Pikmin 3

Pikmin 3
File:Pikmin3NABoxart.jpg
North American boxart
Japanese name	ピクミン3
Console	Wii U
Developer	Nintendo EAD
Publisher	Nintendo
Genre	Real-time strategy
Players	{{{players}}}
Release date
Japan	July 13, 2013
North America	August 4, 2013
Europe	July 26, 2013
Australia	July 27, 2013
South Korea	N/A

Pikmin 3 is the third game in the Pikmin series, set to be released for the Wii U on July 13, 2013 in Japan, on July 26, 2013 in Europe,, on July 27, 2013 in Australia, and on August 4, 2013 in North America. It was revealed at E3 2012 along with a gameplay presentation and several playable demos on the showcase floor. Major new elements announced include Rock Pikmin, Winged Pikmin and three leaders. In the Nintendo Direct of May 17, 2013, it is shown that the storyline in entirely separate from Pikmin and Pikmin 2 and features three different captains: Alph, Brittany, and Charlie.

Note: some details on this page are inferred from gameplay videos and trailers, and may not be entirely accurate.

Plot

File:Pikmin 3 Captains.png

The three captains in Pikmin 3: Alph, Brittany, and Charlie.

The game begins as a boy named Alph, a scientist named Brittany, and a captain named Charlie are on Planet Koppai. It is unknown whether they are Hocotatians, or if Hocotatians even play a role in the game. Their planet is facing a doomsday by a food shortage, so the three captains leave out to search for much needed food. During the trip, they crash land on the Pikmin Planet and get separated. Along the way, they discover the Pikmin . They reunite and find some fruit. However, due to the gargantuan size of the fruit, the captains must use the Pikmin to retrive the fruit. After the fruit is analyzed, it turns into juice, which the player drinks throughout the day. The seeds of the fruit are sent back to Koppai to grow the fruit there, in hopes of ending the food crisis.

Charlie crash lands on a snow-type area, along with Yellow Pikmin. After finding his way into a cave, he battles off some small enemies, which can be assumed to be related to the Vehemoth Phosbat, until a real Vehemoth Phosbat can be seen swooping by ominously. The Yellow Pikmin accompanying Charlie run off, and his worried expression can be noticed when he realizes the presence of his foe, to which this section of the story momentarily ends. Meanwhile, Alph is on a forest-type area, where three Red Pikmin are trying to reach the Onion. Alph can throw them up to it, which makes the Onion fall with the Pikmin's weight. Alph is also known to be separated from his communication tablet, known as the GPad, which can be found on an out-of-reach ledge. After issuing some Pikmin to continue the half-made bridge, the GPad can be reached. This item allows the player to access the area's map using the GamePad. After a cardboard box is pushed out of the way, some time later, Alph can finally be reunited with the trio's ship, and the first day can end.

Gameplay

The gameplay of Pikmin 3 is largely similar to that of the other two games in the series in that players use the Pikmin to accomplish tasks, and the five existing Pikmin types have been confirmed for the game. New gameplay elements include the Rock Pikmin, used to destroy the armor of enemies and other tough objects; the Winged Pikmin, which hover low above the ground; and new hazards such as ice and magma, which require new tactics to overcome. Pikmin have demonstrated new abilities not previously encountered, such as riding down a natural slide to gather materials and collecting stones from piles around the area to build bridges.

The Pikmin leaders in Pikmin 3 are able to throw other leaders (though at a lower angle than Pikmin), allowing for new puzzles. Throwing a leader has a similar effect to throwing a Pikmin: the thrown leader will perform possible actions in the surrounding area, such as picking buried Pikmin.

After completing a stage, the replay feature allows players to review their session using the GamePad and the television. The recorded game can be fast-forwarded, rewound or paused.

The game features a Challenge Mode, with three submodes; of these, Mission Mode challenges players to earn a high score by gathering the most fruit by value in a given time limit. The fruit is carried by Pikmin to a floating machine that resembles a satellite, which draws it in and stores it. At certain scores, medals are awarded to the player. Online multiplayer will not feature in the game, but local multiplayer will.

Controls

Players can play using Wii Remote Plus- and Nunchuk-based controls similar to those of the New Play Control! titles, or using the Wii U GamePad controller. With the Wii Remote and Nunchuk, to throw Pikmin, the player shakes the Wii Remote, unlike in the New Play Control! games, and Pikmin 3 adds the ability to shake the Nunchuk to "charge" up a throw.

The GamePad acts as an overhead map and radar to track Pikmin movements in real time. It allows players to move the camera around the area freely by sliding a finger across the touch screen, making it possible to view obstacles from all sides and giving greater flexibility in commanding multiple groups of Pikmin.

When the cursor is moved over an obstacle, enemy or fruit, the target gains a blue glow, and some information is displayed. A button press zooms in the camera and displays its name. In this game, captains gain a new action: they can perform a sideways roll to move out of the way of danger. If the cursor is aimed at an object which the Pikmin can interact with, it turns into a target. The number of the Pikmin closest to you is displayed on the cursor.

Another new control feature has been shown. Using the GamePad as a map, the player can scroll through the entire area. During this, the game automatically pauses. By pressing a button in the top right corner, the game resumes. Also, if the player selects a captain, the player can move them to specific locations automatically.

New enemies

• Armored Mawdad: a large armored millipede-like creature with pincers around its mouth that it uses to capture Pikmin before using its tongue to eat them. It can be defeated by breaking its armor with Rock Pikmin.
• Medusal Slurker: a Jellyfloat-like creature that attacks in the same way.
• Pyroplasmic Slooch: a magma slug that attacks by licking up Pikmin with its tongue.
• A flying caterpillar-like creature with dragonfly like wings and a curled, butterfly-like proboscis.
• A transparent squid-like enemy that lives underwater and releases poison.
• Whiptongue Bulborb: a white Bulborb that can snatch up Pikmin with its incredibly long tongue.
• Skutterchuck: A Dweevil-like creature that keeps a crystal on its back to defend and camouflage itself; this can be destroyed with Rock Pikmin to expose the creature.
• Vehemoth Phosbat: A large bat-like enemy that attacks by creating a tornado to suck Pikmin in. It is decorated with many coloured lights, and can become invisible by turning these off.
• Joustmite: A ground-based enemy in similar appearance to the Cloaking Burrow-nit. It attacks similarly, but has a fleshy weak spot hanging out of its rear. There also appear to be air-based variations.
• What appear to be Skitter Leaf-like enemies that look like dead leaves, with smaller, usually concealed leaf-like limbs for moving around. Unlike the Skitter Leaf, they can harm the Pikmin.
• 3-legged water strider-like bugs that can skate across the surface of water and hold water in a bulb on their back which is used to attack and then must be refilled somehow.
• Large fiddler crab enemy with an oversized claw that it uses to grab Pikmin with to eat them. It moves the claw around to block thrown Pikmin, and can expel bubbles which trap Pikmin and captains and float away, popping after a while and dropping anything they contain.
• Flying butterfly-like creatures that look a little different to Unmarked Spectralids; they stop and rest on Bulborbs' backs, much like how Unmarked Spectralids did in the Piklopedia in the second game.

New obstacles

• Gates made out of sand that look like sandcastles.
• Glass gates that Rock Pikmin can break.
• Crystal Nodule: large crystals that Rock Pikmin can break. They may have items inside.
• Spotcap: small mushrooms that block areas and can be broken by any Pikmin.
• Kingcap: a large Spotcap.
• Fragments: piles of pieces used to make bridges. A number above the pile shows how many pieces remain.
• Lily pads that captains and the Pikmin can stand on.

New Pikmin

Rock Pikmin

Rock Pikmin are basically rocks that have a Pikmin stem, legs, and arms. This allows them to break hard materials when thrown that other Pikmin types cannot, such as Crystal Nodules and the armor of the Armored Mawdad, and makes them immune to crushing attacks such as those of Skutterchucks and Armored Cannon Beetle Larva. In Challenge Mode, they are found in Medusal Slurkers, but it is unknown whether the same holds for Story Mode; in either case, the existence of grey Pellets allows them to be grown like any other Pikmin type.

Winged Pikmin

Appearing pink in color with large blue insect-like eyes, the Pink Pikmin are unique in that they have wings. This enables them to fly over hazards and carry objects through the air with ease. While it has not been explicitly stated, the Winged Pikmin have a pink pellet that they can carry, so it is assumed that they have an Onion.

Other elements

• Common Glowcaps can be found mostly buried beneath the ground. If a captain touches one of these, it emerges, rising to full height and shedding light on the nearby area. The game features very dark areas, making these useful plants.
• Pikmin 3 seems to feature updated graphics that are different from the first and second game, which seemed to have a very similar style of graphics. In Pikmin 3, there is much more texture, an example of which being that a Bulborb's spots seem to raise off the said Bulborb's back, rather than simply being markings on the back akin to the ladybug. Everything appears much glossier, and Pikmin stems seem to glow slightly.
• During the game, players will be able to take screenshots of the game from the Pikmins' point of view. Players can then post these screenshots onto Miiverse to share with other players.

The mysterious red and grey Onion.

• Pikmin share a single artificial-looking Onion, which changes between all available colors.
• It seems that captains now have in-game dialogue, as opposed to being limited to their notes. In a recent screenshot, which can be viewed in the Gallery, shows the captain Alph saying "What was that?" for an unknown reason.

History

Pikmin 3 was first announced during E3 2008, where Shigeru Miyamoto said, when asked about the Pikmin series, "We're making Pikmin." Nothing else about the Pikmin game in development was revealed, however. On 24th July 2008, Shigeru Miyamoto confirmed in an interview, "[the Nintendo development teams] are all working on new Mario, Zelda and Pikmin projects".

The game was originally made for Game Boy Advance, and later Nintendo 3DS, but Shigeru Miyamoto wasn't happy that either of these consoles allowed for the type of game he wanted to produce. At some point it was planned for the Wii, but this was changed with Nintendo's announcement of the Wii U at E3 2011, where Pikmin 3 was confirmed for the new console.

The announcement of the New Play Control! Pikmin games raised questions as to the feasibility of a Pikmin 3; following, in an IGN interview, it was made clear that the re-releases of Pikmin and Pikmin 2 are separate from Pikmin 3:

Gallery

• WiiU Pikmin3 1 illu01 E3.png
• Pikmin 3 logo (red).png

  Most recent logo.

• Tablet communicator.JPG

  Alph holding the GPad.

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  Some Pikmin carrying a tangelo.

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  Winged Pikmin carrying a pear.

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  The base, with the color-changing Onion.

• WUPP Pikmin3 Ev05 scrn07.png

  The ship analyzes some fruit.

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  Bingo Battle mode, showing Pikmin's team colors.

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  Screenshot of the map that appears on the GamePad.

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  Rock Pikmin breaking a crystal gate near a Crimson Candypop Bud.

• Pikmin3Screen5.jpg

  Pikmin constructing a bridge.

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  Red Pikmin carrying gold rocks.

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  Riding a lily pad near a new type of electric gate.

• Pikmin3 New Wall Type.png

  New wall type that Winged Pikmin can lift.

• Pikmin3 Yellow Pikmin Current.png

  Yellow Pikmin transferring a current between wires.

• Pikmin3Screen1.jpg

  Pikmin battling an Armored Mawdad.

• Pikmin3Screen6.jpg

  Whiptongue Bulborb.

• DeadSkitterLeafPikmin3.png

  Skitter Leaf-like enemies.

• Pikmin3LavaSlug.jpg

  Pikmin being eaten by Pyroplasmic Slooches.

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  Unnamed crab enemy attacking the Pikmin.

• Pikmin3 Rawr.png

  Sandbelching Meerslug.

• Pikmin3 Bee Thing Closeup.png

  A new bee-Like enemy.

• Pikmin3 That Thing.png

  Vehemoth Phosbat, near a red Glowcap and a dangling light bulb.

• Pikmin3 Emo-Long-Legs.png

  A new Arachnorb-like enemy that looks like a boss.