Hungry Yellow Pikmin Go for a Stroll Through the City of Forests! Experience Report from the Real-Life Event "Pikmin Bloom Journey 2025: Sendai"
Note: the original Japanese article can be found at:
https://www.4gamer.net/games/560/G056049/20251001031/
Writer: Tangsanda | 2025/10/02 07:11 (UTC)
Niantic’s location-based walking game “Pikmin Bloom” (available on iOS / Android) held its live event “Pikmin Bloom Journey 2025: Sendai” in Sendai City, Miyagi Prefecture, on September 20 and 21, 2025.
In this report, a writer who regularly enjoys “Pikmin Bloom” shares their experience from attending the event on the 20th.
“Pikmin Bloom” is a location-based game where players walk through city streets alongside mysterious creatures resembling animals and plants—“Pikmin”—planting flowers and searching for young Pikmin Image Gallery No.001 thumbnail / Exploring Sendai with an appetite-driven Yellow Pikmin! Live Event Experience Report: “Pikmin Bloom Journey 2025: Sendai”
Travel Companion: The Gluttonous Yellow Pikmin
“Pikmin Bloom Journey” is a paid event requiring advance ticket purchase. This year’s second venue was Sendai—the “City of Trees.”
The event features a story-driven format, allowing players to unlock special “Rosette” Deco-Pikmin by progressing through exploration tasks.
In Sendai, you’ll meet the Yellow Pikmin, who first appear as golden seedlings near Sendai Station. After walking about 100 steps and pulling up your new companion, I couldn’t help but laugh at their sluggish demeanor—especially since they had nothing to carry.
Image Gallery No.002 thumbnail / Exploring Sendai with an appetite-driven Yellow Pikmin! Live Event Experience Report: “Pikmin Bloom Journey 2025: Sendai” Image Gallery No.003 thumbnail / Exploring Sendai with an appetite-driven Yellow Pikmin! Live Event Experience Report: “Pikmin Bloom Journey 2025: Sendai”
The Yellow Pikmin seem extremely hungry—so much so that they won’t be satisfied unless you collect special “essences” from Sendai’s unique spots.
While regular Pikmin happily accept any essence, the Yellow Rosette Deco-Pikmin only respond to specific ones. It’s as if this gluttonous creature was raised in a city famed for its delicious food (or perhaps it just inherited that trait?).
Image Gallery No.004 thumbnail / Exploring Sendai with an appetite-driven Yellow Pikmin! Live Event Experience Report: “Pikmin Bloom Journey 2025: Sendai” Image Gallery No.005 thumbnail / Exploring Sendai with an appetite-driven Yellow Pikmin! Live Event Experience Report: “Pikmin Bloom Journey 2025: Sendai”
Special spots can be found via the app, Google Maps, or maps released beforehand—making it easy to plan your route in advance.
Additionally, at gift distribution points, attendees received paper maps, clear files, and paper Pikmin sunshades. Interestingly, these sunshades are also available as in-game items, so you can match your avatar’s look perfectly.
Sunshades come in 7 designs—available both in the real world and within the app Image Gallery No.006 thumbnail / Exploring Sendai with an appetite-driven Yellow Pikmin! Live Event Experience Report: “Pikmin Bloom Journey 2025: Sendai” Image Gallery No.007 thumbnail / Exploring Sendai with an appetite-driven Yellow Pikmin! Live Event Experience Report: “Pikmin Bloom Journey 2025: Sendai”
In-app, players can also unlock an original-designed hoodie Image Gallery No.008 thumbnail / Exploring Sendai with an appetite-driven Yellow Pikmin! Live Event Experience Report: “Pikmin Bloom Journey 2025: Sendai” Image Gallery No.009 thumbnail / Exploring Sendai with an appetite-driven Yellow Pikmin! Live Event Experience Report: “Pikmin Bloom Journey 2025: Sendai”
Moreover, in the Sendai area, beyond special spots, a large-scale “Festival Mushroom” appeared—unlimited to player numbers! Collaborating with other attendees to repeatedly smash it was an unforgettable experience unique to live events.
Guided Walk Through Sendai with City Staff
This time, a guided walking tour was held for media participants led by city employees from Sendai. Their local insights enriched the experience, allowing us to deeply appreciate the charm of each location. The 1-hour-and-30-minute route covered ten spots—seemingly gone in no time.
Image Gallery No.011 thumbnail / Exploring Sendai with an appetite-driven Yellow Pikmin! Live Event Experience Report: “Pikmin Bloom Journey 2025: Sendai” Image Gallery No.012 thumbnail / Exploring Sendai with an appetite-driven Yellow Pikmin! Live Event Experience Report: “Pikmin Bloom Journey 2025: Sendai”
As its name suggests, “City of Trees,” Sendai is a lush city filled with greenery and flowers. Beyond special spots, numerous photo-friendly locations were created using natural landscapes.
Starting this event, life-sized “Big Flower” installations—based on the in-game feature—were unveiled throughout the city. Seeing these giant blooms blooming right before my eyes made me feel as if I’d stepped into the game world itself, evoking deep emotion: “So that’s what it looks like!”
Image Gallery No.014 thumbnail / Exploring Sendai with an appetite-driven Yellow Pikmin! Live Event Experience Report: “Pikmin Bloom Journey 2025: Sendai” Image Gallery No.015 thumbnail / Exploring Sendai with an appetite-driven Yellow Pikmin! Live Event Experience Report: “Pikmin Bloom Journey 2025: Sendai”
The flower beds and green gates surrounding the installations used real plants, and hidden Pikmin were cleverly tucked away. The attention to detail delighted every participant—leaving me with a warm, heartwarming feeling.
Image Gallery No.016 thumbnail / Exploring Sendai with an appetite-driven Yellow Pikmin! Live Event Experience Report: “Pikmin Bloom Journey 2025: Sendai” Image Gallery No.017 thumbnail / Exploring Sendai with an appetite-driven Yellow Pikmin! Live Event Experience Report: “Pikmin Bloom Journey 2025: Sendai”
Special spots included parks, temples and shrines, bakeries, famous local eateries—varied locations. Visiting these spots lets you earn the “Golden Seedling” needed to recruit a specific Deco-Pikmin.
This Yellow Rosette Deco-Pikmin was hard to please—it acted like a true glutton, which made me smile. Its unique personality deepened my affection, turning it into someone I now want to feed essence regularly in daily play.
Golden seedlings allow you to pull up Pikmin with minimal steps and recruit them directly as Deco-Pikmin Image Gallery No.018 thumbnail / Exploring Sendai with an appetite-driven Yellow Pikmin! Live Event Experience Report: “Pikmin Bloom Journey 2025: Sendai” Image Gallery No.019 thumbnail / Exploring Sendai with an appetite-driven Yellow Pikmin! Live Event Experience Report: “Pikmin Bloom Journey 2025: Sendai”
Most exciting was the debut of a Red “Photo Badge” Deco-Pikmin—a new addition this year. Wearing badge pins featuring scenes from special spots made me feel like I had captured my journey’s memories in tangible form.
I managed to collect the badges for “Teizan-dori Cedar Avenue” and “Sendai Roi-sai Pavilion”—a truly satisfying experience.
Multiple shopping districts were visited during the tour, each displaying unique Pikmin flags—making even walking enjoyable. Moreover, music from “Pikmin Bloom” played through shop district speakers, making it clear that the whole city was united in celebrating the event.
Photo spots at shopping districts also offered stickers, and participants’ smiles were everywhere Image Gallery No.022 thumbnail / Exploring Sendai with an appetite-driven Yellow Pikmin! Live Event Experience Report: “Pikmin Bloom Journey 2025: Sendai” Image Gallery No.023 thumbnail / Exploring Sendai with an appetite-driven Yellow Pikmin! Live Event Experience Report: “Pikmin Bloom Journey 2025: Sendai”
After completing the media tour and visiting multiple spots, I finally succeeded in satisfying my Yellow Rosette Deco-Pikmin! The look of the Rosette-adorned Pikmin was incredibly adorable—I now truly want to travel with them to many more places.
Image Gallery No.024 thumbnail / Exploring Sendai with an appetite-driven Yellow Pikmin! Live Event Experience Report: “Pikmin Bloom Journey 2025: Sendai” Image Gallery No.025 thumbnail / Exploring Sendai with an appetite-driven Yellow Pikmin! Live Event Experience Report: “Pikmin Bloom Journey 2025: Sendai”
Additionally, numerous missions were exclusive to event participants—further fueling the motivation to “keep walking!”
This trip was a day-trip from Tokyo, but along the way I stopped at cafes and tried Sendai’s famous beef tongue. With plenty of time, I managed to complete all special spots and finish every challenge.
Image Gallery No.026 thumbnail / Exploring Sendai with an appetite-driven Yellow Pikmin! Live Event Experience Report: “Pikmin Bloom Journey 2025: Sendai” Image Gallery No.027 thumbnail / Exploring Sendai with an appetite-driven Yellow Pikmin! Live Event Experience Report: “Pikmin Bloom Journey 2025: Sendai”
The event also offered an “Active 2-Day Option” (paid), allowing two full days of exploration. Since I still had many places left to visit, I hope to attend the next venue with a multi-day stay for a more immersive experience.
Don’t Miss “Pikmin Bloom Journey 2025: Anywhere Challenge”!
From September 26 to 28, 2025, an online paid event “Pikmin Bloom Journey 2025: Anywhere Challenge” will be held globally. Players can take on challenges to earn the Yellow Rosette Deco-Pikmin and exclusive event badges (note: different naming conventions apply for Rosettes and badges).
While the challenge objectives differ from those of “Pikmin Bloom Journey 2025: Sendai,” it’s designed to delight even live event attendees.
Moreover, during the event period, giant “Festival Mushrooms” appeared worldwide! You can participate without traveling nearby—by smashing these mushrooms in your area and receiving beautiful scenic postcards. It was truly a top-tier experience.
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Challenges aren’t overly difficult—making it easy to join anytime, anywhere. So why not consider participating next time?