gamers have spent the last six months playing sad, depressing, and serious games like God of War and Red Dead Redemption 2. The time of year when those in the northern hemisphere experience the most amount of gloom and least amount of sunshine.