Viva Piñata invites gamers to create an immersive world where living piñatas inhabit an ever-changing environment. Beginning with a few basic tools, players build and take control of this environment, using their creativity and imagination to attract, protect and manage over 60 different piñata species that can visit their world and make it their home. Utilizing hundreds of customizable elements, players can create a unique piñata paradise.
Features:
•
Deep Xbox Live integration allows you to swap tips, items, and more with friends.
•
Create your own garden and more than 60 types of piñatas.
•
Use easy, basic tools to develop an enviroment that reflects you.
•
Regardless of skill level, find challenge in keeping out sour piñatas, perfecting your garden, and keeping your new piñata friends happy.
•
Choose how much you want to control your piñatas by letting them run free or attempting to control their daily lives.
Average Customer Review:
( 93 customer reviews )
Write an online review and share your thoughts with other customers.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
119 of 122 found the following review helpful:
A Great Game, Not Just for KidsNov 20, 2006
By Dude! In Viva Pinata you have inherited a garden in a fantasy world populated by living pinatas and an assortment of odd characters. Your mission is to build your garden to attract pinatas to live there. Everything you grow in your garden, including the pinatas, vegetables, flowers, and trees, can be sold for chocolate coins. You can use the coins to buy more seeds and grow more plants or to otherwise improve your garden. Viva Pinata is like a cross between Pokemon and The Sims and virtual pets, but I found that the result is greater than the sum of its parts!
This is a sandbox game of the best sort. You can make whatever decisions you want to and your garden can look however you want. You have the ability to dig ponds, grow grass, build houses for your pinatas, and all sorts of other activities that I am still discovering several hours into the experience. The decisions you make about how your garden develops will determine the kind of pinata who want to live there. The open-ended nature of the game is its best feature, and it really makes you feel like you are in control of the game's environment. The feeling of empowerment that kids receive playing Viva Pinata is enhanced by the excitement of constantly finding new things to do and play with.
I am impressed that a game that is so easy for kids to pick up is also so complex. My daughter is nine and was familiar with the controls and basic concepts within a half-hour. Yet the underlying concepts of the game are complicated. The skills I see her working on in this game primarily have to do with resource management, which as we adults know is critical for daily life. You have a limited amount of space for your garden (just like in real life), yet if you are not organized in your approach then the garden will quickly become a place of chaos. Kids will also learn the concepts of working to make money and how to budget for the next big item they need to improve their garden.
As other reviewers have stated, this looks like a game for kids, but it will suck an adult into its world just as easily. I couldn't wait for my kids to go to sleep the first night so I could start on my own garden. Time is greatly accelerated in the game, and the result is that you are very busy - you may suddenly look up from the game and see that a few hours have passed in the real world almost as quickly. The pinata are just the right amount of cute so that they are fun to watch, not annoying. There is no lull in the action for at least a few hours, at which time you may have been able to hire some helpers to take off some of the pressures of a big garden, such as watering and gathering your sellable items. This too is a good introduction to kids of the concept of people management. Lots of times you have to tell your helpers what to do, rather than just letting them do their own thing. Otherwise, their priority list is typically different from yours and those plants that you just planted may die because your helper was busy watering something less important.
Viva Pinata has way too much to offer to cover it all in such a short review. The environment is incredibly well done, from the sounds to the graphics. The game play is very addictive. Playing Viva Pinata actually got me excited to go out and do lawn work in the back yard! For parents wondering if this game is suitable for their kids, I will say that I am picky about what I let my kids watch and play and there is nothing here which offends me. There are all sorts of euphemisms around breeding pinatas (they call it "romancing") that sound very innocent but will make the adult chuckle. It is very tastefully done. And there is no doubt that your kids will be using their brains a lot more while playing this game than while playing the typical platform-style kids game. This is exactly the kind of game I was looking for to provide my kids with an enriching, non-violent video game experience. If Viva Pianta is an indication of the future of kids video games then the future is very promising.
52 of 61 found the following review helpful:
Highly Addictive GameplayNov 12, 2006
By R.M. Fernandez When I first heard about this game, it reminded me of Animal Crossing for the Nintendo Gamecube. I never liked Animal Crossing because the game was just a bunch of item collecting.
I'm glad to say that Viva Pinata is 100% better than Animal Crossing. You're basically building an ecosystem of pinatas in the game, there are alot of tradeoffs based on your actions.
You're even capable of sending items from your garden to people on your Friends list, which is a neat extra feature.
To give you an idea of how fun and addictive this game is, I bought Gears of War earlier in the week (one of the best games I've played in a long time) ... and I ended up playing Viva Pinata instead of Gears over the weekend.
15 of 15 found the following review helpful:
Ground-BreakingDec 09, 2006
By Joshua R. Warren Viva Pinata - where should one begin on describing the game's deepest complexities? In layman's terms - Viva Pinata is not just a kid's game. In fact, it requires higher thinking and could easily be problematical to younger audiences. I've been playing this game for a few weeks now, and while I'm not playing it religiously, it's still wickedly addictive.
Many people are referring and comparing Viva Pinata to Nintendo's Animal Crossing. While the games are similar in many facets, they're just as different as they are the same. I was never a fan of Animal Crossing, never. I traded the game almost immediately. After all the hype, acclaim and positive reviews, I thought Animal Crossing would be a very safe bet. I was wrong.
After reading about Viva Pinata, I thought this would be Animal Crossing all over again, so I approached very cautiously. Again, much praise and positive reviews. So, I took the risk. This time however, it was a purchase I'm more than happy with. There's many more possibilities with Viva Pinata. Read the following to hear details about the game itself.
First and foremost, the concept behind the game is the driving force of its greatness. You construct, manage and watch your very own ecosystem flourish before your very eyes. This is no cakewalk however, if you fail to manage your garden correctly, you'll find yourself having to improve the conditions in order to advance. Secondly, the graphics are sheer amazing. Some real eye candy here. It doesn't get much better than this visual wise. If you're in a position to buy a game for the entire family, there's no better fit than Viva Pinata. If you're into complex and challenging games, and are looking for something to break away from your typical run-of-the-mill FPS or RPG, you'll find Viva Pinata a great getaway.
13 of 14 found the following review helpful:
Best game to enjoy with your Girlfriend or wifeDec 23, 2006
By Rick Girton I bought this game for my girlfriend so she would have something to play instead of watching me play the usual splatterfest (COD2, GOW, Dead Rising etc.) Next thing I know, we are both playing it and I can't believe i'm even a little addicted to it. If you have a significant other who's even remotely interested; BUY IT. It's easy enough for all ages but complex enough for us older folk as well. This game has ended up being alot of fun for us and something we can play together. Now if I can only get her to play GOW co-op we will be all set..lol.
9 of 9 found the following review helpful:
If you want this game, get "Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise" instead.Nov 07, 2009
By B. Snyder Okay this is a good game, it's fun, I could sit and play for hours without getting bored. The problem is, it's not worth it to buy this game now that Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise is available. Trouble in Paradise streamlined the interface issues and added content, but it basically the same game. I found this out after I ordered both Viva Pinata and Trouble in Paradise and had to go through the hassle of changing my order. As it stands both games are about the same price so there's no reason to buy this title unless it's much cheaper than the Trouble in Paradise edition!
based on 93 reviews
( 93 customer reviews )
