Why don't you think Olimar isnt very popular?

[Freezie KO]

Pikmin is one of my favorite series and my experience with the games is the main reason why I was super excited to play Olimar in Brawl and continue to use him in Smash 4. I'm not totally sure why I enjoy the Pikmin series so much, but I think it has something to do with how good the games are at making you feel like you're really exploring an unknown world full of all the dangers and treasures you might expect in such an adventure.

I think you're probably right though. I get the impression that Pikmin doesn't have an especially visible or vocal fanbase, even if the games seem to sell okay. I feel like that might have an impact on how many people choose to play as Olimar in Smash, especially since he doesn't necessarily have the cool looks or flashy play style (as Myran pointed out) that probably would make him more popular among people who aren't as familiar with the Pikmin series.


I like how Olimar is kind of unique, yeah. I don't think him being at Little Mac levels of popularity in online play would really affect how much I used him, but I sort of feel like your connection to a character can be stronger when he/she isn't as popular.

Like you, I love the Pikmin series. I also love how Olimar in Smash actually does feel like playing Pikmin when using each pikmin for their intended roles. But even beyond the elemental properties, things like the yellow's arc or white's grab range add so much to the character.

As for the popularity, he is a projectile based character whose moves look very similar to the untrained eye. I think if you see the Olimar meta expand to a more offensive offstage game with spikes and swatting people away with pikmin, you might get some more hype for Olimar players. The development of his offstage game is possible because Olimar does get a free ride back to the stage, but you also don't want to let your opponent back to the stage while you're still recovering.

And I agree that it's easier to build a connection when you feel like you're one of the few who uses a character. If I picked Sheik, I know I'd be just using a tool in my attempt to be the best player I can be. When I pick Olimar, I'm doing it partially because, yes, I think he's competitive enough that I won't get frustrated, but also because I enjoy the character.

 

[Reila]

Because 1. The Pikmin series isn't that popular and 2. Olimar doesn't look like an animu character. It is mostly because of the later, otherwise DK would be popular (since his series is popular), but he isn't. It is a shame, really.

 

[Appdude]

People rarely ever choose him. why do you think that is?

Because he's dumb

 

[Babycowland]

Because he's dumb

I'd say he's pretty intelligent actually, judging by the ship log and Piklopedia entries he wrote in the Pikmin games.

Alph's an engineer, so I'd imagine that he has his share of smarts too.

 

[koken]

There should be an option for "I don't like" xD

 

[Xandercosm]

I was literally about to make a post about this. I have been playing Smash 4 from day 1. And I've maybe seen 3 Olimar players at most. 3 FREAKING PLAYERS. It's insane that one character could be that unanimously underused...

 

[Xandercosm]

Because 1. The Pikmin series isn't that popular and 2. Olimar doesn't look like an animu character. It is mostly because of the later, otherwise DK would be popular (since his series is popular), but he isn't. It is a shame, really.

Sorry for the double-post but I just had to reply to this monstrosity of a post.

How would a character being anime or not effect their popularity. 90% of the characters don't even look REMOTELY anime. Also, DK is very popular.

 

[Appdude]

I'd say he's pretty intelligent actually, judging by the ship log and Piklopedia entries he wrote in the Pikmin games.

Alph's an engineer, so I'd imagine that he has his share of smarts too.

Interesting response. Didn't see that one coming.

 

[Yogurt]

cus he kinda ugly?

 

[Thinktron]

im convinced its his appearance

pit has a similar problem, hes never used because dark pit exists

 

[Xandercosm]

im convinced its his appearance

pit has a similar problem, hes never used because dark pit exists

What's wrong with his appearance?

 

[Thinktron]

What's wrong with his appearance?

he has no anime eyes

 

[Xandercosm]

he has no anime eyes

Oh my god... Everyone on this thread is so stupid. If people only cared about anime eyes they wouldn't be playing a fighting game about goofy cartoon characters. Man, this thread is so bad. Someone please freaking lock it already!

 

[Thinktron]

Oh my god... Everyone on this thread is so stupid. If people only cared about anime eyes they wouldn't be playing a fighting game about goofy cartoon characters. Man, this thread is so bad. Someone please freaking lock it already!

joke
noun

1. a thing that someone says to cause amusement or laughter.

 

[Xandercosm]

joke
noun

1. a thing that someone says to cause amusement or laughter.

Lol... you rekt me...

 

[Spatman]

Probably because for many people his battle style is really really boring

 

[Freezie KO]

he has no anime eyes

I know this is a joke, but one of the reasons I like the Pikmin 3 designs less than the original character designs is because they gave them large cartoon eyes. It's a pretty well-known concept in animation that giving characters larger eyes is a cheap trick to create more empathy. So they kinda sacrificed some of the uniqueness of the original characters.

 

[Thinktron]

I know this is a joke, but one of the reasons I like the Pikmin 3 designs less than the original character designs is because they gave them large cartoon eyes. It's a pretty well-known concept in animation that giving characters larger eyes is a cheap trick to create more empathy. So they kinda sacrificed some of the uniqueness of the original characters.

I agree, guess it was because Hocations eyes bulge out in fear or shock, it was kinda gross at the time

 

[TestyCoals]

Check out a player named Greenbeast, his Olimar is very good and has placed well in tournaments!

 

[Deleted member]

He's great. Going to make him my third main after Mario 1st main and Link 2 nd main.

 

[sims796]

Well, I think it's pretty obvious. He has a pretty high learning curve all across the board. For true casuals, you gotta pass a barrier to even play at the most rudimentary level. For example, my little niece, doesn't play smash much (she loves it, though), can pick up Mario or Luigi (or ZSS) and play with a level of competency that gives her the sense of progress, that she's able to have fun without learning the character too hard (mind you, she has a hard enough time using up b). You ain't getting that from Olimar. You need to really learn how he plays to even play him casually.

And then there's the advance stuff, like not only knowing the properties on each Pikmin, but knowing how to manipulate which one you get, and how & when to use each, along with knowing how to use his actual attacks.

And really, think about what he does compared to others, at their most basic. If you wanna play the ranged game, there are plenty of easier folks, like Ness and Link (again, at the basic level). Link can fill the screen with projectiles far simpler than Olimar, but the latter is of course far more unique in playstyle. Noob-friendly Olimar isn't, but which one is better at it is a topic left to those more knowlegable than I.

Still, he's different enough that I legitimately want to learn how to use him at least casually, since I love up-close and personal folks like Luigi, so I guess you guys earned yourself a new lurker.

 

[Babycowland]

Well, I think it's pretty obvious. He has a pretty high learning curve all across the board. For true casuals, you gotta pass a barrier to even play at the most rudimentary level. For example, my little niece, doesn't play smash much (she loves it, though), can pick up Mario or Luigi (or ZSS) and play with a level of competency that gives her the sense of progress, that she's able to have fun without learning the character too hard (mind you, she has a hard enough time using up b). You ain't getting that from Olimar. You need to really learn how he plays to even play him casually.

Yeah, I agree with you there. I feel like Olimar is one of the few characters with a "gimmick" that you kind of have to learn if you want to play him decently, even in casual play. One of the things that really stuck out to me when I first played him in Brawl was how his specials were a lot more interconnected than other characters' were. Plus, only two of them (now just one if you don't count customs) dealt damage and none of his non-damaging specials are counters or reflectors.

I think it's pretty normal for people new to Smash to rely on specials a lot (or at least, that's what I did for a long time), so the fact that Olimar doesn't have straightforward damage dealing ones like a bunch of other characters do probably makes him seem unappealing to many people just starting out. Add to that the fact that you have to keep track of your Pikmin and you have a character that might seem like more trouble than he's worth. Of course, once I sort of understood the basics of Brawl Olimar, I still ended up spamming Pikmin throw and smash attacks all the time, so it's not like you'll automatically become a pro once you pass that first barrier, haha.

And then there's the advance stuff, like not only knowing the properties on each Pikmin, but knowing how to manipulate which one you get, and how & when to use each, along with knowing how to use his actual attacks.

It probably doesn't help things that the com Olimars/Alphs don't seem to pick their moves based on their Pikmin lineups. If they used their whistles more to rearrange their lineups or changed their tactics based on which 3 Pikmin they had at any moment, I feel like people who don't have as much experience with higher level Olimar/Alph play might be a little more likely to see their potential. Or maybe not. I don't really know. I guess I'm just basing this off of my own experience which is that I didn't really pick up on that stuff until coming here and reading up on it, even though I played Olimar a ton back in Brawl's heyday. Nobody else I knew played him, so I was mostly on my own a lot of the time trying to figure out how he worked.

 

[Slashster]

I think it's mainly because, just like other people have stated the popularity of his games. They're not very popular, and I doubt much people would pick a small, stout spaceman with a giant nose and walking rainbow carrots, that being said. Even though I am a huge fan of pikmin, I was at first put off by olimar myself. His changes from brawl came off a bit rough to me. Besides from that, when I did get around to playing olimar I found it difficult to have a pikmin alive, in the order I want for my attacks.

Though it may be because a pikmin desync when you would've got a kill... yeah. It's probably that.

 

[Freezie KO]

Though it may be because a pikmin desync when you would've got a kill... yeah. It's probably that.

What kind of scrubs do a move and expect to actually execute that move? Back in my day, we were lucky to have a smash attack and we had to walk the entire circumference of Hocotate just to go to school.

 

[A-money2121]

I think it's mainly because, just like other people have stated the popularity of his games. They're not very popular, and I doubt much people would pick a small, stout spaceman with a giant nose and walking rainbow carrots, that being said. Even though I am a huge fan of pikmin, I was at first put off by olimar myself. His changes from brawl came off a bit rough to me. Besides from that, when I did get around to playing olimar I found it difficult to have a pikmin alive, in the order I want for my attacks.

Though it may be because a pikmin desync when you would've got a kill... yeah. It's probably that.

Eh, you'll be surprised. As a result of the Pikmin 3 release, Pikmin has grown to become a much more favored, anticipated series amongst many new and recurring Nintendo fans, likely due to its gameplay uniqueness and addictive elements within it compared to the alternative spectrum of Nintendo titles.

 

[C0rvus]

Olimar isn't popular for a couple reasons.
The biggest one is that people think he's lame. He's a campy character that people don't like to play against. He's also pretty good, but not good enough to justify playing him unless you like him. How many people play Sheik because they like the character, you know?
Also Olimar is pretty unusual and many people find him difficult. I don't see it, Pikmin management comes pretty easily to me, so idk. Olimar was my most hyped newcomer in Brawl, played that guy day 1. Pikmin 2 is one of my favorite games of all time. I could care less if he's unpopular tbh.

 

[Mothman]

I think the reason why I picked up Olimar was because "oh he looks like an alien" and I like aliens so I decided why not? I was kinda tired of playing Ness at the time, and I had only briefly played Olimar in brawl but he felt complicated so I hadnt taken him seriously. Anyway Im glad I picked him, I feel it's the fact that he plays completely different than any other character in smash imo so he's not an easy one to pick up if youre used to playing other characters. Plus theres also the thing I feel with Olimar that there really is a high skill cap for him where even if youre a pretty good player youll most likely have trouble using to some degree, to the point where sometimes I wonder if a lot of wins are due to the majority of players not knowing the match up? Anyway, he's definitely one of the more underrated characters, and also one of the more frustrating ones to use....but theres something so satisfying about being able to deal so much damage in a matter of seconds (like just throwing a white pikmin on someone and then following up with a combo while the white pikmin deals damage and then they are at like 70% after a few moves and youre like "oh my gad").