Tinykin [Xbox]
Tinykin follows the story of Milodane, Milo for short, a researcher who has been stranded on Earth after travelling there from his home planet of Aegis, in search of the origin of humanity. After arriving, you’ll meet Ridmi, a local bug who introduces you to the ways of this new world, as well as the creatures within. The smallest of the inhabitants are the Tinykin, who instantly develop an affinity with Milo - enabling you to gather them up in order to fully explore the world and find all of the secrets it contains. You can gather pollen for Sikaris the nectar brewer, and locate artefacts for Prattle the museum curator as you wander through the various locations, with the world positively brimming with things to see and do. Learning about Ardwin, the previous inhabitant of this house - revered as a deity to many of the bugs - who has seemingly vanished, keeps the story interesting, and kept us invested throughout as we tried to uncover the mystery of who they are, and where they’ve gone.
Different breeds of Tinykin have unique abilities, with pink Tinykin being super strong, able to band together to lift and move heavy objects with ease; red Tinykin are explosive and can be used to blast through surfaces to uncover new paths, and blow up large clumps of pollen into smaller pieces for ease of retrieval. As you progress, you’ll find even more Tinykin that can help you access new heights, conduct electricity and craft bridges - all very useful for getting around, since Milo dies in water. You’ll just need to make sure you’ve got enough at any one time to do what you’re looking to, so you’ll need to collect them all as you wander around the rooms - with any you find remaining in the room you find them in, resetting your little army to zero whenever you enter a new area, but don’t worry - they’ll be right there waiting for you upon your return.
The world is a joy to explore, and it never feels like you’re being forced to complete certain tasks in a particular order. Instead, you’ll find quest-based items naturally, and find that everything ties itself up nicely over time. You’ve got access to a ‘Soapboard’ to give you a bit of speed, making it a more enjoyable process to get around - especially at you can grind along the edge of surfaces and traverse up and down silk lines; and you’ve also got a Glider Bubble that allows you to float across gaps, as well as to try and save yourself if you fall from height - and this can be upgraded over time, allowing you to glide for longer. Seeing the little societies built within each room, and the way that their world is crafted out of various household items: matchbox beds, toilet roll towers and sprawling scenery from books, children’s toys and plants, it really emphasises just how tiny you are in this world, and makes it all the more interesting to take in all the sights, especially with the 3D environments being paired with the 2D character designs.
The animated segments to explain parts of the story, as well as the purposes for different types of Tinykin, are really well done - they look like a proper kids’ cartoon and are gorgeous to look at. The introductory cutscene had full voice acting, which had us excited for the rest, however this isn’t utilised throughout the gameplay itself, which is a bit of a shame. The cute visuals and charming gameplay make this an ideal game for kids, but with no voice acting used elsewhere in the game, this might lock out a lot of younger kids from enjoying, as it is quite text-heavy, with plenty of jokes hidden amongst the dialogue and NPC names. We did encounter some slight frame rate dips within the later levels, though thankfully this didn’t seem to impact things too much. The soundtrack is brilliant too, with plenty of joyful and soothing tracks, and you’ll even find your Tinykin singing along on occasion, which is just adorable.
Collecting can sometimes feel like a bit of a chore in some games, as you end up having to hunt for items that are located in the most obscure and frustrating spots. Thankfully, Tinykin’s collecting feels great, with many items being found purely through exploration. You can use binoculars to scan the environment for anything you’re struggling to track down, with these items glowing for ease of view, though any pollen you’ve missed will just have to be sought out - though, you’ll more than likely find the majority of these through wandering around in sheer wonderment. Completing tasks for characters located around each room will often reward you with items to return to the Museum, where Prattle will give you a bit of history on the objects you bring. This gives a fun insight into the life that goes on in this forgotten world, and gives even more reason to take the time to visit the museum after picking up new items.
Overall, Tinykin is a fantastically enjoyable game, with a rich world and an endearing quality that makes it a pleasure to come back to. There’s loads of little references to be found, such as VHS tapes with covers reminiscent of E.T. and a bug called Benker delivering the ‘with great power comes great responsibility’ line, as well as plenty of witty quips and jokey names of characters, such as a Dung Beetle named Partipupa. Tinykin is a game we’d highly recommend people to check out, especially if you’re a fan of games like Pikmin or collect-a-thons - and whilst it’s priced at £20.99 on Xbox, it’s also available to play for free to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscribers, which is - as always - a fantastic option for people who want to try it out without the risk of paying full price up front.
In the end, we decided to give Tinykin the Collecting Asylum rating of 9.5/10.
Are you interested in Tinykin? What do you think of it?
Let us know in the comments below!
- V x
Thank you to tinyBuild for the Tinykin Xbox review code!
