TANUKI Pon’s Summer Beginner Guide: Deliveries, BMX and the Shrine

Platforms, price and the Game Pass tier warning

TANUKI: Pon’s Summer launched on almost everything at once. Denkiworks, a small Kyoto studio, developed the game, and CRITICAL REFLEX published it. It is the studio’s debut title, from founders who worked together before on Cursed to Golf. The price is the same on every store, and there is only one edition, so there is no deluxe version to weigh up.

The Game Pass point is the one that will catch people out. Xbox Wire lists TANUKI: Pon’s Summer as a day one release for Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass only. If you pay for Game Pass Premium, the game is not included at launch, even though it is a day one Game Pass game. Premium members who want it on November 10 have to buy it, at $19.99. Our Xbox Game Pass November 2026 guide covers every date and tier in the wave, and this game is one row in it.

Two buying tips are worth knowing before you pay. First, Nintendo players get both versions with one purchase: buy it on Switch and the Switch 2 version unlocks free, and the same works the other way round. Second, the free Steam demo covers the first three days, about two to three hours, and your demo save transfers to the full game automatically, so do not delete it.

Your first day: how the delivery loop works

Your first shift starts at the Post Office. Pon works there part time, and the island’s four towns are your delivery area. Each town takes its look from a real Japanese city, Kyoto, Aomori, Sapporo and Beppu, and each one has its own quests and objectives, so you will keep meeting new faces as you ride further out.

A delivery is simple on paper. You pick up letters and packages, ride them to the right person, and get paid. The catch is the parcels themselves. Packages vary in size, weight and shape, so it is up to you to plan how each one rides on a small BMX. A flat letter and a tall box do not ride the same way, and keeping your neighbours waiting while you wrestle with a parcel is the fastest way to waste a day.

The loop feeds everything else. Deliveries earn money and rewards, and that money is what rebuilds the shrine. The more of the island you learn, the faster the loop runs: known routes, known shortcuts, and no wrong turns with a parcel on the rack.

Learn the BMX before you chase the clock

The bike is not just transport. It is the other half of the game. Pon is the local BMX nut, and the whole island is built for two wheels: launch off ramps, catch a rail, and string tricks together as you explore paths and rooftops. The game counts over 100 BMX challenges, and chasing a perfect landing is a goal in itself.

For your first days, learn three things in this order. First, the bunnyhop, because it gets you over curbs and onto ramps without stopping. Second, how to land clean, because a perfect landing keeps your speed and a hard crash costs you time. Third, one route through each town, so you can ride it without thinking while you carry a parcel.

One honest note: the exact button for each move changes with your platform, and no official page lists the full control layout, so we do not print button names here. Open the controls screen in the game on your first day and learn the moves there. We will add the real layout after hands-on time with the full game.

Money and the shrine: what to spend on first

Everything you earn has one destination: the Great Tanuki Shrine. The festival is a month away, the shrine is in disrepair, and your job is to get it ready in time. You rebuild it, upgrade it and decorate it with the money and items you earn through deliveries and activities. The launch post names the kind of detail the festival needs: enough benches and lamps, and Torii Gates that will not fall on anyone’s unlucky head.

Spend in this order. First, keep delivering, because deliveries are the steadiest pay. Second, take the activities that pay shrine rewards, because they earn items money cannot buy. Third, run BMX challenges between deliveries, because the Nintendo store page says your earnings from deliveries, activities and over 100 BMX challenges all turn into the shrine. Hats and looks come last. The crossover hats are fun, and Pon can wear looks from Hollow Knight: Silksong, PEAK and Shovel Knight, but a hat does not fix a shrine.

The deadline is real, and it is the whole shape of the game. You have one month of summer. The festival arrives at the end of it, and the shrine has to be ready. Early money spent on the shrine is never wasted, because every upgrade stays part of the festival.

Friends, minigames and the four towns

Deliveries are only half the job. The other half is the townsfolk. As you build friendship and loyalty with the island’s residents, they invite you to a wide range of sports and activities. You can make sushi, join a baseball game, and step into the sumo ring, and every activity brings rewards for the shrine and another reason to care about the people who live here.

The island has four major towns, each with its own quests and objectives. Learn one town at a time instead of racing through all four. Finish the quests in front of you, meet the people there, and let the friendships open the next activity before you ride on. The bar is worth a visit too: Xbox Wire names helping out at the local bar as one of Pon’s jobs, and the Steam launch post adds fishing and bug-catching to the list of things Pon does between deliveries.

Your first three days: seven tips that hold up

1. Play the free demo first if you are on Steam. It covers the first three days, about two to three hours, and your progress carries over to the full game, so the practice time is never wasted.
2. Learn your routes before you rush. The island has four towns, and knowing the way saves time on every delivery.
3. Plan each delivery around the parcel. Packages vary in size, weight and shape, so check what you are carrying before you pick a route.
4. Practice the BMX basics in open space. Bunnyhops, ramps, rails and tricks are the tools, and a clean landing beats a flashy crash.
5. Spend your first earnings on the shrine. The festival date does not move, so early money should go toward rebuilding, not hats.
6. Say yes to the townsfolk. Activities like sushi, baseball and sumo build friendship, and friendship unlocks items and rewards for the shrine.
7. Run a few BMX challenges between deliveries. There are over 100 of them, and they pay toward the shrine too, so they are the best filler when no delivery is waiting.

TANUKI: Pon’s Summer questions

Is TANUKI: Pon’s Summer on Game Pass Premium?

No. Xbox Wire lists the game as a day one release for Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass only. Game Pass Premium does not include it at launch, so Premium members need to buy it, at $19.99.

Does the TANUKI: Pon’s Summer demo progress carry over?

Yes. The free demo on Steam covers the first three days, about two to three hours of play, and your save transfers to the full game automatically. Keep your demo save files when you buy the game.

How much time do you get to restore the shrine?

One month. The game takes place over a single summer month, and the Great Tanuki Festival arrives at the end of summer. Every delivery, activity and BMX challenge earns money and rewards that go toward the shrine, so spend early and keep delivering.