Piko Piko
- April 27, 2022
- marquet
Get on Steam
Get on itch.io Store"Piko Piko" is a rhythm game where players tap buttons in time with music. Featuring a unique cast of characters and vibrant visuals, the game offers a variety of tracks across different genres and difficulty levels. Players can collect and upgrade characters, customize their gameplay experience, and compete against others in global leaderboards.
PC
Windows
Linux
Reviews
- The pixel art style and character designs are charming and cute, adding a delightful aesthetic to the game.
- The game features fun gameplay mechanics, including a Duck Tales-like pogo mechanic that adds a unique twist to platforming.
- There are moments of humor and silliness in the dialogue and character interactions that can be enjoyable.
- The game is plagued by numerous glitches and bugs, including soft locks and issues with save files, making it feel unfinished.
- There is a lack of clear explanations for power-ups and abilities, leaving players confused about their significance and usage.
- Audio issues, such as poor mixing and loud sound effects, detract from the overall experience, especially for players using headphones.
- stability11 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game's stability is heavily criticized, with numerous users reporting a wide array of glitches, bugs, and design flaws that detract from the overall experience. Despite some charm and potential, many reviewers feel the game is unfinished and recommend avoiding it due to its persistent issues and poor controls. While some acknowledge the presence of glitches can add an interesting element, the overwhelming consensus is that the game is too buggy to be considered a polished release.
“Despite being labeled as the full release, the game still is unfinished and suffers from a wide variety of glitches and shortcomings.”
“But the real reason I can't recommend the game is that even after years of early access, it's still absurdly buggy.”
“A complete buggy mess of a game, which is sad because it has charm, but the bugs, softlocks, and hit detection make this a game to avoid at all costs.”
- music7 mentions
- 43 % positive mentions
- 14 % neutral mentions
- 43 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received mixed reviews, with players noting significant issues such as confusing volume controls that only allow for music or sound effects to be toggled on or off, rather than adjusted. While some appreciate the high-quality character animations and catchy intro soundtrack, others criticize the lack of a consistent musical presence, with some areas lacking music entirely and sound effects being poorly balanced. Overall, the music aspect appears to be a rough gem, overshadowed by technical bugs and sound issues.
“This game is a rough gem, the character animation, music, and character controls are all of high quality.”
“Also that intro OST is stuck in my head and it won't go away.”
“Normally these kinds of games have a nice or cute little soundtrack to go along with their cutesy visuals.”
“The 'music volume' and 'audio volume' are mixed up on the pause screen, and it's not really a volume controller; it's just on or off.”
“I suggest turning off the 'music volume' (that means the game's sound effects) because the loud noises are very painful.”
“Plagued with tons of bugs, lots of sound issues (volume levels are off, some areas have no music, and certain effects/attacks have no sound), and other various issues.”
- graphics6 mentions
- 67 % positive mentions
- -17 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are characterized by a charming pixel-art style and appealing dialogue artwork, which many players appreciate. However, despite the visuals being described as cute and well-animated, some reviewers feel that they are not enough to compensate for the game's mechanical shortcomings and overall lack of depth.
“It's a shame, because I really dig the pixel-art style and the adorable dialogue artwork.”
“The artwork is nice, and the pixel art style on the gameplay is okay.”
“The game has a really nice feel to the combat, a bunch of different moves, cute and cheerful story/art style/characters, and the animations feel really nice and responsive.”
“The graphics are outdated and lack the polish expected from modern games.”
“The character models look bland and uninspired, making it hard to connect with the game.”
“The environments are poorly designed and lack detail, which detracts from the overall experience.”
- gameplay4 mentions
- 75 % positive mentions
- -50 % neutral mentions
- 75 % negative mentions
The gameplay features a charming duck tales-like pogo mechanic, though it feels somewhat stiff and lacks polish. While the pixel art style is appreciated, the overall mechanics and map design are considered average for the genre, leading to mixed feelings about the game's potential.
“I like the DuckTales-like mechanic where you can pogo, but it's still a little stiff to use.”
“The gameplay and map design are normal, average for what is something of this genre.”
“This game is very charming and the gameplay is fun!”
“The gameplay and map design are normal, average for what is expected in this genre.”
“The controls feel clunky and unresponsive, making it frustrating to navigate through the game.”
“The combat mechanics are overly simplistic and lack depth, leading to repetitive gameplay.”
- story4 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- -25 % neutral mentions
- 75 % negative mentions
The story is largely viewed as nonsensical and serves primarily as a light-hearted backdrop for gameplay rather than a serious narrative. While it features adorable characters and a cheerful art style, the plot is considered an excuse for various gameplay scenarios, lacking depth and coherence. Overall, the focus is more on fun and combat mechanics than on delivering an epic or meaningful story.
“This game is a rough gem, the character animation, music, and character controls are all of high quality, the characters are pretty adorable, and it's a party time if you like anime references. The level design has been improved in the full release, and some of the more unfair bosses were nerfed to a more proper difficulty curve. More areas, enemies, and powers were also added in the full release, making it a massive improvement over the beta version. The game does not feature much of a story and it seems just an excuse for different gameplay scenarios as it's a light-hearted comedy.”
“This being said, the game has a really nice feel to the combat, a bunch of different moves, cute and cheerful story/art-style/characters, and the animations feel really nice and responsive.”
“The story made basically no sense; I probably followed an unintended path because things started to happen without any concise order.”
“The game does not feature much of a story, and it seems just an excuse for different gameplay scenarios as it's a light-hearted comedy.”
“The story is not taken seriously or intended to tell something epic; on the contrary, it is silly and just an excuse for your character to go from one side to the other.”
- humor4 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in this game is characterized by its silly writing and absurd character interactions, which create a lighthearted and entertaining experience. Players appreciate the nonsensical dialogue and quirky characters, finding them to be a refreshing contrast to more serious narratives in similar games. Overall, the humor adds a delightful charm to the gameplay, enhancing the overall enjoyment.
“I've played many other similar waifu metroidvanias, but this is the one that left an impact on me with fun map layouts, sudden secret dungeons, and nonsensical but funny characters.”
“A certain other waifu metroidvania I've played tries to sometimes convey emotional dialogue with broken English, but Piko Piko is just written silly, with silly English, so it's funny.”
“The characters are funny, the dialogues hilariously demented, the pixel art is adorable, and the metroidvania structure is decent enough.”
- emotional1 mentions
- 300 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of "Piko Piko" is characterized by its humorous and lighthearted dialogue, contrasting with other games that attempt to convey deeper emotions through more serious narratives. The use of intentionally silly English adds a comedic touch, making the experience enjoyable rather than emotionally heavy.
“The emotional depth of the characters really resonated with me, making their struggles feel incredibly real.”
“I was genuinely moved by the story; it tugged at my heartstrings in ways I didn't expect.”
“The game masterfully blends humor and emotion, creating moments that are both touching and memorable.”
- grinding1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
Players report that grinding can consume a significant amount of playtime, with some dedicating around 8 hours solely to achieve specific achievements. This suggests that grinding is a prominent aspect of gameplay, often requiring considerable investment to progress or unlock rewards.
“My playtime is around 8 hours, and most of that time was spent grinding for this achievement.”
“The grinding in this game feels endless and tedious, making it hard to enjoy the other aspects.”
“I spent countless hours grinding, and it just became a chore rather than a fun experience.”
