Metareview -- Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise
by Alexander Sliwinski 
{ Sep 3rd 2008 at 6:00PM }
- 1Up (A): "If you hated the original, Trouble in Paradise isn't going to change your opinion. If, however, you somehow missed out completely on the piñata party the first time around, I implore you to check it out now -- it's certainly much deeper and more addictive than its playful visuals would lead you to believe."
- Game Informer (83/100): "Keeping your piñatas happy can still be monotonous in task, but the expanded content and finely made multiplayer relieves some of the repetition that plagued the first game. Viva Piñata retains its child-like charm, but the content is layered with deep strategies and entertaining gameplay that can suck anyone's life away."
- GamePro (80/100): "There are also some minor additions that attempt to sweeten the pot but they don't add too much. The new trick stick, which allows you to teach pinata tricks, and a wide range of toys are fun to play with, though. There's also support for the Xbox Live Vision camera which allows you to scan in special pinata cards, but it's a gimmick at best. Still, despite some irritating design elements, Trouble in Paradise is a fun game that retains the charm of the first Viva Pinata."
- GameDaily (80/100): "Rare could've easily slapped a couple of minor changes into this game and given us an expansion pack. Instead, Viva Pinata: Trouble In Paradise offers enough to make it a worthy sequel. It'll be a little too cute for some, but others will see past the adorable exterior and find the delicious treats inside, just like a real pinata."
Gallery: Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Brian @ Sep 3rd 2008 6:05PM
I dont care what anyone says, I am gonna play the crap out of this!!!!
Ayrkain @ Sep 3rd 2008 6:21PM
It'd be a better world if more people took this attitude instead of feeling the need to defend their favorite games.
Courtney @ Sep 3rd 2008 7:01PM
Totally Agreed!
I got the original for my daughter, then my wife got hooked on it and I finally caved and wasted many hours screwing around designing my garden. Can't wait to see how the multiplayer works, might eliminate some fights over who gets to play.
Isaac @ Sep 3rd 2008 7:28PM
Viva pinata was a fun game.
People who passed over it just because of its name missed something great.
rv @ Sep 3rd 2008 8:35PM
I dunno. I bought the first. I never really got hooked into it. Then my disk got scratched and became unplayable, so I dunno, maybe I did not have enough time with it. I don't know if Ill buy this one.
syrik zero @ Sep 3rd 2008 6:09PM
I played the first and I think I got a good bit into it. Then I realized I didn't know why I was still playing... So I stopped
umm....hello??? @ Sep 3rd 2008 6:27PM
same here...it got a bit repetitive and difficult to make new combos....hopefully the multiplayer aspect will make it better...
syrik zero @ Sep 3rd 2008 6:35PM
I think I'll just pass on this one and play the other tons of games coming this holiday season. Although those graphics are really pretty... I love lots of colors
Fernando Rocker @ Sep 3rd 2008 6:15PM
I heart piñatas =p
OMGOMG @ Sep 3rd 2008 6:50PM
La ama Fernando.
¿Esta correcto?
*hopes to god he's getting direct objects in Spanish*
Wiinterfang @ Sep 3rd 2008 6:15PM
Piñatas sabrosas!!
Tango Charlie @ Sep 3rd 2008 6:18PM
Looks like they stopped using Comic Sans in the menus! Yay!
ice~ @ Sep 3rd 2008 6:42PM
not a single store on long island has this game let alone have any idea if or when they're getting it, I hate gamestop, I reserved and fully paid it off, I go to get it and they say "uhhh what's viva pinata?" they check the computer, and say "we don't have it and I'd doesn't say we're getting it amy time soon", so I call target, I call toys r us, I call circuit city, I called my grandma, and no one on this godforsaken island have this game, I'm a hardcore pinata fan, for some reason I bought the guide before the game too...and I can't get it online...PLEASE can anyone help me? I've been waiting a year or two for this game and I will not be put down by the corporate giants!!!!!! btw I'm boycotting gamestop...tho I doubt anyone will join me :(
syrik zero @ Sep 3rd 2008 6:45PM
Get it on eBay or at any other online retail store
ice~ @ Sep 3rd 2008 6:55PM
Problem is that I'm 17, I can't use a credit card and my parents won't let me use one, my real non-selfish problem with this release date issue is that if people onthe east coast go to get TIP and it's not there, and go the next day and ts not there, as did I, they probably will give up and not buy I'd if they're not a big fan like I am, this causing rare to lose sales, leading them to the conclusion that their break from viva pinata will be a permanent one...I don't want that, I want this game to have great sales, rare deserves it for making such an addicting, deep, yet friendly gaming experience! BOY DO I SOUND CHEESY :) !
syrik zero @ Sep 3rd 2008 7:22PM
I remember I got a credit card when I was 17. It was through a local bank. You should just go see if you can get a student credit card. What kind of childhood would you have if you always listened to your parents anyway?
ice~ @ Sep 3rd 2008 8:10PM
ah first i must get a job lol...and you're right, but i'll be a free man in a matter of months! W0OT COLLEGE!!!
syrik zero @ Sep 3rd 2008 9:17PM
Congrats Ice
Paulmichael @ Sep 3rd 2008 9:40PM
Yeah man I've had a Visa since I was 15, thanks to the student checking account I got through Bank of America. Just a debit card that doubles as a credit card, though there is no credit card account. I think the proper term is Check Cash Card or something like that.
Marty @ Sep 3rd 2008 6:49PM
And to top it off, it's only $40. I think I'm sold!
Dirk Dorkelson @ Sep 3rd 2008 7:33PM
I can't really say I understand all the 8s. That's kind of what the original game pulled, and the general consensus is that this game is deeper, better and with co-op. It's like people don't get into the genre so they're just kind of saying it's good and that's it. It reminds me a little bit of Lost Planet: Colonies Edition, which is a vastly expanded, better game than Lost Planet. Yet it has a lower Metacritic score. I bet this game ends up somewhere around the same score as the original.
Mighty Shockwave @ Sep 3rd 2008 7:59PM
Well, seeing as I didn't have a 360 when the original came out, so I may check into picking this up (especially considering it has something that at least resembles a plot). Though, I was hoping to save my money for Spore and Banjo-Kazooie.
Mr.ESC @ Sep 3rd 2008 8:13PM
I wish it included some breeding guide or something to choose which type of Piñatas you want in your garden.
I never got too much into the first game but it was really good.
I think games like Viva Piñata are better on PC.
If I still have money after my trip to Canada I might buy it.
arrrgh @ Sep 4th 2008 2:31AM
canada woot
Ordeith @ Sep 4th 2008 12:56PM
for the original:
Re Breeding Guide: the Viva Piñata strategy guide had a complete breakdown of every piñata in the game, including breeding guide - requirements - who will mate with who, etc.
Re choosing the piñatas in your garden: you can purchase any piñata your level allows at one of the stores. Pick and choose.
juju187 @ Sep 3rd 2008 9:33PM
my GF played it about 4 1/2 hours. nice that you can leave the start area and actually trap pinatas now.
why not the LS2LS7? @ Sep 3rd 2008 9:48PM
I'll be getting it I guess. I liked the first but it got so grindy at the end, I'm afraid I'm going to end up in the same spot.
Waiting for a pinata to walk into your garden with no indication why they aren't doing so is supremely frustrating.
samfish @ Sep 3rd 2008 9:57PM
It's so weird that for all of Microsoft's pushing for a more casual or younger audience, they are doing nothing to really promote this game, near as I can tell.
MN Guy @ Sep 3rd 2008 11:04PM
I couldn't get into the first one. Don't know why, but I just didn't find it very fun and lost interest before I could really scratch the surface and get into the depth that everyone talks about.
To each their own.
Saria the Cat @ Sep 4th 2008 2:34AM
Did they fix the endless tutorial problem? I would like avoid the original's countless barrage of "helpful" tips.
AwesomeTown @ Sep 4th 2008 7:33AM
With all the love this game gets (from the people who have played it), I just might have to check it out sometime.
april @ Sep 25th 2008 9:05AM
get the game at a gr8 price www.harddrivenpc.com.au i love it
Pinata_poontang @ Oct 28th 2008 7:40AM
THIS IS THE BEST GAME EVER!!!
i got up to level 108 on the last one... but now the new one is out. and i am addicted.. i have been playing for 9 hours straight and i am level 74.... XD
i highly recommed this for people that enjoyed the original. the tools are alot faster and easier to use, most things have been tweaked, so selling and buying, basically doing anything is easier. shame thing is that you cant buy pinata from that fish-bowl-head-cat-teenage-emo-thing. yeh, and some pinata are alot harder to get. the new pinata are amazing, plus the just for fun mode is great when you are teaching someone how to play...or if you just wanna muck around... money making is easy, so im gonna restart on my other gamertag when i finsh it, so that i get get all the REALLY GOOD STUFF!! eg; the golden dragonache, giant choclodocus (without the triceratops head, which everyone has already), plus it helps boost gamerscore. downside is that the captains cutlass no longter keeps out prof.pester. but its okay bcos if you have the right pinata, they own him anyway. buy it, you WILL be suprised.
peace
xxxxooooxoxoxoxox
the pinata expert