Nintendo announces new WarioWare-like Pictonico!

Every so often, Nintendo likes to surprise the world with an announcement that’s so low-key, most people won’t even see it. Such is the case for Pictonico!, a wacky collection of “comically chaotic minigames” that’s highly reminiscent of WarioWare — that’s because WarioWare developer Intelligent Systems is behind Nintendo’s latest mobile title.

“Lick lollipops, summon genies, defend against zombies, and more, all featuring the faces of your family and friends,” Nintendo teases.

Pictonico! is a mobile game that makes clever use of your phone’s built-in camera. I know this description might immediately turn some people off, but I promise that the trailer makes it look much more fun than it sounds. Assuming, of course, you’ve got a crew of people in real life who are willing to give this weird little thing a chance.

The trailer shows a player taking a photo of someone, and that picture is used by the game to make a face-stretching minigame similar to the iconic one in Super Mario 64. If you’ve ever had a good time using Apple’s Photo Booth with pals, or if you’re into the offbeat humor of games like Tomodachi Life, then Pictonico! might be up your alley. And don’t worry: Nintendo says it won’t use your photos in any way.

“This feels like something that would be pre-installed on the 3DS,” one YouTube commenter remarked. “Close enough,” another joked, “Welcome back Face Raiders.”

Pictonico! will be released soon, on May 28, but you can pre-register for it now here. Nintendo has not shared pricing yet, but the official website notes the game is free-to-start. For those of you unsure if you want to drop any money on an experiment like this, there will also be a demo that includes a handful of minigames.

Between this and the sneaky announcements on the Nintendo Today! app, I can’t wait for Nintendo to announce the Nintendo Switch 3 via PictoChat or something.