Nintendo’s weird Pikmin videos were short films, not announcement teasers

When Nintendo unexpectedly dropped a cute cartoon about a baby learning how to walk earlier this week, people understandably thought that the game studio might have been teasing a new or animated feature. “Close to You” turned out to be a Pikmin situation instead of a reveal for new IP, and Nintendo has just clarified that the video is actually a short film rather than a teaser for a new game.

In a post shared to X, Nintendo announced today that both versions of “Close to You” are small movies that were produced by Nintendo Pictures, the company’s recently-acquired CG production arm.

We hope you enjoyed the two “Close to You” videos released on October 7 and 8.
The second video is available on Nintendo Today!, a free app available on your smart device.
These are the first short films created by Nintendo Pictures Co., Ltd.
Nintendo Pictures will continue to… pic.twitter.com/GKizLT0Ckv

The company also said that Nintendo Pictures “will continue to take on various challenges with videos in the future,” implying that we’re probably going to be seeing a lot more of this content that’s meant to get people excited (and encourage them to check out the Nintendo Today app).