Pikmin (game)

Pikmin
North American boxart
Japanese name	ピクミン?
Console	Nintendo GameCube
Developer	Nintendo EAD
Publisher	Nintendo
Genre	Real-time strategy
Players	{{{players}}}
Release date
Japan	October 26th, 2001
North America	December 2nd, 2001
Europe	June 14th, 2002
Australia	June 14th, 2002
South Korea	N/A

Pikmin was the first game in the Pikmin series to be released, on the GameCube. It was released on October 26, 2001 in Japan, December 2, 2001 in North America, and June 14, 2002 in Europe and Australia. Its sequel is Pikmin 2. It later had a remake for the Wii.

New Play Control!

Main article: New Play Control! Pikmin.

New Play Control! Pikmin is a remake of the original GameCube game for the Wii, released in 2008 in Japan and 2009 elsewhere. Changes have been made to Pikmin's graphics, save system and control scheme.

Plot

Captain Olimar, exhausted from working hard, goes on vacation, only to get hit by an asteroid and land on the mysterious Planet of the Pikmin, which bears many resemblances to Earth. His ship, the S.S. Dolphin, is now an absolute wreck, but, fortunately, Olimar meets the Pikmin. With their help, he soon finds that there is a hope of recovering the rocket parts he needs and returning home. However, he soon finds out that the planet's atmosphere contains oxygen, an element incredibly deadly to the inhabitants of the planet Hocotate. Olimar has only 30 days to live, after which complete battery failure of his life-support system will occur. He must recover his missing ship parts from all over the planet with the aid of the Pikmin, which are all too eager to help.

Gameplay

Pikmin is a three-dimensional strategy-based game, in which the player is given control of Olimar, who in turn has control over the Pikmin that follow him. The whole point of the game is to find and collect as many of his lost ship parts as possible, up to the maximum of 30, in fewer than the 30 days Olimar has to live, so that he can escape the grasp of the planet before his life-support system fails. This is achieved by directing Pikmin to carry the parts to Olimar's ship. Approximately 15 minutes are spent on its surface each day: as nightfall approaches, you must gather stray and toiling Pikmin to your base or command so that they don't fall victim to the voracious nocturnal predators, such as the Red Bulborb.

In Pikmin you will face many obstacles in order to secure the parts required to rebuild your ship. This must be done with care, as many obstacles are hazardous to the Pikmin, such as water, fire and explosions. There are also other things that block your way, such as walls, bridges and gaps. Many different animal species on the planet hinder the progress of your working Pikmin. However, your forces are limited, you can only have up to 100 Pikmin out in the field and no more under any circumstances. The rest are stored in the Onions, considered by Olimar to be some sort of motherships for the species.

Locations

The overworld, as seen in game.

• The Impact Site
• The Forest of Hope
• The Forest Navel
• The Distant Spring
• The Final Trial

Controls

For more information on Controls, see Controls.

Action(s)	Controller
	Gamecube Controller	Wiimote Wii Remote + Nunchuk
Navigating the Menu
Select Menu Item	Stick
Confirm Selection	A
Cancel	B
Gameplay
Move	Stick
Punch	A (Without Pikmin)	(Without Pikmin)
Hold Pikmin	Hold A	Hold
Throw Pikmin	Release A	Release
Select Pikmin Type*	N/A	(While Holding Pikmin)
Select Pikmin Phase*	N/A	Paddown (While Holding Pikmin)
Whistle	B (Hold to increase range)	(Sensor-Controlled)
Direct Pikmin	C	Paddown (Sensor Controlled)
Dismiss Pikmin	X
Center Camera	L
Move Cameraˆ	Stick (move lightly)	N/A
Change Camera Angle	R	Padleftright
Change Camera Height	Z	Padup
Change Camera POV	Hold R	Hold Padleftright
Pause Screen Controls
Show Map/Pause Screen	Y
Return to Game	B
Scroll Through Map	Stick
Other Options	Left Stick	Padleft
Cancel	B
Onion Controls
Access Onion Menu	A (under Onion)	(under Onion)
Deposit Pikmin	Stick up	up
Withdraw Pikmin	Stick down	down
Confirm	A
Cancel	B
Other Controls
Heal Olimar	A (in front of Dolphin)	(in front of Dolphin)
View Ship Part Info	A (near Ship Part)	(near Ship Part)
* = New Play Control! only
ˆ = GameCube only

The Pikmin

These Pikmin are destroying a wall to clear a path for Olimar

Main article: Pikmin family.

Pikmin are the plant/animal hybrids that were discovered by Captain Olimar when he crash-landed on the planet. The Pikmin willingly follow his orders and imitate his movements, despite whatever fate may await them. Each species of Pikmin has weaknesses and strengths and all Pikmin must be used in cooperation in order to collect all of the missing ship parts. These are the types of Pikmin encountered in this game.

File:PikRedPikWave.jpg

A red Pikmin waving.

Red Pikmin

Main article: Red Pikmin.

Red Pikmin were the first type of Pikmin that are encountered by Captain Olimar, at The Impact Site. They are used to retrieve the Main Engine, since they are the only Pikmin that you have at the time. Red Pikmin are resistant to fire and are the strongest of all the Pikmin found in the game. They are also distinguished from other Pikmin because of a pointed nose-like growth, which they presumably use as spikes in battle, giving them a slight edge over Blue and Yellow Pikmin.

A yellow Pikmin laying down.

Yellow Pikmin

Main article: Yellow Pikmin.

Yellow Pikmin are the second Pikmin revealed by Olimar, which was in the The Forest of Hope, the second accessible area in the game. Yellow Pikmin are the only Pikmin with the ability to carry bomb-rocks (in this game), and have very large sail-like ears, which they use as glider wings, allowing them to be thrown very high. Yellow Pikmin are known for their ears, and are much lighter than the other Pikmin.

File:PikThrowBluePik.jpg

A blue Pikmin being thrown.

Blue Pikmin

Main article: Blue Pikmin.

Blue Pikmin are the third and last kind of Pikmin found in the game. They are located in The Forest Navel, the third accessible area in the game. Blue Pikmin are the only species of Pikmin that can move around in bodies of water, thanks to their gills. When non-blue Pikmin fall in the water, blue Pikmin will run to them and throw them out of the water, saving their lives. This is popularly known as the "lifeguard" ability.

Endings

When you get all 30 parts or get to the end of Day 30, you will get one of the three endings in the game -- the happy ending, the average ending, or the bad ending.

Happy ending

This ending is obtained by collected all 30 ship parts, and so occurs after retrieving the Secret Safe from the Emperor Bulblax at the Final Trial. The camera zooms into the Dolphin and Captain Olimar jumps with joy. Then the scene darkens, becoming night, and Olimar walks to his ship and stops to look at the Pikmin one last time. The Pikmin tilt their heads in curiosity. Olimar gives the Pikmin a short wave good-bye, to which the Pikmin tilt their heads in the opposite direction. With a sigh, Olimar looks down and shakes his head. Olimar boards the Dolphin and lifts off successfully, and the Pikmin attack a nearby Spotty Bulborb. Next, the ship is seen flying away, with Onions of many, unseen colors following him. After the credits, the Enemy Reel is shown. This is the only canon ending that leads to Pikmin 2.

A video of the happy ending: {{#ev:youtube|geIe011iI9k|250}}

Neutral ending

This ending can take place in any level and occurs when Day 30 ends. You will need at least all the mandatory parts, which are 25 pieces. Once day 30 arrives and passes without all 30 parts, but all the mandatory parts, he walks towards the Dolphin and takes a quick glance back before entering the cockpit of his ship and attempting to blast off. He successfully blasts off while three Pikmin (one red, one yellow, and one blue) look up into the sky, wondering if they'll ever see Olimar again. This ending appears not to be canon, as in Pikmin 2, he has brought a souvenir home for his son, and the happy ending is the only ending where he had time to pick one up. In addition, it's revealed that Olimar's wife eventually finds the Secret Safe during his absence, and that ship part can only be retrieved after all other 29 were.

A video of the neutral ending: {{#ev:youtube|oevDcLvdRkM|250}}

Bad ending

Click [show] to display the image.
The bad ending of Pikmin.

This is the worst ending available. To get it, 24 or fewer of the mandatory parts need to be collected and day 30 must be reached. Olimar will realize it's the last day that his life support will function, so he tries to lift off. Immediately after taking off, the engine explodes and his ship crashes back onto the planet. The Pikmin carry his unconscious body to an Onion, making Olimar pop out as a Pikmin-like creature, having his normal head, but the sprout of a Pikmin with a black stem, and without his spacesuit helmet. Oddly enough, every other creature in the games that is turned into seeds produces normal Pikmin, but Olimar becomes a hybrid form with some of his Hocotatian features remaining. This ending is not canon, as in Pikmin 2, it shows that he successfully got off the planet.

A video of the bad ending can be seen here: {{#ev:youtube|Xpe6njHRJP8|250}}

Guides

• A 17-day guide
• A guide to growing Pikmin at the Impact Site

Gallery

• Olimarpromotional.jpg

  A promotional picture, advertising Pikmin.

• 

  Player's Choice box art.

• 

  Japanese box art.

• 

  European box art.

• 

  German Player's Choice box art.

• 

  Early North American box art.

• 

  Logo.

Trivia

• Page 23 of the instruction manual describes a strategy against Red Bulborbs, but contains a typo: it has "holdung on to the feet" instead of "holding on to the feet".
• During the game's development, it was originally planned to be a different game, called Adam and Eve, featuring elements from a canceled Mario game, Super Mario 128. This idea was canceled because Miyamoto couldn't think of a storyline.
• Some of the resources used for the scenery in the game come from the mountains and the gardens around Shigeru Miyamoto's house.

External links

• Wikipedia's article on Pikmin
• Pikmin game manual