Viva Pinata

Aug. 25, 2008

Now for something completely different... Viva Pinata. I'm not bothering to insert the accents because I'm lazy.

Category

Pinata... Grower? I don't know.

Pros

• Overview when you start playing seems a little blunt, but it makes it easy to pick things up and understand where the game is going.
• The game teaches you how to play in a well-paced manner that allowed me to understand everything.
• The game is pretty, and the customization you can do is simple enough that it doesn't overwhelm me (one who usually hates too much customization).
• Every step of making pinatas get it on and make babies is absolutely hilarious.
• Cosmetic additions you can make to your garden are fun to add. I personally enjoyed my firebrand, which light up the place at night.

Cons

• The amount of alerts and instructions in the first hour, while not overwhelming, got pretty irritating by the end. There are a lot of mechanics to explain, and it's done well, but it meant that I usually didn't get a long period of time just to chill and watch my pinatas hang out.
• I found myself pretty quickly overwhelmed by all my pinatas.

Verdict

I personally am not one for games with no goals, but it was a fun hour of play. So, personally, I wouldn't keep playing, but for those who enjoy games like this I am sure they would have a good time.