Viva Piñata (2006) — Release Date, Cheats, Price & Requirements

Viva Piñata

Attract and tame your favourite Piñatas. There are more than 60 species that roam wild on Piñata Island. Personalise everything from the grass at your feet to the hat on your Piñata's head. Welcome to Piñata…

75 9 November 2006

What Viva Piñata is

Viva Piñata is a simulator game developed by Climax Group and released in 2006. It was published by Microsoft Game Studios. It is available on Xbox 360 and PC (Microsoft Windows).

The premise, in the publisher's words

On the vibrant Piñata Island, living piñata creatures shaped like animals make their homes in the gardens that dot the land. The player inherits a neglected, overgrown plot and sets about restoring it, tending the soil and growing plants to entice wild piñatas to visit, settle, and eventually raise young of their own. As the garden flourishes, its caretaker must also protect it from troublemakers like the mischievous Ruffians and their leader Professor Pester, along with the destructive "sour" piñatas that seek to spoil all the hard work.

Description from the publisher · source

How it plays

It is played from a third person perspective. Its themes are comedy, kids and sandbox. It is a single-player game with no multiplayer component.

How it was received

Viva Piñata holds a critic score of 75 out of 100. That places it above 51% of the 2,882 rated simulator games in our database, which average 71. Games released in 2006 averaged 65, so it scored 10 points above the year average. Player ratings track closely with critics at 75, across 58 votes.

What it launched against

Viva Piñata launched on 9 November 2006, within three weeks of Gears of War, Medieval II: Total War, Guitar Hero II and The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. All of them reviewed better.

Released around the same time: Gears of War, Medieval II: Total War, Guitar Hero II, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess.

Cheats and codes

We have not confirmed any working cheat codes for Viva Piñata yet. Rather than reprint a list we have not tested, this section stays empty until one is verified.

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Viva Piñata — frequently asked questions