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Nintendo released a developer interview with the Pikmin 4 team. In it, various people behind it discussed the challenges of trying to attract new players while maintaining the essential essence of Pikmin. It also went over the idea of “Dandori” in Pikmin 4, a recurring concept.
The interview featured five team members. Chief director Yuji Kando, Planning Directors Yutaka Hiramuki and Taku Matoba, Sound Director Mitsuhiro Kida and Pikmin’s Creator Shigeru Miyamoto participated. Each member of the team had worked on previous Pikmin titles.
One of the key elements the Pikmin 4 team discussed in the developer interview was the concept of Dandori, which they considered essential to Pikmin. The term Dandori means efficient planning, describing how the player must use their Pikmin effectively. The team looked at various ways to teach the player how to utilize the concept in Pikmin 4, such as implementing Pikmin 3’s Mission Mode (now renamed Dandori Challenge) into the game’s story.
The team also discussed how to make Pikmin 4 more accessible to newcomers. Past games in the series had been considered difficult, so they were eager to add new elements that would improve that. This is where the space dog Oatchi, the invincible Glow Pikmin and the Rewind Time feature came in, allowing players more space to experiment.
Pikmin 4 will be released for Nintendo Switch on July 21, 2023.
