Nintendo finally nailed down a release date for Pikmin 3 today, revealing in a press release that the long-overdue sequel (which was originally announced as one of the Wii U’s launch window titles) will be released both in stores and on the Nintendo eShop on August 4, 2013 in North America.
This release date does mark another delay for the third title in the Pikmin franchise — Nintendo had previously pegged the game for launch sometime before June 30th — but what is one more short delay for a game that was (sort of) announced as a Wii title back in 2008?
In addition to the good news about Pikmin 3‘s release date, Nintendo officially introduced a new Pikmin type in today’s Nintendo Direct presentation, the flying Winged Pikmin. These cute little pink guys have the ability to fly in the air after the player, which allows them to avoid the horrific fate that awaits all non-blue Pikmin who fall into water. In addition to simply following after the player, the Winged Pikmin can also carry items though the air and appear to be able to easily take down flying enemies.
Nintendo also confirmed that the Winged Pikmin were briefly visible during Pikmin 3’s E3 2012 debut trailer, however, this is the first time that the company has specifically mentioned their existence.
The Big N promised to release details about the game over the next few months leading up to its launch on August 4th. Considering how lean the Wii U release schedule has been since the console launched late last year, I would be surprised if Nintendo is not planning to heavily promote Pikmin 3 at their E3 press conference this year. Here’s hoping it doesn’t get completely overlooked, as most eyes will be on Microsoft and Sony’s next-gen console announcements from here on out.
While we wait for more official information on Pikmin 3, make sure to skip ahead to the 20:49 mark in the Nintendo Direct presentation video embedded below to see the Winged Pikmin in action.
