Whistle

Captain Olimar using his whistle.

For the treasure in Pikmin 2, see Emperor Whistle.

To do: Add the Pikmin 3 dismiss controls. Also, add exactly how long the whistle lasts for each game, and if possible, more specific values.
Care to do so?

The whistle is a main part of the gameplay in the Pikmin games. This is the primary way of calling idle Pikmin, the secondary way being a captain bumping into them. Embedded into the captains' suits, it'll blow some sound waves towards the cursor when used by pressing B / in the first two games, and / / in Pikmin 3. The longer the button is held, the wider the call's radius, up to a size and time limit.

If X / is pressed, a different kind of whistle plays. Instead of a call to attention, this whistle is more akin to an order: when used, all Pikmin are dismissed intro groups of their own type. A third type of audio order also exists, albeit not directly related to the whistle. On the first two games, when C is tilted, a small tune is heard and the Pikmin will move in the direction the stick is held; the farther the stick is tilted, the farther they'll move. On the New Play Control! versions, Paddown must be pressed, and the Pikmin will move towards the cursor's position.

In Pikmin 2, Olimar, Louie and the President all have different calling whistles and group move fanfares, but share the same dismiss whistle. Olimar's whistles sound like a normal whistle, Louies' resemble a train whistle, and the Presidents' resemble a truck's horn. In Pikmin 3, whistles are integrated into the three leaders' helmets, and sound the same for all leaders.

Enhancements

In Pikmin 2, the following treasures, when collected, improve the whistle:

Pluckaphone: allows the captains to uproot Pikmin just by whistling them.
Mega Tweeter: allows for a wider range and longer lasting whistle.

In Super Smash Bros. Brawl

In Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Olimar's down special move is called Pikmin Order. When used, Olimar briefly blows his whistle around him. Any Pikmin that are stranded will quickly jump back next to Olimar, regardless of their distance to the captain. Then, all the Pikmin are grouped by type. If this move is used while they are already grouped, it'll send the next group to the back of the line. Interestingly, this move has some super armor frames, which means that, with good timing, one can use this move and suffer no knockback from powerful attacks or even Final Smashes.