Pikmin is one of Nintendo's more prominant franchises, even if it has never been a heavy hitter like Super Mario, The Legend of Zelda, and Pokemon. Despite only having three mainline titles since 2001, its characters have been in Super Smash Bros. since Brawl, and the titular Pikmin can even be spotted at Super Nintendo World in Japan. A few spin-offs have come out amid the wait for Pikmin 4, with Niantic's AR mobile game Pikmin Bloom being the most recent.
Given the immense success of Pokemon GO, it was interesting to hear Niantic would be throwing its weight at a much smaller Nintendo IP. However, thus far the gambit seems to be paying off, with Pikmin Bloom hitting two million downloads within its first two weeks on the market. Pikmin creator Shigeru Miyamoto has been talking about a fourth mainline game in development since 2015, but between the success of Bloom and Pikmin 3 Deluxe on Switch, this sequel has never seemed so likely. If Pikmin 4 does arrive soon, it should take notes from Bloom's more in-depth customization mechanics.
How Pikmin Bloom's Decor Works
Pikmin Bloom is primarily an exercise tool that encourages players to go on long walks where they can find new Seedlings that sprout into Pikmin with enough steps. Each Pikmin plucked can be named, and they all have a unique friendship level with the player. This friendship can be increased by interacting with an individual Pikmin in a number of ways, such as feeding them colored nectar to grow flowers or sending them on expeditions that collect items like fruit and Seedlings.
Up to four friendship hearts can be earned with any given Pikmin, and doing so comes with a few benefits. The most notable from a gameplay perspective is that Pikmin with higher friendship levels are more effective when taking on challenges such as destroying mushrooms - especially if they also have a flower. Once a Pikmin reaches four hearts they unlock solo expeditions that give them a piece of decor (which are available immediately for Huge Seedling sprouts).
Decor is essentially Pikmin Bloom's main collectible, with every Pikmin color having a different cosmetic based on the location types Niantic has split its real-world map into. These decor pieces include chef hats from restaurants, clovers from parks, and miniature airplanes from airports. Anywhere that doesn't have a specific location type is considered the "roadside," which presents Pikmin with a sticker bearing the first letter of whatever area they got it from. Niantic has also given out one special cosmetic, Mario's cap, to celebrate launch.
How Pikmin 4 Can Adapt Bloom's Customization
In mainline titles, the titular Pikmin are expendible soldiers for real-time strategy puzzles and combat. It's not unusual for the player to stockpile hundreds of a particular colored Pikmin in their Onion because one mistake during battle can result in untold numbers being squished, eaten, or succumbing to the elements. Pikmin and Pikmin 3 also follow characters who are fighting to survive: Olimar is collecting parts to rebuild his ship before oxygen runs out, and the Koppaites are collecting fruit to save their dying planet, respectively.
In those situations it would not make much sense for the protagonists to spend a lot of time naming their companions and playing dress-up. However, with a less dire plot akin to Pikmin 2's treasure-collecting quest, Pikmin 4 could open the door to these means of personalizing Pikmin on a grander scale.
Some might be opposed to this idea as the disposability of each Pikmin is kind of the point. This sentient plant-like species is stronger as a collective, and needs the leadership of a character like Olimar to thrive. It also probably wouldn't be fun for a lot of players to spend hours naming all their Pikmin and adorning them with decor just to see the whole troupe gobbled up by one Bulborb. However, those stakes could do wonders for setting up a more challenging game and giving the Pikmin a lot of extra personality. If Pokemon nuzlocke challenges have proven anything, it's that many players love emotionally taxing challenges that create emergent narratives.
Pikmin Bloom is available now for Android and iOS.