In the lore of Nintendo's Pikmin series, Pikmin are named after Pikpik carrots — a vegetable from Captain Olimar's homeworld Hocotate that resembles the sentient plant-like beings which help him rebuild the S.S. Dolphin. The comparison is apt given Pikmin are frequently eaten by the wild creatures inhabiting Earth (or PNF-404 as it's named by the protagonists of Pikmin 3), and Pikpik carrots can be fed to any enemy in Pikmin 2 through its Piklopedia feature. Niantic's mobile game Pikmin Bloom seems especially interested in linking Pikmin with edible goods.
Rarely are Pikmin depicted as being edible for humans, or at least the games' human-analog Hocotatians and Koppaites. One Pikmin animated short from around the 2013 release of Pikmin 3 does toy with the idea of Olimar eating them, but it's ultimately a misunderstanding. In Pikmin Bloom, Pikmin can pick up a piece of decor from the area in which they were found, and Niantic officially added "Sushi Restaurant" decor on April 6. However cute it may be for Pikmin to wear pieces of nigiri, the developer needs to extend beyond foodstuff sooner rather than later.
Pikmin Bloom's Slowly Growing Decor
Collecting Pikmin with every piece of decor is essentially the underlying goal of Pikmin Bloom. It's more an exercise tool than Niantic's other licensed games Pokemon GO and the now-closed Harry Potter: Wizards Unite, with players able to discover Seedlings along their walking paths that are grown through further exercise. Except for Big Seedling Pikmin that receive their decor immediately when plucked, players must bond with each unit by feeding them nectar and sending them on tasks in order to reach four hearts of affection, at which point the Pikmin will have access to the decor from their place of origin.
There were 21 decor categories when Pikmin Bloom launched in October 2021, ranging from "Art Gallery" to "Beach," with "Roadside" stickers being the catch-all given to any Pikmin found in an area without a type. The first permanent new decor type was "Hamburger Shop" last December. A few others made limited-time appearances for holidays like Lunar New Year in February 2022, but this month's Sushi Restaurant is the only other permanent addition. These two join numerous food-themed categories available since launch: Restaurant, Cafe, Sweetshop, Mini-mart, Supermarket, and Bakery. "Movie Theater" Pikmin also appear wearing popcorn.
Pikmin Bloom Should Extend Its Reach Further Than Sushi
After Hamburger Shop, it was clear Pikmin Bloom had room to grow with a diverse array of decor types that could make the world around players more rich over time. The slow rollout makes it pertinent for each addition to be wide-spanning, yet adding Sushi Restaurant after Hamburger Shop doesn't seem to fit that bill. Though Niantic is based out of California, it's hard to say sushi is the most universal food choice even across the continental United States - which seems to be Pikmin Bloom's chief market given tie-ins with businesses like the flower subscription service BloomsyBox.
A Western audience and Japan, presumably being the mobile game's other target considering Nintendo is a Japanese developer, could just as easily benefit from new decor types based on places like schools or libraries. These kinds of utilities are likely easier to find in rural pockets of those nations than something like a sushi restaurant. Ultimately it doesn't matter what decor locations are added for gameplay purposes; the Pikmin's decor is purely cosmetic in all the ways that matter; but ease of access is worth considering.
One bright spot regarding the addition of Sushi Restaurant decor is that only Red, Blue, and Yellow Pikmin received the cosmetics, unlike Hamburger Shop adding one for each color. Following the limited color spread of Pikmin Bloom's Lunar New Year decor suggests Niantic is comfortable splitting up its cast. Thus, there are better odds new permanent categories could be implemented faster than four months apart going forward, hopefully improving the game's diversity of locales.
Pikmin Bloom is available now for Android and iOS devices.