We all assumed that Nintendo would pull some re-release magic with the Switch 2, giving us a chance to play our favourite titles again, only this time at a slightly higher resolution and perhaps with some quality of life improvements thrown in to boot. It was a no brainer given that Sony did exactly that with the PS5 and we all willingly came along for the ride, as if charging full price for a five-year-old game was the best goddamn deal we had ever heard.
What we should have expected was Nintendo pulling a Nintendo on us. 'You're right, some kind of re-release range would be nice on Switch 2,' the developers almost said to us in the Direct, 'but you know what would be nicer? Confusion'.
With a snap of the finger, Nintendo divided my list of 'Switch 1 games that should get a Switch 2 boost' into two, placing the smaller, compatibility and performance-bumped titles like Link's Awakening and Pokémon Scarlet and Violet into the free upgrade camp, and packaging the likes of Breath of the Wild, Tears of the Kingdom, Kirby and the Forgotten Land and Mario Party Jamboree (for some reason) into the swanky, full price Nintendo Switch 2 Edition boxes.
While I'm pleased to see a handful of titles get a boost in the playability and performance departments on Switch 2, it's the Nintendo Switch 2 Editions that I'm the most interested in. Finally, a chance for some bonus content on beefier hardware; something that makes the most of the console's more interesting ideas like Mouse Mode, GameChat and HDR in a way that its predecessor could never imagine. Surely Nintendo will be quick to re-bundle the already wonderful Pikmin 4 and sell it back to suckers like me at £75, right?
So far, not right. Of course I am pleased to see Kirby, the Zeldas and future titles like Metroid Prime 4 and Legends: Z-A get a chance to really shine on the new console, but Pikmin 4 seems, to me, to be the Switch title most brimming with 'Switch 2 Edition' potential. It's wild that Nintendo has seemingly left it unplucked.
Before I go further, let's make one thing abundantly clear: I love Pikmin 4. I'm not after a Switch 2 Edition to necessarily make improvements to the base game, but rather to implement some of the hardware's cool additions in a way that feels organic. At least, more organic than a 60fps frame rate bump and a tie-in guide app.
It all comes down to what the Switch 2's fresh features can bring to Pikmin 4. Let's start with the biggie: Mouse Mode. More than any other first-party series (apart from maybe Zelda), Pikmin has never shied away from a new control scheme. We've seen classic button inputs on all series entries, but the Wii re-releases saw motion controls thrown into the mix, and both Hey! Pikmin and Pikmin 3 on Wii U employed some touchscreen shenanigans.
While the button-press throwing has only got better with each entry, I'd be lying if I said that a little more accuracy wouldn't go amiss. Not only is mouse mode the only remaining control scheme for the series to try out (apart from Kinect-style body controls via the Switch 2 Camera; nobody wants to see that), its implementation feels perfectly suited for a beefed-up re-release.
But interesting controls can only get you so far. If I'm going to start making a fool of myself on the train, using my right thigh as a makeshift mouse pad while other travellers opt to stand rather than sit in the seat next to me, I'm going to need some pretty visuals to match.
Pikmin 4 is a stunning-looking game — one of the prettiest on Switch, if you ask me — and it has all the hallmarks of an HDR demo reel. Can't you just picture garden locales like the Sun-Speckled Terrace and Blossoming Arcadia met with a screen wipe transition that showcases their details before and after a Switch 2 HDR boost? This is a game packed with fancy lighting effects, reflective puddles, shiny collectables, and glow-in-the-dark beasties. It's a goldmine for tech display goodness!
And yet, Nintendo is really hung up on the one Switch 2 feature that seemingly nobody cares about: GameChat. Something like Pikmin 4's single-player-focused campaign might not have the online chatter potential of a Mario Kart World or Drag x Drive, but it does have the frantic and criminally under-discussed Dandori Battles, where giggling away with your pals online could be a game changer. Throw in some proximity chat for bonus laughs and we're in a whole new territory of *chef's kiss*.
Look, I'm a sucker for a minor visual improvement and a small gameplay update, so I'll likely be picking up just about every Nintendo Switch 2 Edition that the House of Mario throws my way (via the upgrade pack, of course, I'm not made of money). But I can't help but think that there's a handful of Switch 1 titles that are far better placed for a new console upgrade over those in the current line-up, and Pikmin 4 might just be the best of the bunch.
Oh, hang on, I've just remembered about Mario Maker 2. Okay, forget everything I just said...