An industry legend, Shigeru Miyamoto is the self-proclaimed father of Mario whose influence has influenced a myriad of games under the Nintendo umbrella. He still appears for major presentations, such as in December 2020 when Miyamoto gave fans a tour of the Super Nintendo World theme park in Japan. One of the developer’s biggest passion projects was the Pikmin franchise, so it was no surprise to see him appear during the September 2022 Nintendo Direct for a short Pikmin 4 teaser. The way he brought in Niantic’s Pikmin Bloom was more of a surprise.
Pikmin has had a sparse release schedule. Next Pikmin and Pikmin 2released for GameCube in 2001 and 2004 respectively, it would be nearly a decade before Pikmin 3 to drop on Wii U. A Pikmin 4 was teased by Miyamoto as far back as 2015, though some speculate that this may have referred to Arzest’s 3DS spin-off Hi! Pikminreleased in 2017. More than reissues like Pikmin 3 Deluxethe only other title in the franchise to date is Pikmin Bloom; another take on the augmented reality (AR) formula of Pokemon GO. Miyamoto paid so much attention to Bloom during its Nintendo Direct segment, you have to wonder if it will contain deeper ties to Pikmin 4.
What is Pikmin Bloom?
Niantic released Pikmin Bloom in October 2021, which serves more as a pure exercise app than its previous venture with Game Freak. Where Pokemon GO have players roam around to find monsters that inhabit the real world, Pikmin Bloom is more of a pedometer that just encourages walking. There are gamified elements, collecting Pikmin Seedlings from nearby places and maturing those plant-like partners by collecting enough steps. However, many of the ways a player interacts with their Pikmin comes during the moments between drills, as if they were finishing a good workout with some rewards.
The main appeal of this mobile game is that Pikmin can wear different set pieces based on the environment where their seedlings were discovered. As Olimar or Alph travel with an army behind, Pikmin Bloom thrives on letting collect unique Pikmin named Pikmin who wears toy airplanes and scrunchies posing for AR photos. There is also a meta story behind it Pikmin Bloom about beautifying the world by planting flowers, which Miyamoto emphasizes by showing local regions such as Kyoto, Osaka and Tokyo.
How Pikmin Bloom can interact with Pikmin 4
It makes sense for a Direct to highlight games currently available in the Nintendo ecosystem, be it on Switch or smartphone. However, games like Splatoon 3 and Mario Strikers: Battle League appeared during the September 2022 Direct alongside announcements for new updates and events. Pikmin Bloom appeared with nothing more than a basic overview before Miyamoto moved on to ‘the main event’ Pikmin 4.
While this could be the result of a deal with Niantic or a simple subterfuge to leave fans behind for the surprising Pikmin 4 reveal, it is also possible that Pikmin Bloom will have an impact on the 2023 Switch title. Very little is shown in this first teaser, just a few sweeping shots of environments like a park bench before Miyamoto announces Pikmin 4 is played from a behind-the-shoulder angle rather than top-down as in the series’ real-time strategy roots.
Pokemon GO is an interesting template for how interactivity between Pikmin 4 and Bloom could work. Trainers can use their Pokemon GO take into account the Pokemon Home app, take the monsters they catch in real life and transfer them to titles like Sword and Shield. This could work just as well for Pikmin Bloom‘s more adaptable Pikmin, although it would have much less impact for a series where these critters can be swallowed and never seen again.
Alternatively, play Pikmin Bloom may provide another benefit for: Pikmin 4 players. For example, those with My Nintendo account information can receive unique cosmetics based on the decor in Niantic’s mobile game. Splatoon 3SplatNet’s interactivity has shown other ways in which smartphone apps can influence their console counterparts, even as simple as tracking in-game systems such as day/night cycles and weather patterns. Fans will have to wait and see for now, but Miyamoto’s outlandish pitch for a year-old mobile game would make more sense if Nintendo wanted people to play it sooner Pikmin 4 launches.
Pikmin 4 launches in 2023 for Nintendo Switch.
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