Even though E3 is nearly upon us, Nintendo just released another batch of videos via
the official Pikmin 3 website in Japan that showcase the 5 main Pikmin types.
So it's time to start up the old analysis machine to see what secrets they might be
hiding.
But please make sure to check out our previous Pikmin 3 analysis videos if you haven't already
as we'll be focusing on only the new content here.
And with that, let's get started by taking a look at the Rock Pikmin scene, which showcases
two new enemies.
First up is this guy, who not only looks similar to the Cloaking Burrow-nit from Pikmin 2,
but appears to behave in the same way.
And then we have this similar looking flying type, which also attacks in pretty much the
same way--only from above.
Though it seems if he misses, he'll get his tongue stuck in the ground, making him vulnerable
to attack
Now you have have noticed that in both of these clips, there's a strange border around
the screen, along with a text box on the right.
We're pretty confident this is the new scanning feature, which allows you to learn about creatures
as you encounter them, kind of like in Metroid Prime.
Now a third scene involving the rock pikmin shows them being stomped repeatedly by a Wollywog.
But it seems their rocky exterior will protect them from being killed, as they only suffer
from either being blown black, or being pounded into the ground.
While we're on this scene, do you remember the yellow page-like icon that we pointed
out in our previous analysis?
Well, we see a lot even more of them this time, such as on the ledge here, or inside
this crystal, or among the plants here
We're still not entirely sure what they are, but based on their page icons, and the varied
locations they appear in, we still think they might mark information areas where data will
be downloaded to your Koppad for later access, as supported y that same icon appearing on
the gamepad's touchscreen./
Moving on, we get a glimpse at a couple of new fruit in the game, First up is this one,
which we think might be a plum.
Then in this clip, we can see the Pikmin carrying a bunch of grapes.
But did you notice there appears to be a grape counter on the screen too?
We haven't seen anything like this in the pprevious trailers, so What could that be
for??
We know it's not counting the amount of grapes the Pikmin are carrying since they're holding
far more than 3, but maybe it shows how many you've taken back to the ship?
Or perhaps it's showing how many are left for you to collect for some purpose?
We really don't know as nothing like this has appeared in a Pikmin game before.
But a similar icon does pop up duyring the Blue Pikmin footage only that one's lacking
a number.
Now it's hard to tell what fruit it's representing, but we think it's the same one being carried
by the Pikmin here--is it a peach?
And speaking of the interface, we can see that it appears the sun icon on the timer
will start blinking once it passes the third to last dot, as no other footage has exhibited
this trait prior to that point
So it should serve as a subtle reminder that time's almost up.
And speaking of that timer, there's are a couple of scenes that it doesn't appear in
at all.
Take this clip for example, which looks awfully cave-like.
And since we already know from our previous analysis that caves are likely to be back,
it seems that, like Pikmin 2, the ones here won't have a timer here either.
But in another clip which also looks to take place in a cave, there is a timer.
Perhaps this clip doesn't actually take place underground, but perhaps inside some kind
of structure instead ?
Although as you might have noticed, the timer does disappear later in that same clip, but
so does the rest of the interface, suggesting this is a cutscene.
And speaking of this cutscene, we can see that it results from using the Yellow Pikmin--who
are immune to electricity--as conduits to pass the electricity from the batteries here,
along the frayed wire, to this giant light bulb--well, giant to the Pikmin at least!
Now we've never seen anything before like this, suggesting an entirely new puzzle element
for the yelloe Pikmin, which is pretty cool!
Unfortunately, the scene fades out before we can fully see what the result is, besides
the light turning on of course.
But if we freeze it here, we can see some objects in the water reacting to the light--though
it could just be reflecting it as well.
But beyond that, watch this plant in the background--yup, it starts to rise as soon as the light turns
on, seemingly being activated by the light source.
Though oddly, the one right nxt to it doesn't.
We're not sure why, but it seems light activate plants may be tied to the puzzles as well
Finally, did you notice about half of the yellow Pikmin grew flowers on their head after
helping pass the current--yup, it seems like this may be another way to power-up your Pikmin
Now let's get back to the interface for another quick moment, as we noticed something interesting.
In several of the clips, there's only one of the three character icons displayed on-screen.
Now we've seen this before with the Day 1 footage from the previous trailer--but these
clips show it taking place quite a bit later, such as on Days 7 and 10.
So what's the deal?
Well, it could mean that the characters might be split up at some point?
But more likely, it could just mean the other characters were defeated in battle, as Pikmin
2 removed your partner's icon when that happened.
Okay, we're almost done here, but a usual, there are still just a few final details left.
For one, did you notice each the Pikmin types now have a distinct voice?
Let's take
a listen.
Yup, they all sound slightly different from one another.
Pretty cool, huh?
Next up, did you spot the Bomb Rocks in the background here?
It seems they'll be back, as we predicted would be back in our previous analysis based
on the bombable wall we discovered.
Now in Pikmin 1, only the Yellow Pikmin could carry them, so we wonder if that'll still
be the case here too.
Their similar size does suggest this, unlike the ones in Pikmin2 which couldn't be carried
at all
Then we get a look at a couple more returning enemies, such as the Toady Bloyster from Pikmin
2, though now sporting a slightly different appearance, and also appears to be vulnerable
all-around, instead of just on the bulb on its tail.
Then there's the Puffy Blowhog, who also looks very similar, but can now shake attacking
Pikmin loose.
And though it's not quite an enemy, we do get an up-close view of the electric gates,
which as we pointed out before, look quite a bit different now.
And on the topic of enemies, in this clip we get another look at this crab monster that
we saw quite a while ago.
But did you notice a message from Alph that appears while attacking him?
Is this activated by the player, or is it automatic response to something happening?
And while we're on this scene, there's an odd object here with a wire running trough
it--what could that be for?
It could just be a background detail.
And in case you're wondering about the weird blue thing behind it, with the number?
That looks to just be a pile of tiles the Pikmin can use to build a bridge, such as
the one seen just moments earlier
Finally, let's take a look at one of the Winged Pikmin scenes.
For one, what are they carrying here?
Is that a plum?
And if we look in the background, we can now see confirmation that the pink pellets which
we saw before will indeed grow on Flowers too.
Beyond that, there's also a spiderweb in the background with what appears to be a cocoon
stuck in the middle--could there be a new enemy inside
Finally, the Japanese website also revealed a few new screenshots--but be warned, they're
super small, so they may look pretty ugly once I blow them up.
The first gives us a close-up look at the 3 new characters, and it reveals the whistle
they use to command the Pikmin is actually part of their outfit--cool!
The next picture shows Alph stumling upon a camera, which means it's probably something
you'll have to track down in order to enable the picture-taking option we already know
about.
But based on the environment which resembles the footage we've seen fo Day 1, and the fact
he only has Red Pikmin with him, we're geussing it turns up pretty early.
Finally, we get a look at what appears to be the World Map annd so far we can see two
distinct regions,, though since there are some we know about not shown here, such as
the snow-covered landscaper, we're guessing there are even more off-screen.
In fact, the curviture of the planet here suggests you might be able to rotate around
the entire thing and land on contintens all over the woerld, instead of being stuck to
the small regons of past Pikmin games,
Finally, we can see that it's Day 2 here, which is the same day we suggested you might
actually find Brittany on in our past analysis.
So could the highlight area be where she ended up?
And with that, we're done covering everything we could dig up on Pikmin 3.
As usual, let us know if we missed anything by posting in the comments.
Thanks for watching ans make sure to stay tuned to GameXplain.com for more analysis
videos and other things gaming too!