Captain Olimar
- For fighter info, see Olimar (SSBB), Olimar (SSB4), and Olimar (SSBU).
| Captain Olimar | |
|---|---|
 
Official artwork of Captain Olimar from Hey! Pikmin. | |
| Universe | Pikmin |
| Debut | Pikmin (2001) |
| Smash Bros. appearances | Melee Brawl SSB4 Ultimate |
| Most recent non-Smash appearance | Pikmin 4 (2023) |
| Console/platform of origin | Nintendo GameCube |
| Species | Hocotatian |
| Gender | Male |
| Place of origin | Hocotate |
| Created by | Shigeru Miyamoto[1] Shigefumi Hino[2] |
| Article on Pikipedia | Captain Olimar |
Captain Olimar (キャプテン・オリマー, Captain Olimar) is a character from the Pikmin series. Due to an unfortunate encounter with a meteor during an interstellar vacation, Olimar's spaceship crash lands onto an unknown planet. By chance, he encounters an indigenous plant/animal hybrid species he dubs Pikmin, a species that he would unknowingly wind up befriending and then encountering on subsequent adventures.
After making a cameo in Super Smash Bros. Melee as a trophy, Olimar and the Pikmin transitioned into playable characters in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, and have remained as such since then.
Origin[edit]
Captain Olimar hails from the planet Hocotate. As a Hocotatian, Olimar has a humanoid appearance that displays a number of distinct traits: he is extremely minuscule in size (being ≈1.9 cm, ≈0.75 in tall), has a large head-to-body ratio, a bulbous nose, pointy ears, small tufts of hair and hyphen-shaped eyes that, during moments of surprise, comically bulge out and appear similar to human eyes.
Facets of Captain Olimar's personality are revealed via his journal and voyage log: he is caring and dedicated to his family, values his camaraderie with the Pikmin to the point of worrying if they stray too far or feeling shame if an entire group of them is killed off, considers himself a patron of the arts, and mentions that he "always had a way with animals" (the latter of which is further reinforced via his Piklopedia entries). Although he has a generally nice personality, Olimar also shows signs of snark in some Treasure Hoard entries, and acknowledges in some journal entries that his dedication to his job can cause him to feel distant from his family.
Captain Olimar debuted in the Nintendo GameCube game, Pikmin, where he is the playable character. His first adventure details how his vacation is derailed due to his ship, the S.S. Dolphin, crash landing on an uncharted planet after it is struck by a meteor. Upon waking from unconsciousness, he discovers that the S.S. Dolphin has been severely damaged and that his life support system will expire in thirty days; this is further compounded by the planet's atmosphere being rich in Oxygen, which is poisonous to Hocotatians, and thus prompts Olimar to immediately begin repairing his ship.
Olimar stumbles upon a sentient, indigenous plant/animal hybrid species, which he dubs Pikmin; he effectively enlists them to help him find his ship's parts. Although there are three possible endings to Pikmin, the canon ending sees Olimar return home with the S.S. Dolphin fully repaired, segueing directly into the beginning of Pikmin 2.
In the beginning of Pikmin 2, it is revealed that Olimar's employer, Hocotate Freight, wound up accruing a colossal debt during the events of Pikmin because of a falsified report by a fellow employee named Louie. Upon Olimar's return, the company was forced to sell the S.S. Dolphin after he had spent weeks repairing it - lowering the debt to 10,100 pokos. The shock of the revelation of the company's fate causes Olimar to drop a bottle cap that he brought home as a souvenir for his son. However, an old Hocotate Freight Ship analyzes the cap and discovers that it is worth 100 pokos, an extraordinary amount (worth more than a year's salary); when the President learns about how there are more objects like the bottle cap on the distant planet, he makes Olimar and Louie return there in the Hocotate Freight Ship to gather treasure to pay off the company's debt. After obtaining 10,000 pokos' worth of treasure, Olimar accidentally leaves the planet without Louie, forcing Olimar to team up with the President to save him.
In Pikmin 3, Olimar is not the main protagonist, although he still plays an important role in the game's story. Having returned to the distant planet (dubbed "PNF-404" by the Koppaites) in search of more treasure in order to buy back the S.S. Dolphin and pay off Hocotate Freight's second instance of debt, Olimar salvages the Cosmic Drive Key dropped by the S.S. Drake, forcing Alph, Brittany and Charlie to seek him out so they can reclaim it and repair their ship. In the end, they find that he has been captured by the Plasm Wraith, which they defeat to save him before departing for their respective home planets.
In Hey! Pikmin, some time has passed after the events of Pikmin 3 as Olimar is travelling in space. During his journey, however, he encounters an asteroid shower, which he is unsuccessful in avoiding. Upon being hit, his ship, the S.S. Dolphin II, crash lands on an unknown planet. Interestingly, this planet is similar to PNF-404 in regard to terrain and even some species, most notably Pikmin. Although he is assisted by the S.S. Dolphin II's artificial intelligence, Olimar must nevertheless ally with Pikmin yet again in order to return home, this time by acquiring enough Sparklium in order to refuel the Dolphin II, and by regaining the ship's Sparklium Converter.
After many trials and tribulations, the S.S. Dolphin II's AI finally manages to pinpoint the location of the Sparklium Converter. Upon defeating the Berserk Leech Hydroe, Olimar and the Pikmin regain the Converter, which Olimar later discovers to have inadvertently caused the Leech Hydroe's parasitic tendencies to go out of control because of an influx of energy. After fully repairing the ship, Olimar bids farewell to the Pikmin before launching into space, with the Pikmin boarding their Onion and following him in order to see him off. Olimar and the Dolphin II's AI both say one final goodbye to the Pikmin and, upon activating the ship's warp, Olimar manages to return to Hocotate after some time, thankful for being helped by Pikmin once again.
In Super Smash Bros. Melee[edit]
Captain Olimar makes only one minor appearance in Super Smash Bros. Melee.
Trophy[edit]
Captain Olimar's trophy is uniquely obtained by booting up Melee while having a save file of Pikmin on the same memory card. The trophy is unlocked as soon as the game is started.
- Captain Olimar
- The main character of the game Pikmin, Captain Olimar crash-lands on a mysterious planet after his spaceship malfunctions. In order to get off the planet, he must gather the pieces of his broken ship, but the atmosphere of the planet is poisonous to Olimar. As a result, he has to enlist the help of the native Pikmin.
- Pikmin (12/01)
In Super Smash Bros. Brawl[edit]
As a playable character[edit]
The Pikmin universe is established as a main universe in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, with Olimar becoming a playable character. Captain Olimar is featured along with the Pikmin as a single playable character entity. Like in his home series, Olimar is very weak on his own and needs to summon Pikmin to his side with his Pikmin Pluck neutral special move in order to use stronger attacks with them, and he needs at least one to use most of his attacks.
Due to his great damage racking capabilities, very good camping game, and being quite unpredictable due to the different types of Pikmin, Olimar is currently ranked 3rd on the tier list.
Trophy[edit]
- Pikmin & Olimar
- Veteran spacefarers in the employ of Hocotate Freight. After crash-landing on an enigmatic planet, Olimar met the mysterious beings known as Pikmin. He enlisted their aid to find his spaceship parts and help him escape. Once home, he found his employer on the verge of bankruptcy. He was sent back to the Pikmin world with his partner, Louie, to repay the company debt.
: Pikmin- : Pikmin 2
In Super Smash Bros. 4[edit]
As a playable character[edit]
Olimar returns as a playable character in Super Smash Bros. 4. Aesthetically, his design is now based on his appearance in Pikmin 3: he has a whistle on the bottom of his helmet, the two top buttons on his spacesuit are blue instead of red, and both of his sleeves feature a Hocotate Freight patch. Like the Koopalings, Alph from Pikmin 3 also appears as an alternate character; unlike them, he has his own alternate costumes, which reference fellow Pikmin 3 protagonists Brittany and Charlie, as well as Olimar himself. Olimar was the first veteran to be confirmed after those revealed at E3 2013.
Olimar is currently ranked 21st on the tier list, placing him at the top of the C tier. He was notably nerfed, as the number of Pikmin he can have by his side was halved from six to three, which weakens his overall damage output and camping potential. However, he received various buffs in other areas, with the most beneficial one being Winged Pikmin replacing Pikmin Chain as his recovery move. In comparison to Pikmin Chain, Winged Pikmin is capable of much greater recovery distance, as it is not a tether. Other buffs include a more powerful forward tilt, and a stronger forward smash. Despite his nerfs, Olimar is still seen as a relatively viable choice for competitive play, and he has gained some decent representation.
Trophies[edit]
- Olimar
A veteran spaceship pilot for Hocotate Freight, Captain Olimar partners with Pikmin in Smash Bros. to help him in battle. Olimar is much stronger when he's got Pikmin with him, so keep them plucked and good to go. Pikmin abilities are based on their color—learn what each is best at!- : Pikmin (12/2001)
- : Pikmin 2 (08/2004)
Captain Olimar, veteran Hocotate Freight astronaut, joins forces with Pikmin again in this game to take on the world. Olimar isn't much of an attacker without Pikmin by his side, so you should always keep some ready. Pikmin have different abilities depending on their colour, so learn how they work to use them effectively!- : Pikmin (06/2002)
- : Pikmin 2 (10/2004)
- Olimar (Alt.)
Pikmin aren't just good for attacking, you know. For example, when you throw them, they can pick up items on their way back. Only items that aren't very heavy, though! Also, if there's someone charging or shooting at you, a well-timed Pikmin throw can stop them in their tracks!
Pikmin are good for more than attacking, you know. For example, when you throw them, they can pick up small items on their way back to you, or latch onto containers to break them open! Also, if there are opponents charging or shooting at you, well-timed Pikmin Throws can stop them in their tracks!- : Pikmin (12/2001)
- : Pikmin 2 (08/2004)
- Pikmin aren't just good for attacking, you know. For example, try throwing them at boxes. They'll grab them and drag them in for you, hitting enemies along the way. Also, if there's someone charging or shooting at you, a well-timed Pikmin-throw can stop them. Just don't forget to replace your Pikmin when they're gone!
- : Pikmin (06/2002)
- : Pikmin 2 (10/2004)
In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate[edit]
As a playable character[edit]
Olimar returns alongside every other fighter in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, this time as an unlockable character. Olimar is classified as fighter #40, and Alph returns as an alternate character. Olimar uses Pikmin to assist him in attacking his foes, with a core playstyle revolving around managing and using his various Pikmin combinations to his advantage. Thanks to the Pikmin gaining overall higher damage outputs, improved grab utility, and transcendent priority when they are used for aerials, Olimar has improved significantly since his appearance in SSB4 and gained impressive tournament results to reflect his improvements.
Spirit[edit]
798. Olimar
Names in other languages[edit]
| Language | Name |
|---|---|
 Japanese |
オリマー, Olimar |
 English |
Olimar |
 French |
Olimar |
 German |
Olimar |
 Spanish |
Olimar |
 Italian |
Olimar |
 Chinese (Simplified) |
欧力马, Olimar |
 Chinese (Traditional) |
歐利瑪, Olimar |
 Korean |
올리마, Olimar |
 Dutch |
Olimar |
 Russian |
Олимар |
 Portuguese |
Olimar |
Trivia[edit]
- At ≈1.9 cm (≈0.75 inches) tall, Olimar is canonically the shortest playable character in the Super Smash Bros. series as of Super Smash Bros. Brawl.[3] This distinction was previously held by Kirby, who was listed at 20 cm (8 inches) tall in Super Smash Bros. Melee (which was previously canonized in Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards)[4] before the sizes of characters and structures in the Kirby series became depicted very inconsistently following The Crystal Shards.
- Olimar, Alph, Mega Man, Pac-Man, and Isabelle are the only characters who, despite having voices in their respective home series, are completely silent in the Super Smash Bros. series.
- Although numerous playable characters feature different characters as alternate costumes and essentially share their playable slot with them, Olimar, Bowser Jr., and Steve are the only ones who are listed as distinctly different from their respective alternate characters when they are selected on the character selection screen.
- Olimar has the most non-damaging special moves in the entire Super Smash Bros. series, with a total of three. He is also the only fighter to have more than two non-damaging special moves.
References[edit]
 Pikmin universe
| |
|---|---|
| Fighter | Olimar (SSBB · SSB4 · SSBU) (Pikmin) (Alph) |
| Assist Trophy | Burrowing Snagret |
| Stages | Distant Planet · Garden of Hope |
| Item | Hocotate Bomb |
| Enemies | Bulborb · Iridescent Glint Beetle |
| Other | Hocotate Ship · Peckish Aristocrab · Pellet · Plasm Wraith · Yellow Wollywog |
| Trophies, Stickers and Spirits | Trophies (SSBB · SSB4) · Stickers · Spirits |
| Music | Brawl · SSB4 · Ultimate |
