Nintendo posts cute and mysterious animated short film, but is it teasing Pikmin?
UPDATE: Yes, it was Pikmin all along.
UPDATE 08/10/25: Yes, it turns out Nintendo's surprise animated short was about Pikmin all along.
Today, Nintendo has released a fresh version of the Close to You film, now with added colourful critters. It would appear the baby is unaware of the Pikmin (hence yesterday's film), which means it cannot see how it's terrorising the poor things.
Indeed, according to Pikmin Bloom lore (the mobile game), Pikmin are invisible to human eyes.
Now, at the end of the film, all the Pikmin bloom when the mother hugs the baby. It's adorable.
At present, the revised film is only on the Nintendo Today app. And it's still not clear what it's promoting. Is this Pikmin 4? Pikmin 5? Or another Pikmin project altogether?
ORIGINAL STORY 07/10/25: Nintendo has posted a new animated short film on its Nintendo Today app and YouTube channel, so far completely devoid of context.
Called Close to You, the Pixar-esque film shows a baby following its toys around the room, seemingly moved by invisible creatures, all accompanied by a playful piano soundtrack.
The film has been posted purely with the name and no description, so it's not initially clear what project (if any) this might relate to, be that a game or a film.
While the company doesn't state which production studio created the film, some have speculated this is the work of Nintendo Pictures - its Tokyo-based animation studio that launched back in 2022, formerly known as Dynamo Pictures.
What's more, the music references the main Pikmin theme tune at the start, while the focus on items being carried certainly alludes to the little plant creatures. And if you check under the bed at 1'41, a little red creature can be seen scurrying around.
Could this be hinting at a Switch 2 version of Pikmin 4? That game does include levels themed around a child's bedroom. But why go to the trouble of a new animated short?
At the very least, it's a beautifully animated film and extremely cute.
What do you think Nintendo is hinting at?