| System |
GameCube, Wii |
| Developer |
Nintendo |
| Genre |
Real-Time Strategy |
Story
Captain Olimar is an intergalactic explorer from the planet Hocotate. He travels the universe searching for new planets in his rocket ship, the Dolphin. On one of his more laid-back trips, a meteor strikes the Dolphin and causes it to crash-land on an uncharted planet. With his ship in tatters, and the world shrouded in deadly oxygen. With only 30 days life-support, Olimar must repair his ship and escape. Luckily, he discovers a strange species, which he names the Pikmin, that will carry out his every command...
Gameplay
The aim of the game is to assemble an army of 100 Pikmin, and set find and retrieve the pieces of the Dolphin. At first you will only have one red Pikmin, but if it carries a red tab back to its Onion then more Pikmin seeds will sprout.
More Pikmin can carry heavier objects and break down barriers a lot faster. A Pikmin with a leaf on its head is the weakest; a budding Pikmin is of middling ability, and a flower Pikmin is stronger and faster. Either leave Pikmin seeds in the ground longer to make them flower, or find a strange yellow sap for them to drink for instant flower Pikmin. As you play you will find two more kinds of Pikmin: yellow and blue.
As you collect parts to the Dolphin, your ship will be able to reach new areas of the planet. Collecting ship parts can be as easy as finding them lying around, but you also have to fight large enemies or solve puzzles with your Pikmin army.
Olimar's name in Japanese letters is spelled オリマー (o-ri-ma). If spelled backwards, it reads マリオ (ma-ri-o), after Mario.
"Dolphin" was the working title for the GameCube hardware before it was released. Many N64 and Gamecube games made reference to the Dolphin name.
In Pikmin, Olimar's rocket is called the "Dolphin".
Captain Olimar's home planet is called Hokotate. The planet is named after part of the street address for Nintendo Co., Ltd.'s headquarters in Kyoto, Japan:
11-1 Kamitoba-hokotate-cho, Minami-ku - Kyoto 601-8501
