Pikmin, probably one of the cutest games in Nintendo history, is getting its own AR mobile game from the makers of Pokémon Go, Niantic.
The two companies announced their partnership earlier this month and first up for the new merger is “Pikmin App”.
Head of Niantic Tokyo Studis, Tatsuo Nomura, shared the news last week, sharing Niantic’s tweet stating “We’re overjoyed to make new memories with our partners at @Nintendo and YOU! Imagine exploring the world through the wonder of AR and alongside all of your pals — including your new #Pikmin friends!” The game will function similarly to Pokémon Go, getting players outside exploring rather than in the house on a console.
Details of the coming app have been released, including a little about how the game will work. Players will begin with “seedlings” that they need to walk in order to grow, and once full-grown the player will be able to pluck them. You can grow seven different Pikmin species as well as find Decor Pikmin that wear outfits signifying the area you find them in. They can also be grown from Big Seedling Items or change into Decor Pikmin when you interact with them in specific places. Players can expect to collect items, complete expeditions and collect postcards, but so far there is no talk of microtransactions within the app.
Fans of the franchise seem disappointed. Many saw new Pikmin news being released hoping for information on a fourth instalment to the series, but when met with the Pikmin App they were less than thrilled. Some players remained positive, hoping this doesn’t replace the possibility of Pikmin 4, but instead gives the world a chance to experience the franchise and jump on board with the already popular name.
The original Pikmin title was released for Nintendo Game Cube in 2001 with its sequels Pikmin 2 and Pikmin 3 following years later. Hey! Pikmin was a spinoff game released for Nintendo 3DS in 2017, and fans have been waiting for more ever since. Though this isn’t the Pikmin 4 release fans were hoping for, it does mean that Nintendo is nowhere near done with the series. We can expect to see the Pikmin App sometime in 2021.
