Pikmin Was Almost on The 3DS

Steven Bogos

The Taco Man
Jan 17, 2013
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Pikmin Was Almost on The 3DS


A portableversion of Pikmin 3 was scrapped due to difficulty with controls.

The DS, and it's successor the 3DS, have been a godsend for fans of portable strategy games. Turn-based strategy titles like Advance Wars, and tactical RPGs like Fire Emblem have been perfect fits for the device, with the touchscreen offering a level of precision we've never seen on handhelds before. So why is it that Nintendo's flagship strategy series, Pikmin, never made it to the system? Shigeru Miyamoto tells 4gamer [http://www.4gamer.net/games/168/G016837/20130712087/index_2.html] that a portable Pikmin game was scrapped due to difficulty with controls.

"The truth is we were doing prototype tests of Pikmin for the DS and 3DS," said Miyamoto, "but it turned into unit management with only the touch pen and no matter what it just didn't seem like Pikmin." He said that the company's original goal with Pikmin on the GameCube was to create the "easiest to control 3D game around," a goal that they just couldn't get to gel with Nintendo's portable systems.

"We concluded that Pikmin is a game that revolves around action based on its controls and the strategy sits on top of that. Although there are elements that are built on the strategy, there are other overall things that have to be well considered. This complete experience is an important element of Pikmin."

In the interview, Miyamoto also commented on the newly released Pikmin 3 for the Wii U, the first new Pikmin title since 2004's Pikmin 2.

"This game may seem difficult on first glance but once you try the controls, it's easy," he said. "Even if you find using the pointer difficult, there is a control method using the GamePad similar to the previous GameCube titles that we'd like people to ultilise." He says allowing players to customize their control methods is a very important part of the new Pikmin game.

Source: CVG [http://www.4gamer.net/games/168/G016837/20130712087/index_2.html]

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xyrafhoan

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Jan 11, 2010
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The 3DS touch screen is so small and the number of units you're supposed to control is so high, a game like Pikmin needs a screen bigger than 3 inches wide. RTS games have always been best on the PC but the WiiU's tablet is significantly larger than the 3DS's. I'm glad they just stuck with a console release, as a handheld release of Pikmin would probably have to water everything down to make it comfortable enough to play.
 

mew4ever23

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Mar 21, 2008
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And it should be noted that the pointer controls are garbage.

I can understand the choice, even if I don't particularly agree with it.
 

Infernal Lawyer

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Jan 28, 2013
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This is a right shame, but I'd rather have no game at all rather than be suckered into buying a crappy port. Good on Nintendo for giving us the lesser of two evils, I suppose...
 

Ghonzor

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Jul 29, 2009
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A shame, probably the only way I ever would have been able to play a Pikmin game. I'll never touch the red-headed step child that is the Wii U, and finding Pikmin for the GameCube is like trying to find Atlantis.
 

Teoes

Poof, poof, sparkles!
Jun 1, 2010
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Ghonzor said:
A shame, probably the only way I ever would have been able to play a Pikmin game. I'll never touch the red-headed step child that is the Wii U, and finding Pikmin for the GameCube is like trying to find Atlantis.
Really? I can see several copies on eBay. Shame, you got me thinking even more protectively of my old copy - not that I would've considered selling it anyway.

OT: Shame, on initial thought Pikmin on the 3DS would sound like a great idea; but it would probably just be too finicky to control.
 

Rack

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Jan 18, 2008
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Ironically it would be great on Vita. Cest la vie.

Can't you get the Wii versions of Pikmin?
 

Ghonzor

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Jul 29, 2009
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Teoes said:
Ghonzor said:
A shame, probably the only way I ever would have been able to play a Pikmin game. I'll never touch the red-headed step child that is the Wii U, and finding Pikmin for the GameCube is like trying to find Atlantis.
Really? I can see several copies on eBay. Shame, you got me thinking even more protectively of my old copy - not that I would've considered selling it anyway.

OT: Shame, on initial thought Pikmin on the 3DS would sound like a great idea; but it would probably just be too finicky to control.
I tend to be a bit more distrustful of eBay. Bad experiences in the past. But I shouldn't discount online methods of finding a copy entirely, true.
 

Andy Shandy

Fucked if I know
Jun 7, 2010
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This just reminded me how much I want a new Advance Wars game =/

Anyway, shame they couldn't get it to work, a portable Pikmin would've been quite the thing indeed.
 

Covarr

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May 29, 2009
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"We couldn't make it work with a touchscreen, so we moved it to the Wii U. By the way, the Wii U Gamepad's touchscreen controls are awesome."

P.S. Thanks

P.P.S. I'm well aware it was probably more of a screen size issue than anything else, but that would ruin the joke.