When you stop to think about it, Pikmin's brand of minion-throwing strategy lends itself quite nicely to games about power dynamics. Overlord had you cosplay as an unstoppable evil boss who uses pesky goblin critters to do his bidding, for example, but one new indie game reverses the trope.
Inspired by Pikmin, Labor Power is the free, browser-based, pixel art strategy game about unionizing an entire office. One day, your character decides he doesn't want want to wait another 45 years to reach retirement age - he wants to feel human again now. So, off you go to pull co-workers away from their desk and storm the office floors until you reach the main boss, The Devil, capitalism personified.
In case you haven't seen it, I made a Pikmin-inspired game about organizing a strike at a workplace. pic.twitter.com/dythILE6z1June 2, 2024
The Pikminishness comes in with blocks/doors that can't be moved/unlocked without the right number of co-workers, and you can also fling them at security guards for a quick stun.
Labor Power's Itch.io description calls it a game "dedicated to class solidarity and the betterment of working conditions," since you can't beat the game or "organize a strike all on your own." Developer Feature Kreep first came up with the concept in a 2024 Game Jame where the theme was "Power," before fleshing it out into the roughly 15-minute mini-strategy game you see today.
A game about unionizing is particularly relevant today as, y'know, a record number of video game developers have been subject to mass layoffs and studio closures this year, with Destiny developer Bungie laying off another 220 employees just yesterday.
Many teams have instead taken the Labor Power route - not by chucking co-workers at middle management - but by unionizing. Days after Bethesda Game Studios staff organized to form a massive "wall-to-wall," cross-department union, 500 World of Warcraft developers joined the growing list of unionized game staff.
For more, check out some other cool upcoming indie games of 2024 and beyond.
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