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
Tier	C (27)

Olimar (ピクミン＆オリマー, Pikmin & Olimar) is a playable character in Super Smash Bros. 4. His return to the series was announced on July 12th, 2013 via SSB4's official website, which made him the first character revealed after the initial E3 2013 reveal of SSB4. Olimar's reveal also occurred one day before the Japanese release date of Pikmin 3.

Olimar is currently ranked 27th out of 58 on the tier list, placing him at the higher end of C tier. This is a significant drop from his top-tier placement in Brawl, where he was ranked 3rd out of 38. As in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Olimar's Pikmin possess an impressive level of utility. The Pikmin grant him respectable KO and damage racking potentials, as Olimar can use them to deal direct and/or indirect damage via his standard moves or by having the Pikmin latch onto opponents via Pikmin Throw, respectively. The Pikmin also grant him a potent grab game, as they make each of his grabs disjointed and make his down throw a very reliable combo starter even up to high percents. Lastly, Winged Pikmin functions as a maneuverable, flight-based recovery move that is vastly superior to the tether-based recovery move Pikmin Chain and even allows Olimar to attack out of it.

However, Olimar's active Pikmin count has now been halved from six to three, which severely weakens the camping strategies he relied on in Brawl. The Pikmin themselves have also been weakened in a few, yet noticeable ways: Red, Yellow, Blue and Purple Pikmin have lower hit points (which is further compounded by them and White Pikmin dying faster while separated from Olimar), while all types of Pikmin have lowered overall damage outputs and somewhat flawed artificial intelligence. Olimar himself retains his slow overall mobility, with his aerial mobility in particular making him easy to juggle despite him being a lightweight. Additionally, his offense is still burdened by slow attack speed and an over-reliance on Pikmin.

Despite retaining his flaws and gaining new ones, Olimar has nevertheless attained decent representation in competitive play and has fared better than other characters that were formerly well-renowned in Brawl, such as Falco and King Dedede.

Attributes

Olimar is a lightweight with slow overall mobility, with his air acceleration being his only attribute that is above average. Olimar's playstyle is almost identical to how it was in Brawl due to retaining a large portion of his moveset and animations, although some moves have been slightly modified. Much like in his home series, Olimar himself has extremely meager offensive prowess and must rely on instructing his multicolored Pikmin to remedy this glaring flaw. As a result, almost all of Olimar's moves involve Pikmin and thus they can end up being useful or useless depending on whether or not he has Pikmin. When he has Pikmin, Olimar possesses arguably one of the most unique playstyles in the game due to Pikmin acting as both projectiles and separate characters, much like Rosalina & Luma.

When used correctly, the Pikmin provide noticeable and effective benefits: they can easily rack up high amounts of damage in short periods of time, they grant Olimar a largely disjointed grab range due to Pikmin running out to grab opponents at any time, they can carry various items back to Olimar as they run back to him much like in their home series, and they can also help with camping or halting approaches. Additionally, each type of Pikmin provides unique and useful effects. His special moves are also heavily dependent on Pikmin, but they are all beneficial nonetheless. Pikmin Throw enables Olimar to hinder approaches or, with Purple Pikmin, even stop them outright. Pikmin Order reorganizes his Pikmin for the proper situation at hand and grants him launch resistance to help alleviate his light weight. Lastly, Winged Pikmin provides a long-distanced and maneuverable recovery that makes Olimar more difficult to KO compared to other lightweights.

With all things considered, Olimar has one of the most damaging playstyles among the cast, as he is able to KO nearly all opponents in a short period when his Pikmin are utilized wisely. For example, Pikmin Throw allots him a large array of options for offense, as it can both zone and get opponents to KO percents quickly; when the thrown Pikmin are not shaken off, they can rack up 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, despite its aforementioned halving since Brawl, can be hard for an opponent to keep track of, especially with each color boasting unique attributes. He can also KO early with his relatively fast and very powerful smash attacks; some, such as up smash, are able to KO with Purple Pikmin as early as about 60%. Also, with his largely disjointed 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 KO at the upper blast line, although these are pitiful without Pikmin. However, they can also double 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.

However, Olimar does have noticeable flaws. One of Olimar's greatest weaknesses is that he struggles against fast characters, such as Sonic and Captain Falcon. 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 have a respectable offensive presence, Olimar must play very safely against these characters. Olimar also has poor aerial mobility, as his slow falling and air speeds make him easy to juggle and, when combined with his light weight, to KO. Not to mention all of his directional aerials have the crippling flaw of low priority, making it impossible to combat edgeguarders who are attacking with an aerial or up special. Another severe flaw he has is his over-reliance on Pikmin, much like in his home series. Without any Pikmin, Olimar's smash attacks, up, down, back, and forward aerials, grabs and side special will simply do nothing, which significantly harms his neutral game due to them being his most effective attacks. This also leaves Olimar with a total of six attacks that deal damage: his neutral attack, tilt attacks, dash attack and neutral aerial, with his forward tilt being his only KOing option that does not use Pikmin. Due to this, it is crucial that Olimar has at least one Pikmin with him at all times.

Olimar has a few beneficial custom moves. Hardy Pikmin Pluck makes all types of Pikmin more durable at the cost of them being plucked slower. Sticky Pikmin Throw has each Pikmin deal less damage and distance the Pikmin are thrown are reduced, but they stay on for much longer and hit faster, making it deal more damage overall compared to Hardy Pikmin Pluck. Tackle Pikmin Throw does not have the Pikmin latch on. Instead, they act like Purple Pikmin and slam into opponents, knocking them back. Mighty Winged Pikmin has reduced total travel distance, but the distance is not affected by the amount of Pikmin that Olimar is carrying. Lastly, Order Tackle has all latched on Pikmin deal damage upon being recalled, which gives Olimar another way to deal damage.

Overall, Olimar still retains many of his considerable strengths in spite of their nerfs, and has even had some attributes buffed, mostly in regard to his damage output. While his potential damage output was reduced, 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. His recovery has also been completely revamped for the better, which many agree has helped to alleviate his other changes. Early in the metagame, Olimar was thought to be one of the worst characters, yet dedicated mains such as Dabuz, ImHip, Angbad, Myran, and Logic have shown that, as in Brawl, he is still a very capable character who retains a very high learning curve.

Changes from Brawl

Olimar has been nerfed in the transition from Brawl to SSB4. The most glaring nerf was the limit of his Pikmin, which was halved from six to three. As a result, this hinders his general damage output and especially his potential damage output, as well as his camping potential.

However, he also received slight buffs in some areas to compensate, such as his smash attacks using Purple Pikmin becoming even more potent. The most noticeable buff Olimar received was to his recovery, as Winged Pikmin largely outclasses Pikmin Chain. He additionally maintains most of the options he had in Brawl. However, these changes do not properly compensate his noticeable nerfs, which has led to him to be considered one of the characters to have been truly nerfed in the transition from Brawl, alongside Meta Knight, Marth, Falco, King Dedede, and Jigglypuff. As a result, Olimar still boasts viability, albeit not to the same degree as in Brawl.

Aesthetics

• Olimar's design is now a combination of his appearances in Pikmin 3 and Brawl. Olimar himself now has slightly tanned skin and his hair is more detailed. His helmet now sports a whistle, while its antenna and collar are both a much darker shade of gray. The two seams around his space suit's waist each now feature six gray rivets, two of his space suit's connectors are now blue and the third is red, rather than each of them being orange. The coloration of his space suit's life support system is slightly subdued, while its stripe is slightly more vibrant. Lastly, the coloration of the Hocotate Freight patches, his gloves and the trim on his boots are more vibrant, while the bands around his gloves are now gray, rather than black. The Pikmin have also been updated, with their proportions now being more in line with their appearances in Pikmin 3.
• Up and down taunts have updated sound effects, while side taunt now emits a sound effect.
• Pikmin have more limited cosmetics, as their leaves do not turn into buds or flowers. On rare occasions, if two or three Pikmin stand in the same spot in Olimar's lineup, it can produce odd results and make it difficult to tell which Pikmin will be used next. Additionally, their idle animations are all synchronized. This is presumably to avoid any unnecessary hardware strain.
• The Pikmin at the head of the line now has a player-colored arrowhead above it. This allows the player to better visualize which Pikmin will be used next.

Attributes

• Olimar is lighter (82 → 79).
• Olimar dashes faster (1.4 → 1.47).
• Olimar falls faster (1.3 → 1.35).
• Red, Yellow, Blue and Purple Pikmin have decreased hit points (9 HP → 8 (RY), 14 HP → 11 (B), 15 HP → 13 (P)). Pikmin separated from Olimar also die faster.
• White Pikmin have increased hit points (4 HP → 7).
• Maximum Pikmin count has been halved (6 → 3).
• Pikmin have flawed artificial intelligence 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. However, this is considerably less prevalent in the version, in which their flawed AI only occurs at edges.
• Pikmin are now plucked in a set cycle (Red → Yellow → Blue → White → Purple), rather than 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.

Ground attacks

• Olimar has a new neutral attack, the first two punches of the Rocket Fist upgrade in Pikmin 2. Compared to the previous neutral attack, it deals less damage (15% → 6%-8%), but has more range.
• Olimar has a new forward tilt, the wind-up punch of the Rocket Fist upgrade in Pikmin 2. Compared to the previous forward tilt, it deals 5% more damage (6% → 11%), has less ending lag (37 frames → 36) and has KO potential.
• Forward tilt has more start-up lag (frame 9 → 15) compared to the previous forward tilt.
• Up tilt deals 3.4% less damage (11% → 7.6%) due to consisting of seven hits instead of eight.
• Down tilt deals 2% less damage (8% → 6%) due to losing its hitbox on Olimar's antenna.
• Down tilt has slightly increased knockback, improving its set-up potential.
• White Pikmin-based smash attacks deal more damage (9% (clean)/6% (mid)/3% (late) → 11.6%/8%/4.8% (forward), 9% (clean near)/7% (clean far)/5% (late) → 10.4%/8%/8.8% (up), 6% (clean)/4% (late) → 8.8%/7.2% (down)).
• Clean Red, Yellow and Purple Pikmin-based forward smashes deal more damage (15% → 17.4% (R), 13% → 14.5% (Y), 18% → 20.3% (P)).
• Clean Blue Pikmin-based forward smash deals 0.5% less damage (15% → 14.5%).
• Forward smash has slightly decreased knockback.
• Forward smash has increased horizontal range.
• Forward smash no longer makes Pikmin fly off-stage. While this helps conserve Pikmin, this removes its gimping potential.
• Clean near and late Red Pikmin-based up smash deals more damage (15% (clean near)/12% (late) → 15.6%/13.2%).
• Clean near Yellow Pikmin-based up smash deals 1% less damage (14% → 13%).
• Clean near and clean far Blue Pikmin-based up smash deals less damage (15% (clean near)/13% (clean far) → 13%/10%).
• Clean far Red and Yellow Pikmin-based up smash deal 2% less damage (14% → 12%).
• Late Yellow Pikmin-based up smash deals 1% more damage (10% → 11%).
• Purple Pikmin-based up smash deals more damage (16% (clean near)/13% (clean far)/13% (late) → 18.2%/14%/15.4%).
• Up smash has decreased vertical range.
• Up and down smashes are faster.
• Red and Purple Pikmin-based down smashes deal more damage (13% (clean)/10% (late) → 13.2%/10.8% (R), 15% (clean)/12% (late) → 15.4%/12.6% (P)).
• Clean Blue Pikmin-based down smash deals 1% less damage (12% → 11%).

Aerial attacks

• Neutral aerial deals 4% less damage (12% → 8%) due to consisting of five hits instead of six.
• Red, Yellow, Blue and Purple Pikmin-based forward aerials deal less damage (15% → 10.2% (R), 12% → 8.5% (Y), 13% → 8.5% (B), 14% → 11.9% (P)).
• White Pikmin-based forward aerial deals 1.8% more damage (5% → 6.8%).
• Forward and back aerials are faster.
• Up aerial deals less damage (24% → 10.8% (R), 16% → 9% (Y), 22% → 9% (B), 9% → 7.2% (W), 22% → 12.6% (P)) due to consisting of one hit instead of seven.
• Up aerial's decreased hit count improves its juggling and KO potentials.
• Sweetspotted Red, Yellow, Blue and Purple Pikmin-based down aerials deal less damage (16% → 10.8% (R), 12% → 9% (Y), 13% → 9% (B), 13% → 12.6% (P)).
• Down aerial is much faster.
• Down aerial's sweetspot is harder to land.

Throws/other attacks

• White Pikmin-based throws deal more damage (6% (forward, up, down)/7% (back) → 7% (forward)/9% (back)/8% (up)/7.8% (down)).
• Red and Blue Pikmin-based forward throws deal less damage (6% → 5.6% (R), 13% → 11.2% (B)).
• Red and Blue Pikmin-based back throws deal more damage (7% → 7.2% (R), 14% → 14.4% (B)).
• Back throw has decreased knockback, hindering its KO potential.
• Red, Yellow and Purple Pikmin-based up throws deal less damage (9% → 6.4% (R), 11% → 8% (YP)).
• Blue Pikmin-based up throw deals 0.8% more damage (12% → 12.8%).
• Up throw has decreased knockback, especially when using Purple Pikmin. This improves its combo potential, but hinders its KO potential.
• Red Pikmin-based down throw deals 2.4% less damage (9% → 6.6%).
• Blue and Purple Pikmin-based down throws deal more damage (12% → 12.2% (B), 8% → 8.4% (P)).
• Edge attack deals less damage (8%/10% → 7%).
• Olimar has a new edge attack, a punch from the Pikmin series.

Special moves

• Pikmin Pluck has updated sound effects.
• Pikmin Throw launches Pikmin much farther. This improves its zoning potential, but also makes the Pikmin more susceptible to being thrown off-stage.
• Pikmin Throw can now enable Pikmin to latch onto a Smash Ball and carry items to Olimar. Despite the latter feature's exclusivity, his alt. trophy in the version still mentions it.
• Olimar has a new up special, Winged Pikmin. Unlike Pikmin Chain, Winged Pikmin is a maneuverable, flight-based recovery move that covers much more distance and allows Olimar to attack out of it, similarly to Wings of Icarus. This makes it much safer and much more versatile.
• Unlike Pikmin Chain, Winged Pikmin does not deal damage. Compared to Pikmin Chain, Winged Pikmin is significantly less effective if Olimar has more Pikmin, which may require him to sacrifice them in order to prevent himself from being KO'd or self-destructing. Additionally, its overall effectiveness worsens if it is used consecutively. Lastly, the loss of Pikmin Chain removes Olimar's only tether.
• Pikmin Order grants less super armor frames (14 frames → 7), significantly hindering its utility.
• End of Day's explosion has a larger hitbox.
• End of Day has decreased knockback.
• The Hocotate Ship's descent during End of Day can be aimed like a Warp Star.

Update history

Olimar has received a mix of buffs and nerfs from game updates. Update 1.0.4 made Pikmin Pluck unable to be edge-canceled and decreased the amount of damage that Red, Yellow, and Blue Pikmin deal when they latch onto opponents. To compensate for this, White Pikmin deal more damage when latched on and the latch time for all Pikmin was increased.

However, Olimar also significantly benefits from the changes to shield mechanics brought by updates 1.1.0 and 1.1.1. This is due to latched Pikmin becoming better at damaging an opponent's shield, while the low ending lag on his smash attacks makes them even less punishable on shield due to the increased shieldstun. As a result, Olimar is slightly better than he was during SSB4's initial release.

1.0.4

• The Pikmin's safespot distance from Olimar has decreased (5 → 4), making them follow Olimar sooner.
  • However, there is also a shorter distance between the Pikmin's own safespots (5 → 4).
• All Pikmin except purple Pikmin run faster (40 → 60 (overall run speed), 2.4 (red/yellow/blue)/3 (white) → 3 (R/Y/B)/4 (W).
• Pikmin have increased follow distance (18 → 23) if they have to change direction.
• Pikmin follow the previous aerial velocity for a shorter period of time (15 frames → 8).
• Neutral, forward, and back aerials have less landing lag (17 frames → 15).
• Pikmin Pluck can no longer be edge-canceled.
• Red, Yellow and Blue Pikmin latched onto opponents deal less damage (1.3% → 1.1%).
• White Pikmin latched onto opponents deal more damage (2.6% → 3.7%).
• Purple Pikmin throw deal less damage (6.5% → 6%).
• Pikmin Throw's additional latch time has been increased (200 frames → 300).

• Neutral, forward, and back aerials' landing lag decreased: 17 frames → 15.

1.0.6

• Fixed a glitch where reflecting Order Tackle would give the Pikmin a permanent power boost.

1.0.8

• Fixed a glitch where Pikmin Order no longer reverses from edge grabs.

Moveset

• All Pikmin-based moves and grabs use the next Pikmin in the line to perform the given attack, and the knockback and damage are dependent on the Pikmin type. That Pikmin then goes to the back of the line.
• R: Red Pikmin, Y: Yellow Pikmin, B: Blue Pikmin, W: White Pikmin, P: Purple Pikmin

		Name	Damage	Description
Neutral attack			3% (early, clean arm), 4% (clean fist)	The two alternating punches of the Rocket Fist ability from Pikmin 2. Its knockback and very quick speed enables it to act as pseudo-jab cancel at low percents, which allows it to act as a set-up for a grab or start a tech-chase at higher percents. Performing it repeatedly will slightly move Olimar forward.
			3% (arm), 4% (fist)
Forward tilt			11%	The wind-up punch of the Rocket Fist ability from Pikmin 2. It has impressive KO potential, as it KOs Bowser at 130% near the edge of Final Destination. However, it is Olimar's only KOing option when he does not have any Pikmin and is his slowest attack, due to it coming out on frame 15.
Up tilt			0.6% (hits 1-6), 4% (hit 7)	A jumping twirl. It has very minimal start-up, which makes it useful as an anti-pressure option and out of shield option.
Down tilt			6%	A sliding headbutt. A very useful combo starter due to its very minimal start-up and low knockback, as it can combo into itself (especially on fast-fallers), his up tilt, his smash attacks and his aerials depending on the opponent's DI. It can also interfere with an opponent's edge grab attempt due to its hitbox going below an edge.
Dash attack			7% (hit 1), 4% (hit 2)	A cartwheel. It can combo into a string of up aerials from 0%-10%. Outside of this, its only other utility is being a mix-up and approach option, as it is unable to combo past extremely low percents or KO at a reasonable percent.
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)	Points forward to command a Pikmin to perform a leaping, twisting tackle. The second fastest forward smash in the game, due to it coming out on frame 11. Very powerful with Purple Pikmin, as it KOs Bowser at 40% near the edge of Final Destination. Also 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)	Points upward to command a Pikmin to perform a jumping, cartwheeling tackle. Very powerful with Purple Pikmin, as it KOs King Dedede at 70%.
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)	Crouches slightly and points to both of his sides to command two Pikmin to perform dashing tackles. If the opponent is close enough to Olimar, both Pikmin can hit the opponent, which can deal a maximum of 43% when performed with two Purple Pikmin. Very quick, has minimal ending lag and has a chance to trip opponents.
Neutral aerial			1.5% (hits 1-4), 2% (hit 5)	A jumping twirl. It has impressive set-up potential at any percent, as it allows him to follow-up with his up and down tilts, smash attacks or a grab. However, this only occurs if its last hit does not connect, which can be done by having Olimar land before it concludes.
Forward aerial			R: 10.2% YB: 8.5% W: 6.8% P: 11.9%	Swings a Pikmin forward while holding its stem. A very reliable follow-up from down throw.
Back aerial			R: 12.96% YB: 10.8% W: 8.64% P: 15.12%	Swings a Pikmin backward while holding its stem. A viable KOing option and his most damaging aerial, but has the most start-up out of his aerials.
Up aerial			R: 10.8% YB: 9% W: 7.2% P: 12.6%	Twirls a Pikmin upward while holding its stem. A viable KOing option, though it has a noticeable amount of landing lag.
Down aerial			R: 10.8% YB: 9% W: 7.2% P: 12.6%	Swings a Pikmin downward while holding its stem. Its sweetspot is near the stem of the Pikmin and meteor smashes opponents.
Grab			—	Points forward to command a Pikmin to grab the opponent. White Pikmin have the longest range, while Purple Pikmin have the shortest.
Pummel			RYBP: 2% W: 4%	The Pikmin strikes the opponent with the top of its stem. When used with White Pikmin, its damage output is tied with Shulk's Buster-boosted pummel for the most damaging pummel in the game.
Forward throw			R: 5.6% YWP: 7% B: 11.2%	The Pikmin shoves the opponent away. It has no utility outside of dealing damage.
Back throw			R: 7.2% YWP: 9% B: 14.4%	The Pikmin swings the opponent backward. It deals the most damage out of all of Olimar's throws.
Up throw			R: 6.4% YWP: 8% B: 12.8%	The Pikmin jumps up and then slams into the opponent head-first. It is one of the strongest up throws in the game when used with 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 opponent into the ground. A very useful combo starter, it can combo into his neutral aerial from 0% to low percents, his forward and back aerials from 0% to high percents, and his up aerial from low to high percents. It can also combo into his forward smash from 0% to low percents, albeit only against fast-fallers. One particularly noteworthy combo is a Red Pikmin-based down throw followed by a Purple Pikmin-based back aerial, which is a true combo that KOs reliably near the edge.
Forward roll Back roll Spot dodge Air dodge		—	—
Techs		—	—
Floor attack (front) Floor getups (front)			7%	Punches in front of himself and then behind himself while getting up.
Floor attack (back) Floor getups (back)			7%	Headbutts in front of himself and then behind himself while getting up.
Floor attack (trip) Floor getups (trip)			5%	Headbutts in front of himself and then spins around to perform a double footed back kick behind himself.
Edge attack Edge getups			7%	Throws a punch while climbing up.
Neutral special	Default	Pikmin Pluck	—	Plucks a Pikmin. It cannot be used in midair and has noticeable ending lag if it is attempted in midair or if no more Pikmin can be plucked.
	Custom 1	Hardy Pikmin Pluck	—	Pikmin take much longer to pluck, but have much more health and knockback resistance.
	Custom 2	Explosive Pluck	RYB: 8% W: 5% P: 10%	Plucking is slower and the Pikmin have less health, but each pluck causes an explosion.
Side special	Default	Pikmin Throw	R: 7.8% (thrown) YB: 6.5% (thrown) W: 5.2% (thrown) P: 6.5% RYB: 1.1% (latched) W: 3.7% (latched)	Throws a Pikmin, which latches onto opponents and damages them before falling off after a certain time or due to flinching. If the target cannot be latched onto, it simply deals damage. Purple Pikmin also simply tackle opponents due to their inability to latch onto anything.
	Custom 1	Sticky Pikmin Throw	R: 7.8% (thrown) YB: 6.5% (thrown) W: 5.2% (thrown) P: 9.1% RYB: 1% (latched) W: 2% (latched)	Thrown Pikmin deal less damage per hit, but hit faster and remain latched on longer, dealing more damage overall. However, the distance Pikmin are thrown is considerably shorter.
	Custom 2	Tackle Pikmin Throw	RYB: 5% W: 3% P: 8%	All thrown Pikmin act like Purple Pikmin and tackle opponents instead of latching onto them. Red, Yellow, Blue and White Pikmin deal less damage, but Purple Pikmin deal more damage.
Up special	Default	Winged Pikmin	—	Two Winged Pikmin carry Olimar around, enabling him to recover. While being carried, Olimar can attack. Having more Pikmin or using the move consecutively decreases the Winged Pikmin's effectiveness, while Olimar will be rendered helpless after attacking from out of it.
	Custom 1	Winged Pikmin Jump	—	Functions like a traditional recovery by lacking the maneuverability in order to quickly lift Olimar upward a certain distance before falling. It also pushes close opponents away.
	Custom 2	Mighty Winged Pikmin	—	The distance traveled does not depend on Pikmin carried, but it follows a fixed distance regardless of the amount of Pikmin in tow.
Down special	Default	Pikmin Order	—	Blows his whistle to recall Pikmin and/or sort out their order in the line. It also has utility in that it grants Olimar super armor for a very brief amount of time.
	Custom 1	Order Tackle	RYB: 3% W: 2% P: 5%	Pikmin recalled deal damage, but it has a fair amount of ending lag.
	Custom 2	Dizzy Whistle	0.1% (hit 1), 1% (hit 2)	Deals damage and reverses opponents within the whistle's range, but it is slightly slower than the default version and has a noticeable amount of start-up lag.
Final Smash		End of Day	10% (launch), 10% (ascent), 15% (Bulborbs), 10% (descent), 12%/10% (explosion)	Jumps into the Hocotate Ship and launches into space, causing all nearby opponents to be buried. While the ship has left the stage, Red Bulborbs viciously assault opponents, inflicting steady damage. The Hocotate Ship finally crashes back down to the ground, dealing a considerable amount of damage and knockback to anyone caught in the explosion.

On-screen appearance

• Exits the Hocotate Ship and then plucks three Pikmin, after which the Hocotate Ship disappears in a puff of smoke.

Taunts

• Up taunt: Joyfully jumps in place three times.
• Side taunt: Lies down on the ground, rolls around as if basking in nature, and then gets up.
• Down taunt: Swings his hips.

Up taunt	Side taunt	Down taunt

Idle poses

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

Crowd cheer

Olimar	English	Japanese
Cheer
Description	Olimar! Olimar! Olimar!	Pik-min! Ol-i-mar!
Pitch	Group chant	Group chant

Alph	English	Japanese
Cheer
Description	Alph! Alph! Alph!	Pik-min! Al-ph!
Pitch	Group chant	Group chant

Victory poses

A remixed excerpt of Pikmin's title screen theme.

• Plucks a White, Blue and Purple Pikmin. The White Pikmin and Blue Pikmin bounce off Olimar's head, and then the Purple Pikmin squashes him onto the ground. Olimar's eyes will comically bulge outward upon being squashed before his expression returns to normal, whereas Alph will comically wince upon being squashed before his expression returns to normal.
• Performs a toe touching exercise while a Yellow Pikmin rests on the ground and a Red Pikmin looks around.
• Sways in place while a 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

Active

•  Angbad
•  CoCo
•  Dabuz
•  GreenBeast
•  ImHip
•  Krow
•  Logic
•  Myran
•  Shuton - Widely considered the best Olimar player in the world. Ranked 4th on the JAPAN Power Rankings. Placed 1st at Shulla-bra VII, 9th at Umebura S.A.T., 1st at Hirosuma 5 and Shulla-bra VIII, 3rd at Sumabato 14 and 5th at Frostbite 2017.
•  Soulimar

Inactive

•  Rich Brown

Tier placement and history

Olimar's placing was considered to be one of the most contentious of all characters when the game was first released. At first, players would deem the nerfs as being too harsh for Olimar to even be a mid-tier character, causing him to be considerd as a bottom-tiered character. This placement would go on for several months until players soon started to demonstrate Olimar sill had viability to a certain degree, with smashers like Dabuz, ImHip, Shuton and Soulimar achieving good tournament results in tournaments, culminating in him placing at 24th on the first 4BR tier list. This is comparable to the early days of Brawl's metagame; in the beginning, he was seen as a mid-tier character, yet eventually rose to 3rd place on that game's tier list.

Olimar's tournament representation and results have never been as bountiful as other character's, though, and as such, he dropped to 30th on the second tier list. He then saw a slight rise to 27th on the third and current tier list, after a slight increase in results by Dabuz and Shuton. His current tier placement is a bit debatable, largely thanks to Shuton achieving 5th at Frostbite 2017.

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 debuted in Brawl.
• The Big 7650!: As Pac-Man, the player must use his Final Smash, Super Pac-Man, on three Olimars within 15 seconds.

Co-op Events

• Poisonous Planet: Olimar and Samus must defeat two giant Charizard in a Stamina Battle before their own health is depleted due to being flowered.
• Solidarity: Olimar and Rosalina & Luma must defeat Mario and Luigi and then defeat Bowser and Bowser Jr.
• The Ultimate Battle: Two players select a character and must defeat the entire roster.
• Visiting Onett: Ness and Villager must defeat Olimar, Kirby, Meta Knight, Fox, Falco and Rosalina & Luma. All opponents are outer space-based characters.

Alternate costumes

Instead of alternate color schemes, half of Olimar's alternate costumes consist of Alph, one of the three playable characters from Pikmin 3.

Gallery

• 

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

• 

  Alph's official art.

• 

  Olimar's amiibo.

• 

  The Pic of the Day revealing Olimar's return to the series and commemorating Pikmin 3's Japanese launch.

• 

  Olimar using his forward smash on Mario in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U.

• 

  Olimar alongside Link in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS.

• 

  Olimar dashing with his Pikmin.

• 

  Using his forward smash with a Red Pikmin on Fox.

• 

  Using his back aerial with a White Pikmin on Mega Man.

• 

  Using his down smash on Pit and Link.

• 

  Red, Yellow and White Pikmin.

• 

  Olimar dashing away from Bowser. The spirit of a deceased Blue Pikmin is visible.

• 

  Olimar falling.

• 

  Pikmin looking up at Kirby.

• 

  Using his side taunt.

• 

  Pikmin alongside a prone Mega Man.

• 

  A close up of Olimar's whistle and Hocotate Freight patch.

• 

  Using his forward smash alongside Wii Fit Trainer's forward smash on Wii Fit Studio.

• 

  Alongside Sonic and a Hocotate Bomb.

• 

  Olimar dashing with his Pikmin.

• 

  Using Winged Pikmin, his new up special.

• 

  Alph alongside a couple of Pikmin whose models have become meshed due to a rare glitch.

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 twelve 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 in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS is highly similar to his pose in his official artwork for Brawl.
• Olimar is the only character who does not use his official alt. trophy when he is faced in rounds 4-5 in Classic Mode in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Instead, he uses Alph's trophy.
• In Pikmin 3, Alph does not ride the Hocotate Ship, but rather the S.S. Drake. In SSB4, he uses the Hocotate Ship for his on-screen appearance and Final Smash, regardless.
• Olimar and Alph have different expressions when they are hit. Olimar's eyes comically bulge out, something he commonly does in Pikmin 2, whereas Alph's eyes comically wince.
• Olimar is the only character to have only one special move in his default moveset that deals damage.
  • He is also the only character to have a special move (Winged Pikmin in his case) where none of its custom variants deal any damage.
• In the European version of the End of Day trophy, it mistakenly says that Olimar/Alph uses the S.S. Dolphin, while they actually use the Hocotate Ship in the Final Smash.