UPDATE: Nintendo has just revealed the second version of its mysterious animated compact – now with a Pikmin army observable. For full details on this fresh, Pikmin-filled version of Close to You, check out IGN’s latest coverage.
ORIGINAL STORY: Nintendo just released a mysterious animated compact with no explanation — leaving fans wondering whether it’s a teaser for the upcoming Super Mario Galaxy movie or a teaser for a recent Pikmin game.
Lasting just under four minutes, the dialogue-free animation titled “Close to You” shows a blonde toddler taking his first steps when an unseen force mysteriously lifts his pacifier.
Nintendo fans will notice several musical cues from the Pikmin series when the pacifier is picked up and seemingly taken away (though no Pikmin is actually seen). At the same time, some Nintendo fans claim that the baby could be space princess Rosalina, who will certainly debut in next year’s Super Mario Galaxy Movie.
With no explanation from Nintendo itself, this is clearly something fans will have to figure out for themselves – although IGN has reached out to Nintendo for more information.
The pacifier’s movements certainly look like they could be made by a group of Pikmin carrying an object aloft, and in several Pikmin games players were actually tasked with throwing away household items. Indeed, Pikmin 4 tasked players with venturing into a human home for the first time.
The Pikmin series has always been set on Earth, with the Pikmin themselves implying that they are always out of sight. Is Nintendo making it clear that Pikmin are actually hidden to human eyes?
Pikmin music and other clues aside, other fans have suggested that the baby may be Rosalina, whose origins – like Princess Peach’s – will likely finally be explained in next year’s big-screen Super Mario Galaxy movie. Is this a scene from this movie? We’re not sure – the animation style doesn’t look the same as Illumination – but it’s also strange that Nintendo is releasing its own, unrelated animated film just six months before its next substantial animated film.
Whatever it is, we will update more when we have it.
Tom Phillips is IGN’s news editor. You can contact Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social
