Today's Brawl update is, rather obviously, Olimar's Special Moves. As you guessed, most of his attacks are dependent on his having Pikmin, and the type you have will affect your attacks slightly.

B-Neutral: Pikmin Pluck


Yeah, there he goes. Getting those Pikmin. Not much to say on this pic.

You can have up to 6 Pikmin following you, and you can get a Pikmin with this attack so long as you're on solid ground. Also, different Pikmin are more likely to appear in different levels. Like Pikmin 2, there are 5 types of pikmin Olimar can use. They are:

Red Pikmin

It has a high attack power, its attacks are fire-based and it's immune to fire. So, just like the original game with the addition of fire attacks.

Yellow Pikmin

These can be thrown further and have a slight arc when thrown, they're easy to hit enemies with and have an electric property when attacking enemies. Same as Pikmin 2 with the added property. Its ears look wierd though. Probably just me :S

Blue Pikmin

Not much to say here 'cept they're strong when thrown and they'll last longer than other Pikmin.

Purple Pikmin

Not the most agile of the Pikmin, but it has a very high attack power and will slam onto enemies when thrown.

White Pikmin

The quickest of the five, when this type is thrown, it'll do poison damage when latched on to a character.

You'll be able to tell which Pikmin you'll throw next by seeing which one's directly behind you whilst you walk.

Also, it looks like they may be arranged by whether they have a leaf, bud or flower.

You will need Pikmin to pull off Smash attacks, some midair attacks and throws. So if your team dies, pull up another bunch, or you're in the brown stinky stuff.


At least the Pikmin have souls... which normally disintegrate in the first strong wind they encounter :(

And now, for the rest of the Special attacks.

B-Forward: Pikmin Throw

See Diddy? I told you you shouldn't've smirked at them! They're crazy!

*ahem*

The Pikmin will do damage for as long as they're attached, and the more there are, the faster damage is accumulated.

Up-B: Pikmin Chain

Imagine seeing him do this in the original game! It would've been a laugh. Anyway, as you can probably tell, the more Pikmin you have, the greater your chance of survival.

Down-B: Pikmin Order

Whistle for any Pikmin that've strayed from the pack. This'll also change the Pikmin that gets thrown first.

Sakurai assures the reader that the way he plays is easier than it looks.

…uh-huh. Right.

And, just to keep people from thhinking otherwise, that isn't Louie, that particular Olimar just has a Yellow Pikmin stuck in his skull. He's taunted by his fellow shipmates because of this.

And those were the special moves. New character Monday please?! (although it isn't very likely, we'll probably get Olimar's Final Smash)

Also, something for Pokémon Diamond/Pearl Fans, play Pokémon D/P on the 12th. Look here for info.