Pikmin 4

Pikmin 4
File:Pikmin4 Direct Logo.png
The logo for Pikmin 4.
Japanese name	ピクミン 4?
Console	Nintendo Switch
Developer	TBA
Publisher	Nintendo
Genre	TBA
Players	TBA
Release date
Japan	2023
North America	2023
Europe	2023
Australia	2023
South Korea	2023

This article or section is about an upcoming or recently released game. The content here is subject to change as more information is discovered. All information added here must be verifiable and not speculative.

Pikmin 4 is the upcoming fourth mainline installment in the Pikmin series, planned for release in 2023 for the Nintendo Switch. The game was officially announced on September 13^th, 2022, though its existence was hinted at several times prior to the official announcement.

Known information

File:P4 Reveal Fight.jpg

Pikmin fighting a Bulborb.

Only one short trailer has been shown so far, from the September 13^th, 2022 Nintendo Direct presentation. Red Pikmin, Yellow Pikmin, and Blue Pikmin can be seen, along with Dwarf Bulborbs, Bulborbs, and a White Spectralids. The presentation also included a still screenshot in which a leader is seen, who looks similar to Brittany but with unkempt red hair, a yellow antenna light, as well as a full red spacesuit with white gloves, boots, and no skirt.

In the first shot, a garden-like area with bricks and tiles can be seen, and for the rest of the trailer, another garden scene with various man-made objects such as a bench, and a malfunctioning pocket watch hanging from a nail are shown. The screenshot displayed after the trailer showcases more man-made objects, including a water tap and a stepladder.

The game's logo was also revealed. The word "Pikmin" uses regular text rather than being made of Pikmin flowers (like in the previous main series games), albeit with a single flower in the letter "P," but the number 4 is still entirely made of Pikmin flowers, this time with yellow petals.

Shigeru Miyamoto said after the trailer that the Nintendo Switch's controls have made controlling the game simpler, allowing the player to focus more on strategic planning (or "段取り^?" as the developers refer to it). He also said that players would be able to view the world from the Pikmin's perspective near the ground.

History

Pre-announcement

Before Pikmin 4's official announcement in 2022, various pieces of information about the game were shared by Pikmin series creator Shigeru Miyamoto. This information was sparse and sometimes contradictory, and the lack of official statements by Nintendo made it difficult to work out what was actually happening with Pikmin 4. It is possible that some of these statements were referring to Hey! Pikmin.

The first of these mentions was on November 6^th, 2014, when Miyamoto was being interviewed on the recently-released Pikmin Short Movies, during which he said “Continually launching campaigns after the release of software will lay the groundwork for the next iteration of "Pikmin" in the future. And needless to say, we want it to be one of the motivations for potential consumers to purchase Wii U. We are making a variety of different efforts.”, indicating the possibility of another Pikmin game on the Wii U. Not long after, Miyamoto also mentioned wanting to make more Pikmin games in an interview with Smosh Games.

On September 7^th, 2015, Eurogamer unveiled that, in an exclusive interview, Miyamoto had confirmed the development of Pikmin 4, and claimed that “it's actually very close to completion. Pikmin teams are always working on the next one.” In the same article, Eurogamer also revealed a separate statement from a Nintendo representative, which said “We can confirm that Pikmin 4 is in development but that is all we can confirm at present.” It is not known if the "Pikmin 4" mentioned in that quote is the actual name for the game that Nintendo used, whether it's a placeholder name or not, or if it's just the result of the quote's English translation.

In interviews in 2015 and 2016, Miyamoto mentioned wanting to make more Pikmin and Star Fox games. When asked about characters he wanted to develop further at an Apple Store event, he said “Yeah, I always wanted Fox McCloud to be a bit more popular than he is. But I think one more would be Pikmin. So I think these two, I'll need to put some more energy into.”

On July 7^th, 2016, Gamerant interviewed Miyamoto and asked him about the status of the game's development and why there hadn't been any news in the past few months. To this, he replied “Yes, you are right, and we’re working on [Pikmin 4]. So, you know, when we’re in development we have to create a list of priorities and it has been hard to kind of fit that into that list, but we’re hopefully starting to see that on the list now.”

A second Eurogamer interview with Miyamoto about Pikmin 4 was conducted at E3 2017, during which he stated “I've been told not to share anything about this from PR, but I can tell you it is progressing.” This was the last time Pikmin 4 was mentioned before its official announcement.

Pre-release

Pikmin 4 was officially announced in a Nintendo Direct presentation on September 13^th, 2022. This announcement was in a section presented by Shigeru Miyamoto, which also promoted Pikmin Bloom and the upcoming Mario movie. A short trailer was shown, featuring a few scenes in a garden-like area and announcing a release window of 2023. Miyamoto provided some more basic details of the game after the trailer, and also showed off a new Pikmin T-shirt design based on the game's logo, which was made available to buy shortly afterwards.

Gallery

• P4 Reveal Garden 1.jpg

  The first shot from the announcement trailer.

• P4 Reveal Garden 2.jpg

  The second shot.

• P4 Reveal Garden 3.jpg

  The third shot.

• P4 Reveal Garden 3 Logo.jpg

  The third shot with the logo.

• Pikmin 4 Logo White Flowers.png

  The logo before the 4 turns gold.

Videos

• Announcement trailer
• Nintendo Direct (Contains one screenshot not present in the announcement trailer at 30:40.)

See also

• Pikmin 3
• Hey! Pikmin