Olimar (SSB4)

This article is about Olimar's appearance in Super Smash Bros. 4 . For other uses, see Captain Olimar and Pikmin (species).

Olimar in Super Smash Bros. 4
Universe	Pikmin
Other playable appearance	in Brawl
Availability	Starter
Final Smash	End of Day

Olimar (ピクミン＆オリマー, Pikmin & Olimar) was announced to be returning for Super Smash Bros. 4 on July 12th, 2013 on the game's official website, and was the first character revealed after the initial E3 2013 reveal of Smash 4. His reveal came one day before the release date of Pikmin 3 in Japan, which Masahiro Sakurai noted in a Miiverse post. A link to the official website on Pikmin 3 is at the bottom of his page on the website.

He retains Red, Yellow, Blue, White, and Purple Pikmin.

Attributes

Olimar fights much the same way as he did in Brawl, retaining a large portion of his moveset and animations, although some of them have been slightly tweaked and rebalanced. Overall, Olimar mainly relies on his multicolored Pikmin to fight for him, as nearly all of his attacks involve Pikmin in some way; on his own, Olimar is nearly useless. The Pikmin give Olimar arguably one of the most unique styles in the game, as they act as both projectiles and separate fighters, much like Rosalina & Luma. When used correctly, the Pikmin can easily rack up ludicrous amounts of damage in short periods of time - he can stop approaches with Pikmin Throw, and has a hugely disjointed range in his grab, as Pikmin can run out to grab opponents at any time. He can also outcamp opponents just as easily as halting their approches, as he is rarely forced to fight close quarters. Although he may be light, Olimar has amazing launch resistance in Pikmin Order, and his recovery, Winged Pikmin, is one of the best in the game. Along with all these advantages, he can befuddle many opponents with the different colored Pikmin he possesses, with each having unique attributes.

With all things considered, Olimar has one of the most damaging fighting styles, being able to kill nearly all opponents in a short period when utilized well. For example, Pikmin Throw allots him a large array of options for offense, as it can both zone and get opponents to K.O. percents quickly; when the thrown Pikmin are not shaken off, they can tack on 10-30% in a matter of seconds, forcing opponents to carefully calculate their approach. He can also have up to three Pikmin at a time in his lineup, which, although nerfed from the six in Brawl, can be hard for the challenger to keep track of, especially with the varied colors. He can also kill very early in his relatively unlaggy and vastly powerful smashes, with some, such as up smash, being able to kill with purple Pikmin as early as about 60%. Also, with his huge grab range, he can disrupt the movements of both quick characters and roll-spammers, also being having an excellent shield-grab. His aerial game is also quite powerful, with some of his moves being able to easily juggle and K.O. off of the upper blast line, although these are pitiful without Pikmin. The Pikmin also have other special abilities, such as being able to carry various items back to Olimar as they run back to him, and some types, like the yellow one, can block electrical attacks like PK Thunder and freeze opponents. However, this does act as a drawback; since Pikmin are now treated as projectiles, they can be reflected, sometimes hindering his ability against characters with moves of this sort.

One of Olimar's greatest weaknesses is that he struggles against fast characters, such as Captain Falcon and Sonic. As Olimar is a slower character, they can easily catch up and punish Olimar if he tries to retreat to pluck more Pikmin. They can also easily kill Olimar's Pikmin; especially Sonic, whose Spin Dash can kill off any attached Pikmin in one or two hits. As Olimar needs his Pikmin to do any real damage, Olimar must play very safely against these characters. Olimar also has poor aerial physics, his slow falling speed and bad air speed make him easy to juggle and, when combined with his light weight, to KO.

All in all, Olimar, although slightly nerfed from Brawl, still retains many of his considerable strengths, and has even had some attributes buffed, mostly in damage. His potential damage output was reduced, but a smart player can overcome this, especially with the new mechanics for keeping track of Pikmin, making Olimar a much more reliable character for the player. Also, his most glaring flaw - his horrid recovery - was completely revamped, which many agree has helped to alleviate his other changes. Olimar, in the early metagame, was thought to be one of the worst characters, yet dedicated mains such as Dabuz and Logic have shown that he is still a very capable character who just requires an extremely steep learning curve. This is comparable to the early days of the Brawl metagame; in the beginning, he was seen as mid-tier, yet eventually rose to be in the top three. It can, for now, be hypothesized that as more professionals start picking him up, his nearly unrivaled abilities to confuse and disorient will be seen as advantageous in relation to the other characters. In spite of this, one must know Olimar well in order to play him to his full potential.

Changes from Brawl

Olimar has been slightly nerfed overall in his transition from Brawl to SSB4, as his limit of three Pikmin reduces his potential damage output, and his attacks in general deal less damage. However, he was slightly buffed in other areas to compensate, most notably with his recovery. He additionally maintains most of the options he had in Brawl. Overall, he is still considered to be very viable despite the nerfs, though not as strong as he was in Brawl, where he was considered to be the 3rd best character in the game.

Aesthetics

• Olimar now sports his design from Pikmin 3. Aside from minor additions to his spacesuit's design, he also now has a visible whistle as a part of his helmet. The Pikmin have been updated as well, with different proportions more akin to their designs in Pikmin 3.
• Pikmin appear to be slightly larger, while Olimar's size appears mostly unchanged.
• The Pikmin at the head of the line has a player-colored pointer above their head, as do Pikmin at a distance from Olimar, allowing the player to more easily visualize which Pikmin will be used next.

Attributes

• Olimar can only have three Pikmin at a time, as opposed to six.
• Pikmin are now plucked in a set cycle (Red, Yellow, Blue, White, Purple, Red, Yellow, Blue, White, Purple, etc.) instead of being random and based on terrain. While this means Olimar no longer has to depend on certain types of terrain to get certain Pikmin, and all Pikmin are equally likely to appear, it also makes it less likely to have two or more of the same type at once.
• Olimar is lighter (82 → 79).
• Olimar's falling speed is slightly faster (1.3 → 1.35).
• Olimar dashes slightly faster (1.4 → 1.47).
• Pikmin separated from Olimar die faster.
• Red Pikmin deal slightly less damage overall.
• Pikmin can now latch onto a Smash Ball.

Ground attacks

• Jab combo and forward tilt now consist of punches which are based on the Rocket Fist technique from Pikmin 2.
• Jab combo deals less damage (15% → 7%.)
• New forward tilt has much more KOing potential compared to the previous forward tilt.
• Down tilt is stronger.
• All smash attacks that use White Pikmin have been strengthened and their damage outputs increased.
• Forward smash travels farther.
• Forward smash is slightly weaker in both damage and knockback.
• Pikmin used in forward smash no longer fly off the edge, which helps conserve Pikmin, but removes a gimping option.
• Up and down smashes are faster.
• Up smash has less vertical range.

Aerial attacks

• Forward and back aerials are faster.
• Up aerial is a single hit which gives it better juggling and KOing potential.
• Up aerial deals much less damage. One example is that up aerial using Red Pikmin now only deals 11%, compared to the 24% it could deal in Brawl.
• Down aerial is much faster.
• Down aerial's sweetspot is harder to land and the attack does less damage.

Throws/other attacks

• Up throw is weaker, especially when using Purple Pikmin. However, it can still KO at high percents and is one of the strongest up throws in the game.
• Up throw is more useful for combos.
• Back throw is weaker than it was in Brawl, as it now only KOs at very high percents, even when using the Blue Pikmin.

Special moves

• Pikmin fly much farther when thrown. While this makes them more effective at long range, it also makes them easier to throw off the stage.
• Olimar has a new recovery move, Winged Pikmin. It is a controllable flight-based move which he can attack out of instead of a tether recovery.
• Winged Pikmin covers much more distance than Pikmin Chain.
• Winged Pikmin is significantly less effective if Olimar has more Pikmin, which may require him to sacrifice them to ensure he survives.
• Pikmin Order gives Olimar fewer super armor frames.
• End of Day's final explosion has a larger hitbox.
• End of Day's power has been reduced.
• The Hocotate Ship's descent during End of Day can be aimed like a Warp Star, making it possible to hit a target that is not at center stage.

Version exclusives

• In the Wii U version of the game, thrown Pikmin can carry items to Olimar. Despite this, his alt. trophy in the 3DS version still makes mention of this feature.
• In the 3DS version, the Pikmin have flawed AI and sometimes fly out of line if the player moves Olimar too quickly, leaving Olimar with no Pikmin in tow to perform attacks. This sometimes prevents combos from being performed effectively. This occurs in the Wii U version as well, but only at the ledge.
• In the 3DS version, Pikmin have more limited cosmetics, as their leaves do not turn into buds or flowers. Also, their idle animations are all synchronized.
• In the 3DS version, on rare occasions two or three Pikmin may stand in the same spot in Olimar's lineup, leading to odd results.This can also make it difficult to tell which Pikmin will be used next.

Update history

Olimar recieved a mix of buffs and nerfs in 1.0.4. Pikmin Pluck can no longer be edge cancelled and the Red, Yellow, and Blue Pikmin deal slightly less damage latched on. To compensate for this however, White Pikmin deal more damage latched on and latch time for all Pikmin was increased. Subsequent updates after 1.0.4 having only given Olimar minor bug fixes. Olimar also slightly benefits from the changes to shield mechanics in recent updates, as a latched Pikmin can deal with a shielding character noticeably better.

1.0.4

• Pikmin Pluck can no longer be edge cancelled.
• Pikmin Throw (default) RYB latch damage: 1.3 → 1.1
• Pikmin Throw (default) W latch damage: 2.6 → 3.7
• Pikmin Throw (all variations) latch time increased.

1.0.6

• A glitch where reflecting Order Tackle would give the Pikmin a permanent power boost has been fixed.

1.0.8

• Order no longer reverses from ledge grabs.

Moveset

		Name	Damage	Description
Neutral attack			3% (early, clean arm), 4% (clean fist)	Olimar punches the opponent twice.
			3% (arm), 4% (fist)
Forward tilt			11%	Olimar winds up and fires a punch straight forwards.
Up tilt			0.6% (hits 1-6), 4% (hit 7)	Olimar spins while hopping.
Down tilt			6%	Olimar makes a hopping headbutt forwards. Due to its low knockback it can combo into itself, any of his smash attacks, up tilt, and aerials depending on your opponents DI.
Dash attack			7% (hit 1), 4% (hit 2)	Olimar cartwheels forwards.
Forward smash			R: 17.4% (clean), 12% (mid), 7.2% (late) YB: 14.5% (clean), 10% (mid), 6% (late) W: 11.6% (clean), 8% (mid), 4.8% (late) P: 20.3% (clean), 14% (mid), 8.4% (late)	A Pikmin leaps forwards with a spinning bodyslam. Has a slight chance to trip opponents.
Up smash			R: 15.6% (clean near), 12% (clean far), 13.2% (late) YB: 13% (clean near), 10% (clean far), 11% (late) W: 10.4% (clean near), 8% (clean far), 8.8% (late) P: 18.2% (clean near), 14% (clean far), 15.4% (late)	A Pikmin rockets upwards.
Down smash			R: 13.2% (clean), 10.8% (late) YB: 11% (clean), 9% (late) W: 8.8% (clean), 7.2% (late) P: 15.4% (clean), 12.6% (late)	Two Pikmin dash out to either side. Has a slight chance to trip opponents.
Neutral aerial			1.5% (hits 1-4), 2% (hit 5)	Olimar spins around, just like his up tilt.
Forward aerial			10.2% (R), 8.5% (YB), 6.8% (W), 11.9% (P)	Olimar swings a Pikmin forwards.
Back aerial			12.96% (R), 10.8% (YB), 8.64% (W), 15.12% (P)	Olimar slaps a Pikmin backwards.
Up aerial			10.8% (R), 9% (YB), 7.2% (W), 12.6% (P)	Olimar lifts a Pikmin upwards.
Down aerial			10.8% (R), 9% (YB), 7.2% (W), 12.6% (P)	Olimar smacks a Pikmin downwards. Has a meteor sweetspot near the stem of the Pikmin.
Grab			—	Olimar sends a Pikmin forth to grab opponents.
Pummel			2% (RYBP), 4% (W)	The Pikmin growthbutts the opponent. When used with the white pikmin, it becomes the most damaging pummel.
Forward throw			5.6% (R), 7% (YWP), 11.2% (B)	The Pikmin releases the foe forwards.
Back throw			7.2% (R), 9% (YWP), 14.4% (B)	The Pikmin swings the foe backwards.
Up throw			6.4% (R), 8% (YWP), 12.8% (B)	The Pikmin jumps up, then slams into the foe. One of the strongest up throws in the game when used with the Blue Pikmin.
Down throw			R: 1% (hit 1), 5.6% (throw) Y: 1% (hit 1), 7% (throw) B: 1% (hit 1), 11.2% (throw) W: 0.8% (hit 1), 7% (throw) P: 1.4% (hit 1), 7% (throw)	The Pikmin slams the foe into the ground. Can start up combos.
Floor attack (front)			7%
Floor attack (back)			7%
Floor attack (trip)			5%
Edge attack			7%
Neutral special	Default	Pikmin Pluck	0%	Olimar plucks a Pikmin. Cannot be used in midair and has endlag if it is attempted.
	Custom 1	Hardy Pikmin Pluck	0%	Pikmin take much longer to pluck, but have much more health and knockback resistance.
	Custom 2	Explosive Pluck	8% (RYB), 5% (W), 10% (P)	Plucking is slower and Pikmin have less health, but each pluck causes an explosion.
Side special	Default	Pikmin Throw	7.8% (thrown R), 6.5% (thrown YB), 5.2% (thrown W), 6.5% (P), 1.1% (latched RYB), 3.7% (latched W)	Thrown Pikmin latch onto opponents, falling off after a certain time or flinching. If the target cannot be latched onto, or the Pikmin is Purple, it simply deals damage.
	Custom 1	Sticky Pikmin Throw	7.8% (thrown R), 6.5% (thrown YB), 5.2% (thrown W), 9.1% (P), 1% (latched RYB), 2% (latched W)	Thrown Pikmin deal less damage per hit, but hit faster and remain latched on for longer, dealing more damage overall. However, the distance Pikmin are thrown is considerably reduced.
	Custom 2	Tackle Pikmin Throw	5% (RYB), 3% (W), 8% (P)	All Pikmin act like Purple Pikmin and slam into opponents instead of latching on.
Up special	Default	Winged Pikmin	0%	Two Winged Pikmin carry Olimar around. Having more Pikmin, or using the move repeatedly, reduces their effectiveness.
	Custom 1	Winged Pikmin Jump	0%	Acts as a more traditional recovery, lifting Olimar up a certain distance before falling. Pushes close opponents away.
	Custom 2	Mighty Winged Pikmin	0%	Distance travelled does not depend on Pikmin carried, but the total distance traveled is reduced.
Down special	Default	Pikmin Order	0%	Recalls Pikmin, sorts them, and changes which one heads the line. Has super armor.
	Custom 1	Order Tackle	3% (RYB), 2% (W), 5% (P)	Pikmin recalled deal damage.
	Custom 2	Dizzy Whistle	0.1% (hit 1), 1% (hit 2)	Reverses opponents in the whistle effect.
Final Smash		End of Day	10% (init), 10% (ascent), 10% (descent), 12%/10% (explosion)	Olimar launches into space, causing Bulborbs to assault opponents, before crashing down.

Taunts

• Up Taunt: Jumps in place three times joyfully. This taunt is similar to the up taunt of the no longer present Ice Climbers.
• Side Taunt: Lays down on the ground, rolls over and then gets up. This taunt is similar to Pikachu's down taunt.
• Down Taunt: Swings his hips.

Idle Poses

• Rubs his helmet with both hands.
• Moves his arms back and forward in a basic limber exercise.

On Screen Appearance

Exits out the Hocotate Ship and then plucks three Pikmin, then the Hocotate Ship poofs out of existence.

Victory Fanfare

A small remixed excerpt of the Pikmin title screen on the GameCube with the same wildlife sound effects and instruments.

Victory Poses

• OlimarPose1WiiU.png
• OlimarPose2WiiU.png
• OlimarPose3WiiU.png

• Plucks a White, Blue and Purple Pikmin. The White and Blue bounce off his head, and then the Purple Pikmin squishes Olimar onto the ground.
• Moves his arms up and down while a Yellow Pikmin sits on the ground and the Red Pikmin looks around.
• Sways in place while the Red, Yellow and Blue Pikmin run around him in a circle.

In Competitive Play

Official Custom Moveset Project

Character	Custom sets available
Olimar	1112	1311	1312	1212	2112
	2212	2211	2312	2131	3312

Notable players

•  Angbad
•  Dabuz
•  GreenBeast
•  ImHip
•  Logic
•  Marquestino Miranda
•  Myran
•  Rich Brown

Alternate costumes

Half of Olimar's "alternate costumes" changes him into Alph, one of the three playable characters from Pikmin 3.

Trophies

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!

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 (12/2001)

: Pikmin 2 (08/2004)

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 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, but still! 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 (12/2001)

: Pikmin 2 (08/2004)

End of Day

On the planet Olimar is investigating, the native creatures become extra violent at night, forcing him to retreat to orbit every evening. His Final Smash works the same way: night falls and Olimar takes to the sky, leaving his foes to the mercy of the wildlife below. Olimar returns when dawn breaks and you can adjust his less-than-safe landing!

On the planet of the Pikmin, the native creatures get quite violent come nightfall, so Olimar retreats into orbit every evening. That's how his Final Smash works, too: Olimar takes off in his trusty Dolphin[sic], then in comes the beasties to take care of the other fighters. When Olimar returns, make sure he touches down, er...safely!

• 

  Classic (3DS)

• OlimarAllStarTrophy3DS.png

  Alt. (3DS)

• 

  Classic (Wii U)

• 

  Alt. (Wii U)

• 

  End of Day

In Event Matches

Solo Events

• A Battle of Scale: A tiny Olimar must defeat a giant Bowser.
• All-Star Battle: Brawl: Olimar is one of the opponents fought in this event. All opponents debut in Brawl, and reappear in Smash 4.
• The Big 7650!: 3 Olimars are opponents that Pac-Man must use his Final Smash on within 15 seconds.

Co-op Events

• Poisonous Planet: A flowered Olimar and Samus must defeat two giant Charizards in a 200 HP battle before their own health is depleted.
• Solidarity: Olimar and Rosalina & Luma must initially defeat Mario and Luigi. After defeating them, they must defeat Bowser and Bowser Jr.
• The Ultimate Battle: Two players select a character and must defeat the entire roster.
• Visiting Onett: Olimar is one of the opponents fought in this event. All opponents are space characters or characters from other planets.

Gallery

• 

  Olimar in the Nintendo Direct from April 8th, 2014.

• 

  Alph.

• 

  Olimar's amiibo.

• 

  Sakurai celebrates on Miiverse.

• 

  Olimar's appearance in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U.

• 

  Olimar in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS.

• 

  Olimar running with his Pikmin.

• 

  Forward smash with a Red Pikmin.

• 

  Back air with a White Pikmin.

• 

  Down smash.

• 

  Red, Yellow and White Pikmin.

• 

  The ghost of a defeated Blue Pikmin.

• 

  Olimar falling.

• 

  Pikmin looking up at Kirby.

• 

  Side Taunt.

• 

  A screenshot of Olimar's Pikmin near Mega Man.

• 

  A close up of Olimar's side. His whistle and Hocotate Freight patch are clearly visible.

• 

  Wii Fit Trainer and Olimar on in the Wii Fit Stage.

• 

  The Hocotate Bomb.

• 

  Pic of when Olimar was confirmed

• 

  Olimar uses his new recovery move, the Winged Pikmin.

• 

  A rare glitch that causes Pikmin's models to become meshed.

Trivia

• Because Olimar's placement in All-Star Mode is based on his own debut rather than that of Alph (whose debut in Pikmin 3 came thirteen years after Olimar's debut in Pikmin), Alph will be misplaced chronologically during All-Star Mode if he appears in Olimar's place. The same applies to Bowser Jr. and the Koopalings.
• Olimar's All-Star trophy bears a resemblance to his Brawl artwork.
• Olimar is the only character who doesn't use his official alt trophy when he's faced in rounds 4-5 in Smash Wii U's Classic Mode; instead, he uses Alph's trophy.
• In Pikmin 3, Alph doesn't ride the Hocotate Ship, but rather the S.S. Drake; in Smash, he uses the Hocotate Ship for his Final Smash.
  • Ironically, Sakurai stated that he separated Dark Pit from Pit because of the potential oddity of Dark Pit wielding the Three Sacred Treasures, while the oddity with Alph and the Hocotate Ship stayed in the game.
• Olimar and Alph have different expressions of pain; Olimar's eyes will pop out, something he commonly does in Pikmin 2, and Alph will close his eyes, wincing in pain.
• Olimar is the only character to have only one special move that deals damage (excluding his custom moves).