Nintendo recently announced an interesting round table for the Pikmin franchise as the fourth entry is released this Friday. One of the things Miyamoto pondered was why the series wasn’t a huge sales success, compared to some of Nintendo’s other key games. Mr. Miyamoto admits that the fear of losing your adorable Pikmin could be the key to this, though he also notes that he believes this aspect is also one of the franchise’s strengths. From reading the many reviews of Pikmin 4, you get the general impression that the development team spent a long time figuring out how to make the series more accessible by adding more quality-of-life elements, and all reviewers seem to agree that they achieved that with Pikmin 4.
Miyamoto: There have been three games in the series so far, from Pikmin to Pikmin 3, and personally I’ve always wondered, “Why didn’t they explode in sales even though they’re so much fun to play? Why do people think they are so difficult?”
A lot of people seem to think that the characters are cute, but that the games themselves are a bit difficult. Pikmin die if you make the wrong decision, so there can be some fear of losing them.
Miyamoto: I understand that it is more difficult for people when death is a factor. But I think the strength of the franchise lies in its relationship with mortality. If something is irreversible, you have to figure out a way to prevent unwanted things from happening. In order to try to prevent the Pikmin from dying, you must practice “Dandori.” To me, that’s what makes this game unique. I think people find Pikmin difficult for two reasons: the controls and the depth of gameplay. I thought for a long time about how we could convey these points as “interesting” rather than “difficult”. A Japanese word meaning “to think about planning and efficiency in advance to get things done smoothly.”
On side: Yeah, looking at player reactions to the first three games, I’ve also been thinking a lot about how to get more people to play this game. In the early stages of development, we prioritized the simplicity of gameplay and experimented with making the controls simple enough for those new to gaming. We also tested the camera and AI improvements. Also, it just doesn’t feel like a Pikmin game to me if it’s not like the first one. That is, if there is no Dandori element where players learn and become more efficient through repetition.
Thanks to Great song 1 for a news tip!
