Nintendo hopes smartphones will be fertile soil for Pikmin Bloom

Niantic and Nintendo are evidently out to repeat the success of Pokemon Go with Pikmin Bloom, which involves walking to cultivate animated plant-like characters. — Pikmin Bloom/Niantic

SAN FRANCISCO: Pokemon Go maker Niantic on Oct 26 began rolling out a Pikmin Bloom smartphone game in its latest collaboration with Japanese video game icon Nintendo.

Pikmin Bloom’s launch comes 20 years after the debut of the original video game created by Nintendo legend Shigeru Miyamoto, and is a rare step by the company to let its beloved titles be played on hardware other than its own.