Many Pokemon fans can probably remember the wild summer of 2016. Pokemon GO had just come out and everyone was on the move trying to collect their favorite Pokemon in the real world. The game wasn't perfect, but it got lots of finetuning over the subsequent months and years and proved extremely popular. Niantic and Nintendo have made Pokemon GO into a resounding success, so in a way, it's not a surprise that the two companies have decided to work together again. Admittedly, though, nobody quite expected the collaboration to involve Pikmin. It's not an insignificant franchise of Nintendo's, but it wasn't what most fans would've expected out of another Nintendo AR game.
The advent of a Pikmin AR game is a big deal for the franchise. It may not be the most famous Nintendo series, but it has an extremely dedicated fan base who have been clamoring for another game for a long time now. This new mobile game isn't exactly what fans were hoping for, but it's nice for Pikmin to get some recognition nonetheless. However, Niantic and Nintendo's new project is significant beyond what it means for Pikmin. It seems clear that Nintendo is pleased with Niantic's work and wants to keep collaborating with the studio. Is it possible that these two companies have many more mutual plans in store?
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If Nintendo is asking Niantic to make more Nintendo properties into mobile games, there's lots of franchises that could get converted. It'd be fascinating to see something like an AR Zelda game where players can go out and fight Zelda monsters out in the real world. Alternatively, maybe Nintendo wants to develop a follow-up to Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp and make a game where players go out into the real world to find villagers, collect items, and so on. Niantic might become Nintendo's go-to assistant when developing mobile games.
Alternatively, maybe Nintendo will look into new ways to use Niantic's AR technology. Niantic is going strong in the AR game; after its resounding long-term success developing Pokemon GO, it's found further success with Harry Potter: Wizards Unite, which proves that it isn't just Nintendo that's impressed by Niantic's work. Seeing how much experience it has with this technology, Nintendo might be courting Niantic in order to get its help with non-mobile game projects involving AR. Nintendo is innovative enough with its consoles that it could possibly come out with something like a handheld console with a camera that uses AR technology somehow. Even just Niantic's work with maps could make a difference in future Nintendo games.
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There's another possible development that could come of this growing relationship between these two companies. If Nintendo really likes Niantic's work so much, it could consider acquiring Niantic wholesale. Nintendo has been developing lots of mobile games in recent history, so it could get a lot out of acquiring one of its closest allies in the mobile game department. Of course, that's easier said than done. Niantic might prefer to keep standing on its own two feet, and Niantic's connection to properties like Harry Potter might get in the way of an acquisition.
Of course, neither company really needs the other to succeed, so an acquisition might not be in the cards. Nintendo's reputation speaks for itself, and Niantic might want to keep growing as an independent company.
For now, the Niantic-Nintendo project worth celebrating is the AR Pikmin game. It's good to see that Nintendo is still thinking about this franchise. It's no Switch exclusive Pikmin game, but at the very least, it could be a way for Nintendo to experiment with the franchise and figure out where to take it. Niantic and Nintendo may not become permanent partners anytime soon, but seeing all the collaborations they still have going on, they clearly have a bright future together.
A Pikmin mobile game developed by Niantic will release in 2021.
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