Miitomo: new update on the way (new friend requests methods, improved speeds)

Update

The official Twitter account for Miitomo reveals that after the update, users will be able to add friends via LINE (the popular IM app). However, it’s not clear if this feature will only be available to users in Japan (LINE is available worldwide), since it’s not mentioned in the English notification.

***Ever since Miitomo launched in Japan, on March 17th, users lamented the fact you simply cannot add friends without having to use a Twitter or Facebook account. If someone you want to add as friend isn’t following you, or is simply not on either services, then you’re out of luck (even if they do want you as friend in Miitomo).

Fortunately, this will soon be a thing of the past. Today, Nintendo announced that another update for Miitomo was on the way, and would add new friend request methods. According to the notification, users will be able to send friend requests “using emails and other methods”. Nintendo doesn’t specify what those “other methods” are, but let’s hope one of them is a search-based method (via Nintendo Network ID and/or Nintendo Account).

This update will also provide improved start-up and recovery speeds, the ability to edit Miifoto from the comment section, and more.

Here’s the list of changes coming soon to Miitomo:

• Send friend requests using e-mail and other methods, allowing you to connect with friends who do not use social media services.
• Answer the same questions as others when viewing “All Answers”.
• Edit a Miifoto from the comments section.
• Improved start-up and recovery speeds.

Unfortunately, we do not know when this update will be released, but it will most likely be sometime next week.

During the Q&A session from the meeting with investors, which took place last week, Tatsumi Kimishima talked about how important it was for Nintendo to “quickly implement feedback from consumers”:

I believe this business requires us to continue to update to respond to these opinions in various ways, so we knew from the beginning that we would not be able to satisfy everyone right away. We believe that it is important to continue to revitalize the applications by quickly implementing feedback from consumers. Only one month has passed since distribution began. Our goals are to act on the feedback we received during this period quickly and increase the amount of consumers who are playing daily.

While adding new ways friend requests is something users have been requesting for a while now (not really what you’d call a “quick implementation”), it’s great news that Nintendo is finally addressing this issue.

Source: Miitomo