Viva Pinata is a life simulation game developed by Rare in 2006.

Plot

The action unfolds at the Pinata island, which is a deserted garden full of pinata citizens and disruptive interlopers. This game starts the Viva Pinata series with a sequel and a Nintendo version. The original game can be used on Windows and Xbox 360.

Gameplay

Viva Pinata is a first-person life simulation. The player performs on behalf of a black-and-white pinata horse.
The aim is to fulfill requirements such as digging the ground, sewing weeds, harvesting ponds, and sculpting plants. During the game, the player also has to keep the garden from antagonists – sour pinatas. They usually harm plants, eat seeds, drop poisonous candies and destroy various objects. Once the requirements are fulfilled, the player’s pinata becomes a full-colored version. The next goal is to find a couple suitable for mating; this part of the game includes a minigame. The horses are not gendered, so finding a couple does not merely looking for other species. The romance results with a pinata egg delivered by a stork.

Development

Viva Pinata was meant to be a family video game. A TV-channel made it into a cartoon and handled it into merchandising. The cartoon is tied to the game plot; its animation is based on the game’s 3D character models.