At the turn of the millennium, gamers were gifted with a cute new character named Captain Olimar and his tiny Pikmin companions. These cute little sprites were the brainchild of Shigeru Miyamoto, seeking to create a gaming experience that resembled the way ants team up in a garden. What was originally a human evolution game called Adam and Eve was scrapped, but the basic structure remained and has evolved into the beloved Pikmin franchise fans still play to this day. Fans have been aching for an all new entry into the franchise, but a new partnership with a popular developer has some fans curious about what the end game will look like.
According to a March 23 press release, Nintendo is partnering up with the Pokemon Go developer Niantic to create a Pikmin game. When Pokemon Go released, it had fans from across the globe walking around their towns trying to catch rare and powerful Pokemon. Nintendo released few other details besides saying the game will release later in 2021, and that it hopes to encourage walking by making the activity more fun. Niantic has released other apps like Pokemon Go, such as the initial Ingress and Harry Potter Wizards Unite.
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While Olimar is now one of the mascots for Nintendo, one wouldn't be able to guess that given the sales of the original game. When the first Pikmin released in 2001, it didn't immediately secure the best sales. However, with the introduction of new sequels and the addition of Olimar to the Super Smash Bros. series, fans appetite for the cute multicolored Pikmin has only grown.
With Pikmin 3 Deluxe being the fastest selling entry in the genre so far, this new Pikmin mobile game might be able to draw an audience that previous Nintendo mobile apps and Pikmin entries failed to do. Although if Mario Kart Tour, based on the ever-popular Mario Kart franchise yet still failed to keep the momentum Nintendo wanted, then it will be a surprise to see this new Pikmin rise to a similar challenge.
With previous Niantic games, the formula has largely stayed the same, with some concepts evolving or taking new shape. Seeing that this game seeks to make walking more enjoyable, it wouldn't be too far off to assume that it will feature some of the popular mechanics that have made the developer's previous games household names. Players will most likely be able to expect for the game to use GPS and popular locations around their town. However, seeing as the Pikmin are little over an inch tall, there is no telling how players will be able to interact with or collect the little plant people.
Nintendo has been trying to make a substantial move on the mobile game market for the last several years, to varying success. It was reported that Nintendo was done with the mobile gaming market, which has proven to be untrue. However, maybe Nintendo did have plans to step away when Niantic approached their creative team with an idea. Whatever happened, it's culminating into a new entry into the Pikmin franchise that should excite the vocal fanbase. Hopefully it will give Nintendo more traction that it's been seeking in the mobile market.
There are those who would rather see a Pikmin 4 on Switch first, but it seems Niantic's take on Pikmin is on the way first. With the remake being the fastest-selling entry to date, the hunger from fans for a new entry into the franchise is there. It's doubtful that this was what they had in mind for the next original Pikmin concept. Niantic has been able to capture the hearts of loyal fanbases in the past, though, and the hungry Pikmin fans would love to see a good adaptation of their favorite RPG on mobile.
A Pikmin mobile game is in development by Niantic, set to release in 2021.