Nintendo is officially releasing its new AR crossover with Niantic:Pikmin Bloom. Following in the footsteps ofPokemon GO, Bloomwill inject everyone’s favorite flowery friends into real life.
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The name of the app has been released, but what exactly is it? The relaxed AR app will follow users as they wander around outside, and allow the creation and collection of all kinds of Pikmin. Here we will highlight ten things that both new and old fans should know aboutPikmin Bloombefore starting their adventures.
10You Can Grow And Pick Pikmin
If you’re new to the idea of Pikmin, this may sound strange. The classic game series has colorful comrades that are grown like plants -and inPikmin Bloom, this is no different.
There is also a seed-growing bonus involved here - by feeding and properly rearing Pikmin, and the longer a player walks and plants flowers for, the bigger the bonus. This impacts the speed at which Pikmin grow - the bigger the bonus, the quicker they sprout, and the quicker they can be collected and used!
9You Collect Seeds By Walking
So how do players get seeds to grow Pikmin? By walking! As the app integrates real life, it focuses on players going for relaxing wanders around the world. These seeds are tied to steps - which equates to the motion of the device as the player walks.
Seeds will be placed in the players' backpack, which is like a tiny, mobile greenhouse! They will grow steadily in the incubation backpack, and then can be plucked out. The Pikmin can even be named, which is a new feature for the series.
8Feeding Them Fruit Will Make Pikmin Bloom
Within thePikminseries of games, feeding the main character and the Pikmin themselves is a key part. Most of the missions in the game revolve around harvesting food for both parties. Fruit is the big (literally) source of sustenance: lemons, strawberries, and more litter the surrounding area.
By feeding Pikmin with fruit - turned into Nectar - it will sprout more and more and increase the available population. Also, different color fruits will work to create different types of Pikmin - for instance, a juicy red strawberry will produce more red Pikmin.
7Pikmin Can Be Sent On Expeditions
In the mainline games, Pikmin can be tasked with going out and exploring areas, or retrieving items.Pikmin Bloomhas also incorporated this! After leveling up a few times, players can send a group of Pikmin off on expeditions.
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These jaunts will be sending the plucky plants to go and collect fruits - these can be turned into Nectar to feed the Pikmin! As well as finding food, Pikmin can discover new outfits (presumably for the Mii avatars), accessories, and even new colors and types of the helpful sprouts.
6Different Places Have Different Pikmin
As the sprouts and players discover new spaces and areas, more and more types of Pikmin will appear! The functionality of this will likely be similar toPokemon GOwheredifferent locations spawn different types.
A whole rainbow of Pikmin friends is available: red, blue, black, pink - the list goes on! In the mainline games, they all appear in different locations and have different skills related to their color and design. It is likely that these will be somewhat tied to different locations in Bloom.
5You Can Add Photos And Notes To Your Lifelog
EveryPikmingame has a sort of diary - Captain Olimar records his thoughts and findings of the new areas periodically in a Voyage Log.Pikmin Bloomhas a similar function: the Lifelog!
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This in-game diary turns normal days into fun memories by adding moods, photos, and comments to a daily recap - which also shows the number of steps and any achievements of the day. The Pikmin also retrieve postcards for you from the places that they have been, which are added to the Log along with any photos players upload themselves.
4There Will Be Community Days
This has been confirmed, but so far there is no explanation of what players can expect. It is assumed that community days will focus on specific colors or types of Pikmin - especially the rarer kinds, and will maybe center onseasonal eventsin real life.
Pokemon GO’s Community Days revolve around a specific Pokemon spawning more during a day and having themed raids. It will be very interesting to see how the Niantic and Nintendo teams work this intoPikmin Bloom- but we are excited nonetheless!
3Bloom Uses Mii Avatars
So far there is no mention of Captain Olimar and co inBloom, but they could be added during events or might be part of different aspects of the app: like the Professors onPokemon GO. What players do use, however, is a Mii character.
Created as the game is opened, players will create their likeness in Nintendo’s unforgettable avatar style. These avatars will appear on the over-world map and be a place marker for where the player currently is. It is unclear whether there will be purchasable clothing or hair items for Miis, but it is assumed that more intricate designs will be behind some form of paywall.
2Adventure Sync Is Available From The Get-Go
A feature that was obviously missing from the inception ofPokemon GOwas Adventure Sync. Niantic recognizes this and has made it available from the start withPikmin Bloom. But what does it do?
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Adventure sync counts steps that players take while not active on the app. It can be used with fitness apps on iOS and Android, or on its' own. This means that if a player goes for a nice stroll, but doesn’t have the battery or time to keep the app open constantly, then their progress will still count to the game. Similarly, Pikmincan perform expeditionswhile the app is closed, too!
1Purchase ‘Flower Coins’
No app would be complete without its own currency.Pikmin Bloomis free to begin, but there will be purchases available with ‘Flower Coins’. They can be earned by planting flowers and interacting with the game (as well as being purchased in the store).
The in-game currency will be used to purchase decoration items for players' avatars, and can also be used to speed up some processes. Think of it likeAnimal Crossing Pocket Camp’s ‘Leaf Tickets’ - they can be earned and spent to make life easier, but are not essential!
Pikmin Bloomwas released on August 08, 2025, and is available for iOS and Android devices.
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