Nintendo tried out Pikmin experiments on 3DS/DS, Miyamoto explains lack of online
Shigeru Miyamoto has shared new tidbits about Pikmin 3, including some interesting development revelations.
Before Pikmin 3 became a concrete idea, Nintendo tried out some experiments on the 3DS and DS. The game was then planned for Wii, but once Wii U rolled on in, Pikmin 3 was moved over to the new console.
Miyamoto has also explained the lack of online play for the title. He told IGN that “it would be very difficult to sync up” all of the Pikmin’s locations and movements, so it will support local multiplayer only.
Head past the break for direct-quotes on these topics and more.
Miyamoto on what the original Pikmin 3 concept was on Wii before it moved to Wii U…
“Fundamentally I would say that the game didn’t change all that much. Rather, we saw the CPU power and HD resolution offered by the Wii U and simply thought that was the best platform possible for that game, allowing you to see the whole map at one time and things like that. Going back a little bit, I would have to say that we really debated what kind of game we should make Pikmin 3.
“Having played them, you must know that Pikmin and Pikmin 2 themselves are very different games from each other. We had a bit of a discussion internally about which direction we should go for Pikmin 3. And at the same time we were also trying out different experiments on the DS and the 3DS and the Wii to see which platform the game would work best on. We had decided on Wii when the possibility of putting it on the Wii U became available, as we began to see what that framework was going to look like. At that time we definitely decided, okay, this is going to be much better on Wii U. Nothing huge changed in terms of the fundamental concept.”
Miyamoto on how the GamePad influenced Pikmin 3 development…
“I guess to address that question, I’d like to go back to discussing how Pikmin and Pikmin 2 were different. In Pikmin, you had a very strategic game, bound by a somewhat severe rule set. Whereas in Pikmin 2, you had a game where it was really just fun to explore areas and use your Pikmin in lots of different places. So we had this kind of conversation, do we go for deep strategy where people have to avoid killing Pikmin or try to lose as few as possible? I think that was a concept that always really appealed to me. [The other option was] do we go for lots of different types of maps and different sorts of collectible items, where it’s fun to just wander around and do different sorts of things? Introducing lots of new Pikmin types and lots of different Pikmin abilities for people to play around with.
“We decided on the concept that I was most partial to, the strategic type of game. But we’ve made it a little bit more accessible this time around, in that the player can see the entire map at once and they can also see a replay of their actions at the end of the day, so they can adjust their strategy based on that. I think the map ended up playing a really important role in the game design.
“Now, this is not necessarily a function of the GamePad exactly, but with the increased CPU power of the Wii U, we were also able to have the Pikmin-throwing cursor projected onto objects that you were throwing them onto. Whereas before, you would have only a rough sense of, okay, the Pikmin’s going to be thrown into this sort of area. Now you can place it directly onto an object, and that’s one of the other reasons we felt like Wii U was the best fit.”
Miyamoto on why he decided the Wii Remote was the better-suited method of primary input versus the GamePad…
“To be honest, I’m still thinking about it. And there are definite advantages to both. I feel like the Motion Plus is a really comfortable control environment. It might have the most intuitive and direct, automatic feeling of control. But at the same time, the map is just so important in terms of strategic decisions that the player is going to be making. So it’s interesting to me to see, in which situations people have gone for different control schemes.
“For example, the main programmer on the game has started to use the GamePad almost exclusively when he’s playing the game. When I talked to him about it, he said that when you can see the map right here in front of you, it’s just so much easier to decide on strategy. But there’s something really fun about the Nunchuk and Motion Plus controls, and I think that you’ll see that a lot on the show floor here. People are really getting into the way the Motion Plus feels in this game.”
Miyamoto on the possibility of online support for Pikmin 3…
“Everyone asks that question! [laughter]
“So in the case of Mario Kart, we did have online multiplayer, and that’s something that… You have to be very careful that you don’t drop frames as you’re trying to sync up with other players over what could be a very great physical distance, over the internet. But in the situation of Pikmin, for example, since you would have lots of individual, small creatures, the Pikmin, whose every movement and location is going to be really important in the game, it would be very difficult to sync up over an internet connection.
“So I think what we’ve decided to do is focus on the single-player and local multiplayer aspects, which are really fun. But unfortunately, no online multiplayer for Pikmin 3. But the co-op local multiplayer is really fun.”
