Editorial: Why do Pikmin have to die? (Polygon)

[Nabbit]

Why do Pikmin have to die

www.polygon.com

This article struck a chord with me. The author recalls struggling to see Pikmin perish as a child. I'm the same way. The more I've played Pikmin games, the harder a time I have losing one. I felt incredibly stressed playing some of the more challenging sections of Pikmin 2 while trying not to lose many Pikmin. The Pikmin are so individually endearing that losing one and seeing its spirit float off feels affecting and meaningful. It didn't bother me in Pikmin Adventure (Nintendo Land) since the characters are just Miis dressing up. I really appreciated in Hey! Pikmin that the game recognizes you with a gold medal for getting all 20 Pikmin to the exit.

Anyone else feel like this? Are there other games that have given you similar experiences?

 

[Many]

It's just a game. I don't like to lose pikmins because they are resources, that's all.

 

[Pancho]

I think its very in line with the theme of the game being a wild, unexplored dangerous planet. Death is part of the natural cycle of life and thats true for everything, even cute Pikmin

 

[L Thammy]

Play it Fire Emblem style. Reset whenever you lose a Pikmin.

 

[Chromie]

Anyone else feel like this? Are there other games that have given you similar experiences?

Click to shrink...

Nope, they're cute cannon fodder.

 

[RochHoch]

Because nature is cruel

 

[Kingpin Rogers]

Sometimes it's nice to be sad.

 

[Mivey]

Because Miyamoto enjoys seeing young children cry.

 

[Stencil]

I mean yeah, as a kid it was harrowing to hear the cries of a pikmin in water, or the sad moan as their ghost floats and dissipates. But nowadays it's only slightly distressing, because they're necessary resources. I've become a heartless capitalist overlord. Which helps to enjoy Pikmin.

 

[Birdie]

I finally played a Fire Emblem without restarting to save characters from death and...

Yeah it hit me surprisingly hard. Two of my best units killed, one who had been with me since the beginning, and I honestly sat around depressed for a few hours.

 

[Xita]

Why do Pikmin have to die

www.polygon.com

This article struck a chord with me. The author recalls struggling to see Pikmin perish as a child. I'm the same way. The more I've played Pikmin games, the harder a time I have losing one. I felt incredibly stressed playing some of the more challenging sections of Pikmin 2 while trying not to lose many Pikmin. The Pikmin are so individually endearing that losing one and seeing its spirit float off feels affecting and meaningful. It didn't bother me in Pikmin Adventure (Nintendo Land) since the characters are just Miis dressing up. I really appreciated in Hey! Pikmin that the game recognizes you with a gold medal for getting all 20 Pikmin to the exit.

Anyone else feel like this? Are there other games that have given you similar experiences?

Click to shrink...

Nah, I've always been the exact same way. The games are incredibly stressful for me to play, and losing even one Pikmin is so demoralizing. Just hearing its cry of death makes me so sad : (

I still like to play them despite this though and I don't know why lol

 

[Hours Left]

It does bother me.

 

[Deleted member 61531]

Play it Fire Emblem style. Reset whenever you lose a Pikmin.

Click to shrink...

I tried this with Pikmin 1, and it became clear that this was a conscious design choice. You get to a point where you simply can't progress any further without some pikmin dying.

You're supposed to feel a little sad.

 

[Zebesian-X]

I knew this was an Ana Diaz joint as soon as I saw the title. This was a nice read :) makes me want to download Pikmin 3

 

[Odesu]

It's just a game. I don't like to lose pikmins because they are resources, that's all.

Click to shrink...

People can have emotional responses to fictional media, more news at a11.

 

[Cantaim]

Nah, I've always been the exact same way. The games are incredibly stressful for me to play, and losing even one Pikmin is so demoralizing. Just hearing its cry of death makes me so sad : (

I still like to play them despite this though and I don't know why lol

Click to shrink...

The worst is in Pikmin 3 when out of nowhere you see 20 Pikmin suddenly die because you weren't paying attention to their task you assigned them. Made me feel terrible lol.

 

[Man God]

For alien capitalists.

 

[DECK’ARD]

If you don't feel the death of a Pikmin you have no soul.

 

[Inugami]

OP "why must the pikmin die?"
Also OP, playing the game, killing all of the other wildlife that were only trying to live their lives....

 

[Stopdoor]

Tbh, if you're sad about Pikmin dying, it seems a slight bit hypocritical to not care as much for the enemies they face, who are 90% of the time just creatures doing their own business. The villian is sort of the player characters themselves, but they're stranded and doing what's necessary as well.

Actually though, I read some interesting article about how Pikmin 2 fails this premise by twisting the "environmentalism" of the original, I'll try to find it. It was a bit cynical to me but from this perspective it does make it more perverse.

 

[xir]

slightly related but my dad hated it when i'd use the nuke button the lemmings in lemmings

 

[Chalphy]

Try playing an Advance Wars game without letting any of your soldiers die.

 

[Neiteio]

I imagine Nabbit is vegetarian, not wishing to harm real-life animals. But then Pikmin comes along and puts faces and feelings on vegetables!

I just head-canon that the Pikmin reincarnate. I also recall Miyamoto saying he wanted kids to realize that life continues in the world after one dies, and to take comfort in that.

 

[InspectorJones]

Cause it's a neat mechanic. Pikmin are supposed to die, it's okay to feel a little sad over it, but that's why Flower Pikmin drops seeds after they die.

 

[Zeno]

 

[Stopdoor]

Ok, wasn't too hard to find, but yeah, this article does kind of point out the "flawed" premise of Pikmin 2. Kind of overly cynical to me, but it seems notable that Pikmin 3 kind of corrected on this with an even more obvious environmentalism message.

Why Pikmin is Better than Pikmin 2 - The Gemsbok

This article analyzes the tone and design of the single-player campaigns in Pikmin and Pikmin 2, concluding that the original Pikmin is the stronger title.

thegemsbok.com

 

[Kinthey]

They die for the greater good

 

[Blayde]

Why do I have to die

I don't want to

 

[Kazooie]

OP "why must the pikmin die?"
Also OP, playing the game, killing all of the other wildlife that were only trying to live their lives....

Click to shrink...

I always feel a bit bad about killing those lovable red bugs. I also feel a bit sad when a Pikmin dies, but at the same time I think the game would work much worse without it.

 

[RatskyWatsky]

If I lose too many Pikmin I just reset ngl

 

[AgeEighty]

I think its very in line with the theme of the game being a wild, unexplored dangerous planet. Death is part of the natural cycle of life and thats true for everything, even cute Pikmin

Click to shrink...

These are my thoughts exactly, and I'm pretty sure it's what Nintendo was going for. Underneath its cute skin, Pikmin is a game about survival, about life and death and overcoming adversity.

 

[Teenage Fansub]

The light morbid humor of it gives the game some flavor.

Some level of nastiness in kid/family focused entertainment is good, imo.

 

[Slamtastic]

 

[Catalyst]

The worst is when you mishandle a bomb rock and lose 50 Pikmin at once with an explosion.

 

[SkyOdin]

Try playing an Advance Wars game without letting any of your soldiers die.

Click to shrink...

I've seen a Let's Play do a pretty admirable job of that.

 

[Capricorn]

I honestly have never finished a Pikmin game because of this reason, I even bought 3 for the Wii U thinking that I would have gotten over it now that I'm older but seeing multiple Pikmin die at the same time still makes me feel like shit :(

 

[Deleted member 17388]

I always try to play Pikmin as I do Fire Emblem: Leaving no one behind.

But I guess the game should/could be played like what says in the Ai no Uta song:

 

[Nabbit]

OP "why must the pikmin die?"
Also OP, playing the game, killing all of the other wildlife that were only trying to live their lives....

Click to shrink...

Tbh, if you're sad about Pikmin dying, it seems a slight bit hypocritical to not care as much for the enemies they face, who are 90% of the time just creatures doing their own business. The villian is sort of the player characters themselves, but they're stranded and doing what's necessary as well.

Actually though, I read some interesting article about how Pikmin 2 fails this premise by twisting the "environmentalism" of the original, I'll try to find it. It was a bit cynical to me but from this perspective it does make it more perverse.

Click to shrink...

Good point. I should have mentioned that it does make me sad and uncomfortable at times to see bulborbs and other animals perish.

 

[Servbot24]

That's the point of the game. It's supposed to be sad when they die.

 

[Nabbit]

I imagine Nabbit is vegetarian, not wishing to harm real-life animals. But then Pikmin comes along and puts faces and feelings on vegetables!

I just head-canon that the Pikmin reincarnate. I also recall Miyamoto saying he wanted kids to realize that life continues in the world after one dies, and to take comfort in that.

Click to shrink...

I remember reading that, too. I'm not a vegetarian anymore, unfortunately, so I know that makes me a hypocrite, but I do hope to become vegetarian or vegan again one day.

 

[SCUMMbag]

I think they have the worst deaths of any Nintendo character.

Either them or possibly, Mario drowning in 64. That was fucked up.

 

[Nabbit]

I always try to play Pikmin as I do Fire Emblem: Leaving no one behind.

But I guess the game should/could be played like what says in the Ai no Uta song:

Click to shrink...

My wife has a Pikmin bag from Club Nintendo that says pretty much this same thing. I definitely understand that it's a circle of life thing, I just feel like it's more poignant in Pikmin than most other games. Maybe because in most games I play, death means restarting and has no permanence to it. You don't really see Mario die and then keep going on without him.

 

[Nabbit]

I think they have the worst deaths of any Nintendo character.

Either them or possibly, Mario drowning in 64. That was fucked up.

Click to shrink...

I remember Banjo-Kazooie drowning was pretty rough too.

 

[HK-47]

I work hard to keep them alive. It adds stakes.

 

[Zyrox]

Everything that lives has to die one day. It's just the cycle of nature.

 

[Thorn]

Speaking of Pikmin, how is 3 on the switch? Playable in Handheld?

 

[DoctorPlayer MD]

My wife has a Pikmin bag from Club Nintendo that says pretty much this same thing. I definitely understand that it's a circle of life thing, I just feel like it's more poignant in Pikmin than most other games. Maybe because in most games I play, death means restarting and has no permanence to it. You don't really see Mario die and then keep going on without him.

Click to shrink...

This is what makes death in Pikmin feel more real.. they die, and yet you don't just start over and avoid it, they are gone forever and life moves on.

 

[Chumunga64]

I mean, I assume the devs hoped that you'd be sad when they die since you're not supposed to let them die

Pikmin is hardcore though. a game of kill or be killed

 

[lovecatt]

It adds to the stakes

for me at least

 

[TonyBaduy]

It's a strategy game, the point is to beat it while trying to keep all your Pikmin, you need to learn how to manage them, how to move, how to make the best move you have available, to prevent losing them. It's part of the challenge. You can choose to let some die and go on, or try to keep them all alive against all odds, it is your decision, but one is harder than the other, however, some may find satisfaction in beating a day without losing any of their dear Pikmin. Also, nature is cruel and can be very violent, which this game never forgets to remind you of, even the enemies want to live and for that they have to eat or defend themselves and if you are in their path or attack them, they'll fight to live, just as you fight to survive in a cruel environment. So think how to best manage your Pikmin and move through the world, that way you can avoid most, if not all loses and feel happy with yourself.