Tinykin

Tinykin is a 3D platformer with puzzle game elements, which features two-dimensional characters in a three-dimensional environment. Players control intergalactic astronaut Milodane, a researcher who must collect Tinykin, tiny colorful critters collected from eggs. Each Tinykin has a unique ability to help Milodane reach places and complete objectives. These include pink varieties, which can carry objects, red varieties that explode on impact when tossed, green varieties that stack vertically to form a ladder, blue varieties can use electricity, and yellow varieties create bridges. Each time when players meet a new variety an animated cutscene is shown.

Milodane's abilities consist of making soap bubbles that can glide around, soapboard to hover or grind around and using Tinykin to progress. Players can collect pollen for exchange for an additional bubble. The game has no enemies or health bars, and the only way to die is from falling too far or going in water, making Tinykin a non-violent game. There are six main zones which are described after rooms of a house. A free update on December 20, 2022, added the ability to select and change an outfit for Milodane and added a Time Attack challenge mode for each zone, a mode that players race around the zones.

Tinykin is set on the distant planet Aegis in the year 2748, after Earth has been abandoned. Milodane (who is almost microscopic sized) sets out on a mission to explore a mysterious planet, later established to be Earth, and uncover the secrets of humanity's origins. After crash-landing, Milodane is trapped in an enormous house, set in 1991. During his journey, he encounters a group of creatures called the Tinykin.

Despite their reclusive nature, the Tinykin like Milodane and assist him in his quest by helping him find components. Ridmi introduces himself and shows them to a workshop with the components which he had been searching for ever since he was a child. Milodane and the Tinykin gain a deeper understanding of the components they have collected and how they fit together.

Tinykin is the second game developed by Splashteam, a studio founded by former Ubisoft Montpellier developers. Romain Claude received an advanced degree in game design and production management between 2006 and 2008. After Claude graduated, he became a designer at Ubisoft until 2012. After leaving Ubisoft, Claude began working on his first game Splasher alongside Richard Vatinel, a 2D artist and animator whom Claude met at school in 2006. During his work at Ubisoft, Claude developed a game engine with the XNA Framework.

After developing his first game Splasher, Vatinel moved away from game development to focus on drawing and teaching. In 2018, he created Bubble Town as part of the Global Game Jam 2019. The creation of the project came from a jam theme "What home means to you". Claude and his team did not think there were enough games set in gigantic homes or toy shops.

Tinykin received "generally favorable reviews" according to review aggregator Metacritic. GamePro ranked the game number 65 for the best Nintendo Switch games of all time. Polygon ranked the game number 48 for the best video game of 2022. Tinykin was also featured in the Independent Games Festival as an honorable mention for Excellence in Audio, Design and the Seumas McNally Grand Prize.

GameSpot's Jess Howard noted that the game's rhythmic gameplay reminded her of 90s platformers. IGN Southeast Asia noted that the game's vibrant levels were "[outstanding]" and described it as "the spirit of Nintendo 64's [finest] 3D platformers." PCGamesN's Ken Allsop noted that Tinykin was one of 2022's most joyous game experiences. Metro GameCentral called it a "surprisingly good looking game."