[EXPlay] Miitopia (Nintendo Switch)

Welcome to EXPlay, (Explain & Play) the review series where we care not for scores but tell it how it is when it comes to every game we get our hands on, whilst also taking the time to include some lengthy gameplay, to give you the reader, the chance to shape your own impressions and views whilst watching and reading. In this instalment, we’re covering Miitopia by Nintendo EPD and Grezzo.

Miitopia: (The Explanation)

Miitopia is a lighthearted RPG that casts you as the main hero or rather, Mii. Yes, that’s right, Nintendo’s Mii characters are back and can go on their very own epic adventure, fighting monsters, helping townsfolk, and defeating the evil Dark Lord. The game originally launched on the Nintendo 3DS back in 2016 and has been given the HD makeover thanks to the talented folks at Grezzo.

In Miitopia, you take on the role of an unlikely hero who must stop the Dark Lord from stealing everyone’s faces. Why is the Dark Lord is stealing everyone’s faces? That is up to you to find out. Cast you favourite Miis as members of your party, as the townsfolk, royal gaurd and even the Dark Lord himself.

Who you cast is up to you and your imagination. Do you want to go on an adventure with your family and friends? Do you want to make an entire village cast as The Simpsons characters? You can with the benefits of the new in-built Mii Maker, or rather Mii ‘Make Up’ Maker, you are limited only by your imagination. Though if you do find it rather tasking, you can even recieve Mii designs from friends and other players around the world with an Access Key.

Thanks to the Miitopia demo, some players have already created some truly incredible Mii character designs including the likes of Ganondorf, Warioware Wario, King Dedede, and that is only scratching the surface! It isn’t limited to Nintendo characters either, some people have even gone as far to create iconic characters like Darth Vader from Star Wars and even Anime characters like Vegeta.

As for the gameplay itself, Miitopia is a turn-based RPG where you take it in turns with the enemy to attack. Unlike most RPGs, you can only control your primary hero’s turns. The other players in your party attack automatically but if you don’t wish to control your character’s turns at all, you can set them to Auto-battle instead.

Miitopia has a vast overworld that is divided up into multiple regions. The first region is the kingdom of Greenhorne. The player travels through the overworld via a path that has many different spots that you can visit. By interacting with these spots, you will be taken to an area with its own path that is littered with monsters and possibly contain chests.

Some of these areas have branching paths that can lead to other areas in the overworld or to a chest that may hold an item, like armor or gold, or it could be a trap with an enemy inside. At the end of the area, regardless of what path you take, there will be an inn where your party cand heal themselves and get a good rest.

At the Inn, there are a large number of activities that you can participate in. You can feed your party with food items that you have gathered. These can improve their personal stats like HP, MP, Attack, Magic, Defense, and Speed. All characters have their very own likes and dislikes and if they eat something they don’t like, it could hinder which stat it was meant to raise.

If two characters are sharing a room at the in and you use an Outing Ticket on them, they will go off on a little trip and bond, this will build their friendship level and can activate certain perks in battles. Such examples are one player could share a health item with another if they are hurt or they will help coordinate an attack on an enemy.

Sometimes at the inn, you may find some of your characters would like to buy a weapon or some clothing. These will increase their defense or attack and it is always beneficial to buy when you can. Even if you don’t like the look of a particular weapon or armor, you can simply use the stats of the item without changing your appearance.

Miitopia on Nintendo Switch also has a feature that was not included in the 3DS version. In this version, you can also have a horse companion join you. The horse works just like any of the other members in your party and can help you in attacking enemies, provide you with a lift so one of your players doesn’t have to walk and so forth. Just like the Mii characters, you can also customize your horse with a variety of customization options like changing the type and colour of its mane and tail, its saddle, and even body type. You want your horse to be a unicorn or the Pokémon Rapidash? You can.

If you happen to have a large number of amiibo in your possession, you will be pleased to know that you can wipe some of the dust off them as Miitopia is compatible with ALL amiibo. By talking to the Nintendo Fan character in the game, you can scan your amiibo to unlock Game Tickets and even outfits!

Not every single amiibo can unlock outfits I´m afraid and it is limited to game series like Super Mario, The Legend of Zelda, Metroid, Kirby, Splatoon, Earthbound, and Animal Crossing. Still, at least you can play dress up as some of your favourite Nintendo Characters alongside your friends and family in your party.

Miitopia is just so much fun, even for people that don’t even like RPGs. The humor can be rather silly at times but the game is not afraid to make fun of itself and it is lighthearted fun at its best. In what other game can you go on an adventure with Super Mario as a Chef, Luigi as a Scaredy Cat, your brother dressed as Ganondorf and WayForward’s Shantae as a Pop Star? If you slept on the 3DS version, definitely don’t sleep on this one.

Miitopia: (The Gameplay)

Game Specifications:

Developer: Grezzo / Nintendo EPD
Publisher: Nintendo
Platform: Nintendo Switch (eShop)
Category: Adventure, Role-Playing
No. of Players: 1 player
Release Date: May 21, 2021 (Worldwide)
Price: $49.99
File Size: 3.1 GB
Nintendo.com Listing