Miyamoto wonders why Pikmin hasn't sold more and why people think the games are difficult

Nintendo's Shigeru Miyamoto wonders why the Pikmin series hasn't sold more and why people think it's so difficult.

[Becuzisaid]

I'm going to give my unqualified, Internet opinion here: Pikmin looks boring af and that's why people like me don't buy it.

Now for my unqualified, Internet armchair CEO opinion: I wonder why Nintendo spends so many resources and marketing on games mid tier games like this instead of feeling the pulse of it's own fan base. Where's Metroid prime 4? Zelda HD ports? F Zero? Star Fox (give this series another chance without your stupid forced gimmickry)

[closed_account]

The games are a lot of fun, but not worth the full $60 price. These smaller, less popular titles would do better at a $40 price

[Whoseverleaf]

I couldn't agree more with your not feeling the pulse of their fans and they have always done things on their own terms not realizing the true fans are who kept them afloat through many of their mistakes along the way

[Jin_Sakai]

“I'm going to give my unqualified, Internet opinion here: Pikmin looks boring af and that's why people like me don't buy it.”

Boring af yet it has an 87 Metacritic and an 88 userscore. The game is fun and better than Pikmin 1 & 2 for sure.

[Aussiesummer]

It's was his honest opinion, he wasn't saying its a fact it's just how this bizzare series reads to the average gamer.

[Kosic]

You question his opinion by showing an argument of other people's opinions.. that's funny

[Jin_Sakai]

@Kosic

“You question his opinion by showing an argument of other people's opinions.. that's funny“

I thought the demo was fun. At least specify why you think it’s boring af.

@Aussiesummer

“It's was his honest opinion, he wasn't saying it’s a fact it's just how this bizzare series reads to the average gamer.”

Which is fine but at least tell why you think that. I finished the demo and I didn’t find it boring at all. It has a bit of a learning curve but once you’re familiar with the controls it’s pretty fun and entertaining.

[Kurt Russell]

Whether it's fun or not isn't the issue. It looks dull, I've watched the trailers and I don't really get the hook... So I haven't engaged with it.

[Jin_Sakai]

@Kurt Russell

“Whether it's fun or not isn't the issue. It looks dull, I've watched the trailers and I don't really get the hook... So I haven't engaged with it.“

I suggest giving it a try since there’s a free demo. After the slow beginning it becomes more fun and entertaining.

I was hesitant myself after playing the previous titles but this one is so much better. Especially the new camera system and the fact that if you lose too many Pikmin you can simply rewind time.

[paddy95]

F-ZERO would be amazing. Link between worlds on switch is an obvious hd port. Pikmin looks tween and boring like on of those cozy time wasting games. At least this has gameplay unlike animal crossing.

[BrainSyphoned]

Because a lot of Switch games are bought by non-gamer parents that have no clue wtf a Pikman is.

[Nebaku]

Pikmin is 22 years old.

Many of the people who are parents now grew up with video games, and aren't the technology illiterate relics you're painting them as.

[CantThinkOfAUsername]

23 years gaming and I've never heard of it.

[Double_O_Revan]

Just because you grow up in gaming doesn't mean you pay attention to every game or detail. I'm 37 and a parent. I've worked in video game stores multiple times and have always been involved in gaming. But I still don't know really anything about Pikmin or how it plays. I remember seeing it on a demo machine back during the Cube and never payed attention to it since.

[gold_drake]

yea i would agree with that.
pikmin is just super niche.

[DarkZane]

Why it hasn't sold more? It's simple: Those games aren't very good. Can't believe they made 4 of them.

[UltimateOwnage]

Hard disagree.

[TheOptimist]

Popularity is rarely an indication of quality.

Call of Duty is the perfect example - mediocre game, best-selling game every year.
Nier Automata - One of the best games of all time, sold 10 mil copies
Elden Ring - Broke all sales records, still a great game

People need to stop taking sales or popularity as a metric of quality

[Snookies12]

Not to mention, Nier Automata had a horrible budget to work with. Yes though, it is most certainly one of the best games of all time.

[Profchaos]

I know it's been trendy to dunk on cod every year since blops but legit the games are not mediocre they are good games if they didn't become the multiplayer behemoth the campaigns remained the core focus I think they would be underappreciated the games overall are not great but still good it's a matter of taste and it's subjective I disliked Elden ring but I wouldn't call it mediocre.

[cammers1995]

Pikmin and animal crossing are Nintendos shovel franchises. They have a big fan base but never really sold well. New horizons did sell well thanks to the pandemic, but that was a one off deal. For Nintendo, if it isn't Mario or the legend of Zelda, or stuff related to Mario such as Mario kart or super smash bros they don't really care long term.

Pikmin isn't very good. It has a lot of fans yes, but the gameplay sucks, and always has. The game looks and plays like a mobile game.

[BanginTunes]

... real quick Google the sales numbers for the previous animal crossing games for me

[franwex]

Except that Animal Crossing sells ridiculous Grand Theft Auto numbers for some reason.

[UltimateOwnage]

Because they’re excellent games. If judged on their appearance alone they look pretty bland. There’s a lot of freedom and depth to AC. I love stopping in to maintain my town and see what’s new every few days, it’s low pressure and feels more personal than most games.

[-Foxtrot]

Animal Crossing is great

The issue is when they release their next main game they haven't added a lot of content to keep you going for a long time and recently their support updates are basically mostly filled with content from the last games which were cut from the base game this time round. With the long wait in-between games you think they would add more.

It's sad because with their high sales they probably think that they don't have to try now

[Jin_Sakai]

“Pikmin and animal crossing are Nintendos shovel franchises. They have a big fan base but never really sold well.“

You are clueless. Animal Crossing is the second best selling Switch game of all time. It’s sold over 42 million copies.

[Hereandthere]

Animal crossing is awesome, but pikmen is really boring and repetitive.

[LG_Fox_Brazil]

Lots of very stupid comments lately on N4G. Wonder where these people are coming from. I mean, we almost always had dumb comments, but lately it got worse

[BanginTunes]

Few factors I can think of as to why: RTS isn't really the kind of genre most Nintendo fans would buy into, outside of rereleases the first 3 Pikmin games were on Nintendo's least selling consoles, and I don't know if the garden aesthetic is really all that grabbing to a general audience - it doesn't really scream adventure, action or fun.

I'd say Pikmin 4 may be the last real chance for it to prove itself since it's on the Switch and it's going for the cozy game fad

[franwex]

It’s a genre that isn’t too popular on consoles. It’s also a strange concept. I recall a lot of folk were disappointed when the first one came out on GameCube.

[Profchaos]

Yeah I remember people not liking the original it was a confusing concept and didn't get explained well at all.

[Unknown_Gamer5794]

Not as much marketing? Tears of the Kingdom has basically been in our faces recently, whereas I probably wouldn’t have known about the new Pikmin had I not seen it in the eShop new releases, or visited game news sites like this one.

[Elda]

I was just gifted a Switch this past May. I didn't buy the game because of the gameplay videos that I've seen, the game just doesn't look interesting to me.

[Nebaku]

My theory for why RTS's and TRPG's are generally declining in popularity, is that they aren't fun to watch.

And unfortunately that gives people the idea that they aren't fun to play, when generally the opposite is true, and they're more rewarding.

[Aussiesummer]

Because it just looks like an odd mobile game, nothing exciting about it, can't even tell just by looking at it what it is.

[archibold]

Been playing Pikmin 4 since launch - I must say the game is really good. It's the most polished Pikmin to date and adds a lot of cool new features which streamlines and provides a lot of variety to the gameplay.

The people talking crap about the game clearly don't have a Switch (or a PC strong enough to emulate one). RIP losers.

[Venoxn4g]

When I first played Pikmin, felt a bit weird...but aftet you take some time with it and you understand the system and all.. then, it just makes sense and it is a very polished experience overall.. I really hope that this new one will sell a lot..it deserves it

[neomahi]

Because Xbox dictated the market now, Miyamoto. Xbox is on course to derail everything you've worked for

[gold_drake]

pikmin games target a very specific group of people.
the games are not bad at all, but i think the overall esthetic is not for everyone.

[RupeeHoarder]

Pikmin is a great concept but it didn’t need 4 entries in my opinion.
There’s other games they could have continued and put teams on that people would love to see

[Gameseeker_Frampt]

Pikmin is a RTS that lacks PVP multiplayer and sells poorly as a result. I also find the single player campaign lacking in challenge and replayablity. It is fun to play through once and that is it.

[jznrpg]

I asked my young children if they wanted it but they weren’t interested for whatever reasons I don’t know.
For me it looks like a kids game so I haven’t ever played one.

[GhostScholar]

Miyamito is out of touch in a lot of ways. Nintendo has maybe the best exclusives of the big three and they could dominate but because they won’t do
Anything about the graphics and don’t say “Nintendo isn’t about photo realism” maybe their exclusives aren’t but what if they were capable of having third party games that are graphically outstanding to go along with their exclusives, what about achievements or trophy systems, what about a ui that’s not laughable, an online service that isn’t archaic?

[Profchaos]

I just feel they don't change I mean there's changes but overall it's a RTS on console I feel peaked on the Wii which was the original 2 with wiimote support

[DefaultComment]

I never had the oportunity to play any pikmin game, but honestly it's not my cup of tea. That being said I really do hope the people who buy pikmin and play it enjopy the living hell out of it.

[gleepot]

I love picking, but it's a very niche game and genre.

[shadowknight203]

Honestly a game like that..make it crossplay with the switch in mind, but make to for all platforms switch ps4/ps5 xbox one/pc . Turn it into an online f2p game of sorts. If it's truly a fun game, and you question the player count and wonder how to make it bigger, this would be my salespitch for the next game. Then if you release future main games alongside the f2p model, it'll draw in potential new fans alongside it. hence answering this question, and lining up investors pocket books. Win win

[lellkay]

If it wasn't £50 it would likely sell better.

[Yppupdam]

I've noticed that people who really love "the sims" tend to think "pikmin" is a great game.....(blah)