#can you tell i really like oatchi

[cottonfeltgembira]

Madarei week 2023, day 4 : games (of the video kind)

[pollyanna-nana]

Louie isn’t evil.

Or: what Pikmin 4 tells us about his character.

BIG WARNING FOR PIKMIN 4 SPOILERS! (and the rest of the series)

———

I want to preface this by saying that I am in no way trying to be the end-all, be-all of character interpretations, but Pikmin 4 to me, at least, confirms the suspicions I’ve had since playing Pikmin 2 and 3 all those years ago that Louie ISN’T secretly evil, or possessed, or whatever else. He’s just… Louie. And I think that’s interesting in and of itself.

1. Olimar himself vouches for him, and clearly doesn’t think he’s a bad person.

Say what you will, but I’m inclined to think Olimar is a decent judge of character. Clearly he’s worked with Louie for enough time to see that while he’s not very good at his job, he’s not intentionally so— at least not in a malevolent way (will get more into this later). He also wants you to forgive him for Olimar’s sake, which can be read as self-sacrificing (as Olimar is known to be) but I also think hints at the soft spot he has for Louie.

It's also worth noting that he states during a end-of-day conversation that he told Louie that, since he's a new employee, he should do everything Olimar does... including throw castaways into the onion. Interesting that Louie took this so literally, but it does provide an explanation for why he kidnapped the Koppaites beyond "he's evil and crazy".

2. He really, REALLY loves his grandma.

Like, wow. He talks about her SO MUCH both in his Piklopedia entries and also elsewhere in the game. It's interesting. Worth noting is that he never mentions any other family members- unlike Olimar, who talks about his wife and each of his children independently. I've said this before, but the content of a lot of these entries implies to me that Louie was mainly raised by his grandma, likely since birth. And given some of her emails in Pikmin 2, assuming they're also canon to Pikmin 4's timeline... Well, Louie certainly had an interesting upbringing. But he clearly loves her all the same.

3. He has a mischievous streak and tends to do things on impulse.

This was already fairly obvious from the previous games, but I think it's worth noting that this game confirms that he's... would immature be the right word? In any regard, he doesn't seem to see himself as a "grown-up"- when in all likelihood he is. Personally, as a 22-year-old, I find that pretty relatable as I often think of myself as younger when in reality I am by all definitions an adult. This, along with his grandma still being around, makes it pretty much certain that Louie is a lot younger than Olimar and the president, likely in his early to mid twenties. Being a bit of a goofball isn't really out of the ordinary, all things considered.

THAT BEING SAID, he's clearly capable of practicing self-restraint when he wants to. What he says here about the red Pikmin is pretty significant, since we know he's willing to eat just about anything- but clearly he has some reservations about creatures that are friendly and helpful. Which leads to...

4. He loves dogs and fluffy things.

Same. But he doesn't even consider eating Moss, Oatchi or the Ancient Sirehound, showing that his creature-eating habits stop at things he recognizes as useful. He clearly also holds affection for things that are soft and fuzzy, and says as much.

5. He is so autism.

He plays with fidget toys. He loves certain textures and sounds. This guy is stimming all over PNF-404!!! I think this also lends some explanation for why his behavior is what it is- things like taking Olimar's suggestion to do as he does super literally even after crashing on an alien planet, his hyperfixation on cooking and tendency not to communicate and incorrectly interpret situations (thinking the Koppaites are kidnappers in 3, running away from you in 4). He could even be low or no empathy as well, explaining why it takes a hot minute to get him to understand why people are upset with him about something.

Interestingly this game also makes it clear that Louie wants to live on the planet, or at least thought he did while you were chasing him down, which makes a lot of sense when you consider that he doesn't really seem to fit in back on Hocotate. I, too, wish to run away to an alien world with all of the things that I like and no other people, so I get you, Louie.

6. He hates his boss and his job, and the golden pikpik carrot incident was likely premeditated.

This probably looks bad, but honestly? As a fellow work-hating anti-capitalist schmuck I get it. The president is for all intents and purposes a huge asshole, from sending Olimar straight back to the planet after selling his ship to not caring that Louie got left behind, just wanting to find the rest of the treasures. I doubt he is very kind to his employees, and doesn't seem very good at running the business. Definitely a funny character, but if he were my boss I would absolutely want to punt him into the sun.

From some other entries he clearly wants to sell certain things to accrue money, but it's for things like getting better kitchen tools and following his dream to have his own cooking show. Clearly being a freight driver isn't what Louie actually wants to do with his life, and he could not give less of a shit about what happens to the company. Very short-sighted on his part, but also again, yeah I get you Louie.

7. He... doesn't like the color red for some reason.

Honestly, I'm not even really sure what to make of this. Is it because it reminds him of the Hocotate ship? Or does he just not like the color? Would be very interesting considering that it's Olimar's signature color. Perhaps that's at least part of why he attacks you in Pikmin 2- though that's speculation for another day.

Also funny to me is his comments on the black-colored treasures. We know blue is his favorite color, but I guess he's also a bit of a goth at heart. Lol.

In conclusion.

I think Louie isn't written or intended to be evil, and Pikmin 4's portrayal of him was intentionally written to confirm this. He's just, as some have said, an agent of chaos, but that doesn't make him a bad person. Just an autistic 20-something working a shitty job he doesn't care about, who loves his grandma and has a mischievous streak and a hyperfixation on food. At least from what I can interpret, ymmv!

[splitster]

answering ASKSSSSS

featuring: headcanons, mspaint yonny, and more

check it out! ↓↓

UHH the timeline is already hard enough to follow for 4 it's a little messy... I imagine for the pom wraith AU, it's mostly the events of pikmin 4 with some extra bits tacked onto it (like Olimar encountering the plasm at some point on his lonesome).

WAHHH THANK YOU... heres some secret mod lore, yonny is the HARDEST motherfucker to draw for me. he was ever since i started drawing the rescue corps and he still is!!!!!!!!!!!! his stupid face is so HARD GRRUUAUUGGHH

THANK YOU!!! i have a few bernard drawings/doodles in the pipeline to post eventually

(ive done a few ask masterposts at this point so forgive me if i already answered this one) AHHHHH i mean pom DOES really like Olimar. he challenges her skills out on the field when she's trying to track him down as a leafling which she finds engaging, and she finds him quite charming from the logs she reads. after he's cured, he's nothing but kind and supportive.

i don't think she'd try to take off with him like the plasm, but she'd feel protective over him if something were to threaten him

WAUUGGHH THANK YOU!!!! putting my favorite fictional characters into an enclosure and watching them

THANK YOU!!! you get it, he's so wet and pathetic

YEAH i have more bernard incoming!!! he's so genuinely supportive and it kinda freaks pom out because she can't tell if he has ulterior motivations or not (he doesn't. he's just a really cool dude. they'll become besties💖)

i'll perform the summoning ritual for you anon

there he is. what a jolly fellow

THIS IS A REALLY GOOD QUESTION... i had to consult with my friends for a lengthy food discussion (big hearts to @cosmicocoffee who helped me with like literally all of them)

for Pom, she's a wraith, so she just likes interesting and strong tastes. she's very partial to sweet things, and she LOVES chocolate (because that's one of the first sweets she ever tasted). although, she also like really spicy things because it's a neat feeling. as for least favorite, uh... i mean, the girl will literally eat soap for fun. it's very rare for her to have a food item she despises. they DO exist though, she fucking hates raisins

Dingo likes MANLY food, like MEAT and RIBS. well, he mostly likes being seen eating it. he does have a fondness for sweet things and smoothies. the town he grew up in could get pretty cold, so he grew up eating quite a lot of hot meals like caldo de res (he's especially fond of soups made the way his mama used to make them). he also picks up a fondness for hot tea from growing up with yonny, but he always puts extra honey in his cups. dingo HATES some foods though, especially sushi. the last time he tried to impress people by eating sushi, Dingo was hunched over outside the restaurant with Yonny rubbing his back...

shepherd! likes coffee. @soupvnova said she'd go to starbucks (spacebucks?) often to get the pup cup for oatchi which is very good. she has the healthiest diet out of all of them with routine exercise, protein shakes, lots of fruits and shit. she does have a weakness and a bit of a sweet tooth though, especially for cake. it hardly puts a dent in her diet though given her metabolism, she's a very built captain. she's not a fan of steamed vegetables... too squishy for her.

while talking about shepherd it is imperative to share that Oatchi will eat ANYTHING. if something hits the ground it is in his mouth immediately, shepherd has had to wrestle him to get space dog-unsafe food outta there before. although she will also constantly sneak him stuff from the dinner table

collin's fun because he enjoys eating healthy, he's a fan of fresh spring salads and stuff like pineapples and watermelon, but he also has to live off of a lot of processed/vending machine food because the man pulls all nighters frequently. he's also prone to stress eating... you can find him demolishing a watermelon and he's just. covered with seeds. he likes crunchy foods and seeds-- he's very hamstercore. he comes to Despise instant noodles because of how often he has to rely on them for food in the dead of night

fucking uhhh yonny, he likes foods that pair well with reading, he has pretty "mature" tastes and enjoys tea, maybe a glass of wine if he's feeling it. he often gets tunnel vision with his work and will neglect to eat, and as their doctor he'll have to set reminders on his phone to go have a meal so he doesn't fall ill. i can imagine he's not too into sugary things...

we already know bernard has some very expensive tastes, but he might just struggle with some textures or tastes in food. like, he enjoys pizza, this man is just a very picky eater... i can see him having tastes all over the board though. also he's protective over his stuff, he cared more about dingo eating his pizza than abandoning him

russ. uh... russ. yeah

olimar and louie are not part of the rescue corps, but i could see olimar joining (and louie following) sometime after the events of 4! he'd get a much better benefits package... he'd be good at providing logistical support for rangers out on the field, although his achy back would probably keep him off the field himself

AHH THANK YOU!! i have written some things but i don't have anything published -- to be honest, i'm not much of a fic writer. most of my writing is mostly just me talking through ideas/stories/cool character moments with friends, which is not a very shareable format unfortunately💔

i will say, talking about ideas with buddies gives me a shit load of ideas/motivation for drawing, and a lot of the stuff i've posted probably had that as an origin

THANK YOU!! and yeah of course that's fine! every artist is a collection of inspirations, and i'm no exception. my style comes from studying what i like in art and media (made by other people). i'm honored you find me as an inspiration💖

AUGH AUGH THANK YOU!!! i appreciate the anatomically correct hearts 💖💖

YEAHH i have designs that i've been meaning to flesh out but i'm lazy... i've been sitting on a dingo and yonny wraith design for like a month now, i should just bite the bullet and post them as-is if i ever want to share them... oh well! it's all for fun, i'm not gonna stress about it looking good

---

thank you for reading this far!! and thank you all for the asks, i will continue to slowly get through them...

[hana-bobo-finch]

screw it I’m bored I’m gonna write a pikmin fanfic right here right now on the fly lmao

tw for mentions of ptsd but it’s generally in a lighthearted tone like the rest of it, nothing too dark I think, but just putting it out there

“Yon!” Dingo screeched, barreling into Yonny’s lab. “Look at what that—that mutt did to me!” He shoved his arm into Yonny’s face. Yonny gave it a cursory glance before going back to his work—that work being forging a medical license, but it was work nonetheless. It wasn’t out of the ordinary for Dingo to come to Yonny with some nonexistent medical issue. Maybe it was to get out of work, maybe he was actually worried about his health. Probably the first option. The guy who once chugged a bottle of chemicals with zero hesitations didn’t strike yonny as a hypochondriac.

He could feel Dingo’s icy stare tracking his every move, every elegant pen stroke coming together to form a perfectly forged PhD, watching, waiting for him to say something. He shouldn’t. As yonny so eloquently wrote in his notes, “It’d be like giving a dog treats for pissing on the floor. And in this case the treats would be attention. And the piss would be fake medical issues. And the floor would be me—ok, maybe it’s not the best analogy.”

“What’d oatchi do, hm?” He said, relenting. It’d be a lot easier to ignore Dingo if he wasn’t such good company.

“Truthfully?” Dingo whispered, leaning into Yonny’s ear. “Nothin’. But, like I’m thinkin’, maybe if shepherd thinks the dog’s causing trouble, she’ll get rid of him. Y’know, send him to the farm.”

Yonny startled at dingo’s closeness. And the fact he was talking about getting Oatchi euthanized. “Are you insane?” He said in a harsh whisper. Ironic, an accusation of insanity, coming from Yonny. “I can assure you the captain would euthanize you before she would ever consider doing so to oatchi.”

“What?” Dingo drew back, eyes widened in shock. “Wait, where’d all that come into play? And the captain wants to euthanize me? Where did this come from? But, I mean, if that’s what she wants…” He went red in the face and pressed his index fingers together.

“Do you know what people mean by sending pets to the farm?” Yonny asked.

“‘Course I do. Wasn’t born yesterday,” Dingo huffed. “I was talking with that freak-show hocotation guy, ‘cause he was stealin—er, borrowing food with me, and he said that he grew up around farms and stuff. And sometimes there’d be an abandoned space dog or somethin’, and, y’know, he’d adopt it. So I think oatchi should be sent to one of those places so I don’t have to see him around.”

Yonny stared at Dingo absentmindedly for a few seconds before snapping back to the moment. “Riiiight. That’s not what it generally means. Not at all.” He spun around in his swivel chair a few time before turning back to Dingo, hands folded on his lap. “But, I’m glad you’ve brought up the subject.”

“Of euthanasia?” Dingo looked a bit scared. “Hey man, I’ll drink corrosive chemicals that make my esophagus feel like it’s on fire for you. But I won’t die for you. Unless it was like, in some really heroic way. Like if a really scary animal tried to attack you, like…let’s just say, arbitrarily, a dog, I’d totally lay down my life for you. And you could hold me on your lap as I slowly die and hold my hand and gently kiss my forehead telling me I did a good job stopping those evil mutts. Not in a gay way.”

It was definitely in a gay way.

“No,” Yonny said flatly. No matter how much reading he does, he’ll never be able to find the words to respond to someone spewing such nonsense at such high speeds. “I mean, dogs. Your fear of dogs. I wanted to speak with you about that, eheheh.”

Dingo went pale, slowly backing away before shaking his head. “It’s ridiculous you think it’s a fear. I just don’t like them. Simple as that.” He paused for a moment before the words spilled out.

“And, you know, if it was a fear, it’d be perfectly natural. They have sharp teeth and claws and they bark really loudly. And so what if it is? Who are you to judge? Every time I see those stupid mutts I get all sweaty and…and sweaty, and I start thinkin’ about that time that stupid dog tried to “rescue” me! I didn’t even need rescuin’. It tried to kill me an’ bite my limbs off. The incompetent leader in charge didn’t even try to stop it. I think that guy was shepherd’s father. I think her mom must’ve had an affair because there’s no way such an angel came from that monster. Under his watch the stupid animal just dragged me all around even though I could’ve probably walked fine. I mean, I was a little disoriented and I occasionally blacked out but that doesn’t mean I had to be dragged around like a ragdoll. An’ I can’t think of anything but that when I see that dog shepherds constantly calling the cutest little boy to ever exist, and I don’t know how such a horrifying creature can be called that! Especially when the—when the cutest little boy to ever exist is me…”

Yonny gave him a minute to catch his breath after his marathon of run-on sentences before waiting to see if he had anything else to add. When he said nothing more, Yonny simply told him, “I’m certainly no psychiatrist, but it sounds like you may have some form of post traumatic stress—”

“Are you for real?” Dingo burst out. “Like, what those badass people have?”

“It’s much more complicated than that. It can cause horrible anxiety and stress. I’d recommend you see a psychiatrist for a proper—”

“Oh, that’s the best thing I’ve heard all week!” Dingo shook Yonny’s hand like he was receiving a medal instead of a referral to a psychiatrist. “Thank you. You know who’s gonna find that really cool? Shepherd.”

“I don’t think—”

Dingo was already gone.

“Captain!” Dingo shouted, running towards shepherd. “You’ll never guess what yonny just told me!” Before shepherd could get any words out, he kept talking. “Well, I don’t hate dogs cause I’m an asshole, I don’t like dogs cause I have trauma related to them!” He beamed proudly. Yes, this was his key to shepherds heart! Of course, a seasoned captain like herself would find such a thing to be cool. On cue, she wrapped her arms around him. Finally! This was it! True love’s kiss would happen aaaaany second now!

“I’m so sorry, dingo! I didn’t know!”

What

That ain’t right

“If I had known, I would’ve kept oatchi away from you. I’ll be sure to keep him away from you from now on.”

Huh

Where’s true love

“And I’ll tell captain olimar to make sure moss doesn’t bother you either, ok?”

WHERE THE HELL IS TRUE LOVE

“Thank you for telling me, alright?” She let go and patted him on the shoulder before walking off.

That wasn’t meant to happen

Wasn’t that supposed to be hot

Why did he get sympathy for that

He crumpled to the ground, sobbing. Yonny walked up next to him and said nothing.

“I thought that would work!” Dingo cried. “Everything was going just fine until she started, I dunno, caring about my emotions! She should be caring about how handsome I am.”

“I care,” Yonny said.

“…‘Bout what, euthanasia? You freak, why’re you still talking about that? That conversation ended so long ago man, just let me wallow in my own misery for a while.”

~~the end!!!,! I’m so tired~~~

[hall0wedwyrm]

Pikmin updateeee (minor spoilers????? if anyone cares)

I'm on day 15 and its so nice walking around and exploring, and its really cool so far. I just found the Blue Pikmin and did my first Night Exploring stage!!! It sucked!!!!

BUuuuuuut.

Collin and Shepard are fun, but the rest of the characters are annoying and i kind of forgot their names too. I like the lab one because he's one of the other helpful guys, but if the whole plaza is gonna fill up with them then im never keeping track. I like that the guys who aren't part of the crew have little side quests that are easy (aka, you kind of just do them as you explore and progress). I do not like the guy who gives you the' 100% an area' mission, and i dont even remeber his name (is he Dingo or something? idk) also Yonny is now a vampire in my hc because they will not stop calling me New Blood, and the only way im not gonna get pissed off about it is if i say so.

I like the Elmo guy though... everytime i see them, its like seeing your rival in Pokemon and you know its about to go down. if i was to make a pikmin-sona id be one of the Leaflings for sure.

ALSO IF ANYONE PLEASE KNOWS HOW TO TURN OFF THE BACKSEATING CAN YOU TELL ME???? IT'S SO ANNOYING IN THE NIGHT STAGE and i dont want to play it again unless they stop telling me Oatchi is loosing HP and I KNOW HES LOOSING HP HES HELPING ME IM GOING TO HEAL HIM YONNY PLEASE SHUT UP YOUVE BEEN HERE FOR 4 HOURS I KNOW WHAT IM DOING

[partyhardyontitanic]

kish n louie plot u say????? 👀👀👀

oh you betcha babey

its so fuckign much (3332 words lol) so itll be under the cut!!!

i couldnt figure out a way to write this that would be non-pikmin knower friendly sorry @askthelovenest you will probably not get this that much or have to google a lot but i highly appreciate your itnerest <333

Most of this is written in broader strokes but scenes that I imagine in detail will be written in full detail okay you just have to accept the varying text density here

Allright so this cute little story would begin at some point in between the many many castaways that the pikmin 4 protagonist rescues (I’m just gonna use the name Pom for them since that’s the fanon name I think). They also rescue Kish from a cave at some point.

Back at the S.S. Shepard, Kish expresses fascination with Oatchi’s great skills and training and tells Pom that if they ever wanted to discuss space dogs and their training, she’s the man! But of course there’s already someone to talk to about space dogs for Pom, that being Captain Shepard herself.

Like most of the castaways with side quests that Pom rescues, Kish is stuck just kind of hanging around the S.S. Shepard. He gets frustrated with this fairly quickly but can understand why they’re stuck here right now. There’s still people to rescue and going out there on her own would be downright suicide. The boredom still gnaws away at him but it just be like that she guesses.

Enter the bastard, Louie. Pikmin 4’s story wraps up, Louie is apprehended after the Ancient Sirehound Battle, and now he, much like the other people rescued by (one member of) the rescue corps is just standing around the S.S. Shepard, handing out side quests to Pom. Kish has been watching with increasing disdain as Pom gets to do all the jobs and activities and exciting stuff. He’s growing more and more irate about it by the day.

Simultaneously, Kish has noticed a LOT of malice towards Louie from the rescue corps, ever since he’s shown up. They have precious little kind things to say about him and their faces always contort in mild to severe contempt when they talk to or about him. Louie himself doesn’t seem like he notices. Or if he does, he’s just not pointing it out. Or showing it. At all. Kish has always been a big observer, but she can’t quite get a read on Louie just by watching him. His aloof nature is kind of fascinating to her. Surely, there’s a lot more going on inside that head of his than he’s showing… how intriguing.

One morning, very shortly after Louie came to the S.S. Shepard, Kish watches with a frankly inappropriate death glare, as Pom walks around the landing space and collects side quests, including the Fit For A Feast side-quest from Louie. Though, Kish notices a lack of interest from Pom towards this quest, complete with an eye-roll when Louie can’t remember the name of the cave he’d seen Dwarf Bulborbs in.

As the S.S. Beagle flies off towards the day’s expedition goal and just about everyone cheers it on and wishes it well, Kish is standing on the sidelines close to Louie with crossed arms and a scowl.

“This is literally fucking ridiculous,” she blurts out, “We’re really all just standing around with our thumbs up our asses while one rescue corps member goes out and does everything out there. Like…. Even you guys?” he turns towards Louie and gestures towards Olimar who is standing further away. “Aren’t you two like, experienced in this stuff? With the data logs and stuff you’ve done here already and all that? What are you asking Pom for food for when you can just go out and get it yourself? At least it’s something to do!”

Louie is silent for a second, a trait Kish will grow used to very soon, before he replies: “I’m not allowed to leave the Shepard.”

“What?” Kish says, “Why not?”

Louie shrugs silently. “Too much of a troublemaker, they said.”

“Well… I GUESS that makes sense but like… I just fucking hate standing around out here all day!” “Me too.” “If there was at least something to do at the Shep-what’d you say?”

Kish turns towards Louie again, who tilts his head.

“I hate standing around this ship all day. It’s literally fucking ridiculous for one kid to do everything on this planet.” Louie says.

Kish isn't sure why exactly he’s surprised to hear Louie express distaste for doing nothing all day (and in her own words too). He just seemed like he’d be perfectly content with it, she supposes. But this is an opportunity. A connection. A chance… Because with Louie’s skills, going out into the wilderness is already way less scary. But he’s still not allowed to leave. What to do, what to do…

Kish notices a tiny path in between some bushes that one could squeeze through without making any sounds. Everyone who had gathered around the S.S. Beagle is slowly dispersing, meaning the bustling crowd could be their cover to get there. It’s the perfect chance.

“Hey, come here.” Kish silently commands, not really giving Louie much of a choice in the matter as she grabs his sleeve and drags him through the crowd expertly. Even though Louie’s being dragged along, he is bobbing and weaving past bodies with grace almost befitting of a dance.

This red gal, whoever he is, must be really skilled at moving through crowds completely undetected. Much like Louie himself, he muses. As the two go from dodging people to dodging leaves, he wonders if this guy has also experienced the pain of being isolated from a group and repeatedly mocked. If she’s also decided to stick to quietly blending in as much as possible, as a social survival strategy of sorts. To put it another way, he’s impressed. But he’s also still confused.

“Where are we going?” Louie asks eventually.

“Uh, I’m not sure…” Kish admits, “but surely, there’s got to be something for you to eat around here. I guess we’re, uh, scouting out the area? Scavenging, maybe?”

“Scavenging… Sounds right.” Louie says. He’s pretty pleased to have something to do, and he guesses if he had to bring someone along, an apparent quick thinker like this is one of the better choices. Better than all the people back there hating him anyways.

Kish lets go of Louie’s arm and the two of them walk silently towards the other end of the bush.

“What’s your name?” Louie asks suddenly.

“Hm? Oh right, we never formally introduced ourselves to each other. I’m Kish, a space dog trainer from Karut.” Kish says. Normally, he’d go for the handshake and everything, but she has a feeling Louie wouldn’t much care for it. “And you’re, well, Louie yeah I heard that much. But is there anything else you wanna introduce yourself with?”

Louie thinks to himself for a few seconds before he replies, “I’m from Hocotate. Working for Hocotate Freight. Our boss sucks. The company is probably going to go bankrupt soon.”

“That all you can think of to describe yourself?” Kish asks.

“It’s all you said about yourself.” Louie responds.

At that, Kish actually has to laugh a little.

“Yeah, you’re right. Okay fair enough. No need to dive that deep on a stranger yet.” Kish says. A part of him is hoping, quite strongly even, that in time, Louie won’t be a stranger anymore.

Kish and Louie end up having a pretty successful day together. They find an onion not too long into their journey and Kish gets to closely inspect the red pikmin within it, as they help the two collect some fruits. They also find some Skitter Leaves and Sheargrubs which Louie assured Kish are easy to take down and totally delicious when prepared correctly.

Kish quickly notices Louie’s passion and creativity with cooking, which she frankly finds heart-warming. That’s just an adorable hobby, not to mention incredibly impressive to someone who can barely even follow instructions for microwave dishes properly.

Meanwhile, Louie is impressed by Kish’s sharp eye. She can spot fruits easily, even if they’re almost completely hidden in bushes, and he can tell that something is a Skitter Leaf instead of a regular leaf before Louie’s even registered that there are leaves on the ground.

Their teamwork isn’t perfect per se. Their communicative abilties leave a lot to be desired. But for a duo that’s formed less than a day ago, they’re working together shockingly well.

Just a few hours before nightfall, the two walk back to the S.S. Shepard, where they are immediately met by a furious rescue corps team (and a concerned Olimar). Accusations start flying right away; that Louie was trying to run away and start causing problems again, that he had kidnapped Kish for some reason, that he was going to undo everything the rescue corps had worked so hard to accomplish on this mission. Louie is long since used to people assuming the worst about him so he just silently lets them all ramble on. But just as he is about to zone out, angry yelling erupts from right beside him.

Kish is nothing short of furious at the accusations that are being flung towards Louie with barely any justification. She yells at all the rescue corps members about how hard they’re blowing things out of proportion and how cruel they are towards someone who could have done much, MUCH worse to them all. His lengthy tirade shuts the team down again, as they have no choice but to agree that Louie’s just collected food in the nearby area and hasn’t done anything explicitly wrong or harmful today. Olimar even joins in and defends Louie by pointing out that he’s kept Kish safe throughout the day. Louie is silent throughout this but he seems somewhat shocked by the defence.

Later that night, everyone is served dinner in the S.S. Shepard while Louie cooks his own meal in the Dolphin’s tiny little kitchen. He’s deep in thought about the day he’s had and the friend he seems to have made, when there’s a knock at the ship’s door. Olimar had informed Kish that Louie isn’t allowed inside the Shepard and she’s immediately made his way to the small old ship. When Louie points out that Kish doesn’t have any food now he replies that he’s not eating the rations of some “petty assholes” (in reality she had forgotten her plate in the Shepard when he stormed out of the cafeteria). Louie has easily cooked enough for more than just one person, and he likes Kish enough, so he offers him a plate of his self-made meal of the day. Kish is honestly surprised but thankful nonetheless, so the two share a delicious meal together and talk a bit more. Well… Kish talks. A lot. Louie mostly listens, but he likes doing that. He likes Kish.

Louie and Kish’s ritual of going out to collect food continues on after Olimar puts in a good word for Louie (and pulls him aside once to tell him “You have one more chance here. Don’t blow it.”)

The two of them grow closer and closer as they keep going out. Befriending people is a lot easier when they are your age, Louie finds. At least if those people are also not judgemental over every mistake you make. Louie and Kish bond over how both of them have poor impulse control and do some nasty things sometimes. They agree that they won’t cruelly judge each other while simultaneously holding each other back where they can. Louie can hardly wrap his head around how wonderful it feels to have found someone like Kish. He might be catching some feelings other than friendly appreciateon. Uh oh…

Eventually, Kish spills the beans on why he even came to PNF-404. It was all because of Moss, the space dog Olimar had spoken of in his S.O.S. message. She had been hoping there would be more strange and rare breeds of space dogs on this planet. And while the Bulborbs were strikingly similar to bulb-dogs from Hocotate, he was still disappointed that she couldn’t find anything friendly. Louie quickly realizes he knows exactly how to undo that disappointment, and the next time him and Kish go out, he leads her to the Ancient Sirehound (do not ask me how he knows where to find it, he just does OK). Kish is delighted to see such a big and amicable dog, and even moreso when she sees it run up to Louie and slobber all over his entire suit and helmet. The beast loves that guy, and it’s just the sweetest thing.

Gosh… Louie’s an intriguing guy, he’s great at cooking AND he’s good with animals… Oh… Oh dear…that’s a crush blooming isn’t it… Oh boy.

One night, Kish talks about his past a bit. He had a passion for art that had been tested brutally by an art school that valued market and corporate appeal far over actual artistry. Getting that bachelor was gruelling and finding work in art that wasn’t completely demoralizing was close to impossible. So Kish put his skills with space dogs to use instead and started dog-sitting and offering training sessions for money. It pays the bills just fine and it’s fun enough, but it’s hard not to feel disappointed after the way chasing her dreams turned out.

Louie can empathise with that and tells Kish about how he’s always wanted to become a great chef with his own cooking show, but when he briefly joined a culinary school on Hocotate, it was an exclusively vegetarian school, and he was ostracised even worse than in his old schools (“And those were places where I’d regularly get asked in earnest if I was going to eat the other kids.” “What the hell that’s so fucked up???”).

This newfound connection makes Kish like Louie even more. She’s starting to really understand the guy. That impression of a mysterious quiet wallflower is giving way to a young man who’s kind in his own ways but struggles with empathy, and who’s trying to figure out his place in a world that he doesn’t quite seem to fit into. It’s relatable. It’s compelling. He’s compelling. …That crush is only going to get worse, huh.

Some hiccups come up here and there when they are working together. Most notably an ever growing curiosity for the animals of PNF-404 from Kish that’s almost lead him to have his leg gnawed off by a bulborb a few times. Luckily Louie has quick reflexes when it comes to protecting people, and manages to drag Kish away from the beasts just in time.

It also turns out that Kish is god-awful at aiming and throwing pikmin, and when the two tried to work together to slay a Dwarf Bulborb, Kish missed just about all her throws. When told about this issue, Olimar suggests giving him winged pikmin instead, which could correct for missed throws while in the air. That turns out to be the fix they needed because after that, the two turn into a scarily efficient team, coming back each night with greater catches than the last. (The rescue corps briefly got scared that they'd hunt something on this planet to extinction)

Their blooming romance comes to a head one day in the tiniest most subtle way. The rescue corps are finally done with PNF-404. There’s no one left to save (everybody double and triple and quadruple checked) and so the Shepard takes off with the Dolphin loaded into its large and comfy storage space, where Louie also resides, since he knows the crew and other castaways will only give him angry glares.

They never warmed up to him, and he doesn’t care much to convince them he’s a better guy. Even if Kish is still fighting tooth and nail against any accusations thrown at him. His one defender, who is currently curled up next to him in the Dolphin’s sleeping space.

Come to think of it, they’ve gotten incredibly cuddly with each other. They just kind of started doing that. Kish explained early on that she’s awfully touch-inclined and that Louie can tell her off whenever he wants. But he never wanted to. He’s always wanted to be touched even more. They’ve been holding hands way past the point of guiding each other, and hugging each other for way too long and way too tightly. Not to mention when they’ve actually tried dancing together on PNF-404 to some impromptu tunes the pikmin would hum to themselves. They’re always together. They’ve grown so close. They have no trouble whatsoever confiding in each other. They’re like… a romantic couple, he realises.

Without thinking too much about it, Louie just asks his half asleep companion: “Did we become a couple at some point?”

“Hm?”

“Did we become a couple at some point?” he repeats.

Kish opens her eyes a bit. Those red eyes that radiate a passionate warmth Louie could get lost in forever. “Hm… well, I guess. If you don’t mind…” he replies.

Louie can’t help but to smile at that.

“I don’t. I love you.” he softly speaks.

“I love you too.” Kish replies gently. He readjusts himself and wraps her arms around Louie, who wraps his own arms around Kish’s shoulder and gives her a kiss on the forehead. This is their little moment. Just them and the cargo of the ship. It reminds Louie of when he and Kish first started properly interacting with each other in the midst of that bushy walkway. It’s exactly the kind of confession he had hoped for.

Despite the calm and gentle beginning of their relationship, Louie is still getting terribly nervous. He hasn’t the faintest clue how to date someone. But handily he’s (debatably) great friends with someone who’s managed to pull a loving wife and kids.

Olimar has to bear several days being bombarded with questions about how to be romantic, but he doesn't mind. He finds this amusingly cute. He tells Louie how he was asked out by his now-wife and how his primary “strategy” was just to be kind, listen to her, and make her feel valued in every interaction.

Olimar also tells Louie about a few of his dates with his wife, which Louie tries to replicate exactly. This fails spectacularly every time, but his determination is nothing short of amazing, and Kish is not shy about telling him how sweet he’s being. She also reminds him that he doesn’t need to try acting like his senior did. It’s perfectly fine with him if Louie just acts like himself, awkward nature and all. Louie really can’t believe he’s managed to find someone in his life who wholeheartedly accepts and loves him for his “flaws”.

Louie visits Kish on Karut a lot and sleeps at his place regularly. Kish’s big space dogs Wilmi and Teddee had to spend a while getting used to the new visitor but they eventually warmed up to him. Still won’t leave him any room on the sofa or bed though. But to be fair they don’t do that for Kish either.

The two have discussed moving together a few times. While Louie would absolutely love to leave his stupid delivery boy job and that stupid vegetarian planet and go to a culinary school where just liking meat isn’t some kind of crime against nature, what it keeps coming back down to is the fact that his grandmother still needs him. And he can’t just leave her on Hocotate. She doesn’t have anyone else.

Kish understands this fully and makes sure to visit him on Hocotate often too. She likes Louie’s grandma, that woman is so strange and her being Like That explains a lot about why Louie is Like That. The old woman has also talked about marriage and getting great-grandchildren already and watching Louie freeze up and go fully red at that is just plain funny.

All in all, they compliment and complete each other in a way neither of them had ever expected. They found themselves and simultaneously something different and compelling in each other. They love each other for their compatible flavours of autism <3

And that’s the story of how the cold King Of Bugs and the fiery Beast Tamer became a couple okay cool thank you for reading <333333333

[kira-moonrabbit]

saying "pikmin creature design is good" is kinda like saying "water is wet" but i think that they really hit a new kind of nail on the head with oatchi and moss.

im a cat person. very much a cat person. not to the point i hate dogs entirely, but you can still tell i like cats more. and yet i am so enamored with these little fuzzy beasts. i wuv oaci. there, i said it...

[magicwhiskers29]

Taking a break from my regularly scheduled staring out the window to give some thoughts on Pikmin 4 now that I've finished it! (finished the main game, anyway)

Spoilers, of course, ahead!

Great game! I enjoyed it a lot! I will be being obnoxious about it, but having waited a decade for it, I feel that's justified

I wasn't sure I was going to like the Rescue Corps during the first hour or so, but no, they're extremely fun. Their conversations at the end of the day/night are often completely insane, but I live for it. Highlights include:

Shepherd explaining that she hired Bernard because he delivered packages faster than any one else (probably through illegal means)

Collin telling Shepherd his current job was the hardest he's ever had, after listing a bunch of taxing jobs

Literally any time Yonny talks about his experiments ("glow pikmin are immune to all hazards" "yonny how do you know this? yonny!?!?")

Dingo's guilty conscience about leaving Bernard behind causing him to confess the truth of the incident when Bernard was just talking about stolen pizza

Bernard claiming that sleeping is an integral part of his job

Shepherd abruptly stopping the ship after the fake credits for Oatchi was really sweet too; it really helped to sell the moment.

Olimar in the second half was a really nice addition. It was good to see him defending the fact that Moss didn't need to change, at the end, even if it meant leaving her behind. They were a fun duo.

AND LOUIE! "Grade A troublemaker" indeed... I was waiting for him to show up and cause trouble the whole game, and he sure did! His memos in the voyage log are hilarious to read through (I particularly enjoyed the one about him planning to just make random nonsense up to use as a report to send to the President, since he's kind of just been vibing and enjoying the planet, rather than looking for Olimar) And goddamit, Louie, you've got to stop controlling final bosses!!! He's awful. (Never change, Louie)

Gameplay-wise, I think I definitely miss Pikmin 3's multiple captain system, but Oatchi can feel like a suitable replacement. Some Dandori challenges and night missions where it was optimal to control him separately definitely gave me back the feeling of piloting around three captains at once. "Go here" was definitely more of a thing I used because I was too lazy to find the way, as opposed to proper Dandori efficiency, though, on account of most commands being better if you want to send Oatchi or your captain somewhere.

In general, Oatchi is definitely a little OP too (I mean, I killed the final Empress Bulblax in one spicy-spray-fueled rush....), but is also really satisfying to control, so I won't complain too much. And I think the advantages you get from riding with him are interesting when you have to decide whether it's better to keep him with you for rushes and ease of traversal, or send him off to do something for multitasking, in Dandori challenges. He's a certified good boy.

Ice Pikmin were a wonderful new edition to the roster, I found. There was less incentive to just freeze water, rather than go in with blues, than I was expecting, which was good! It helped them to feel more balanced. The limited damage from them also helped, here, though definitely less so, because ice pikmin are, of course, still very much combat-viable. I've seen it suggested that creatures killed whilst frozen should not drop nectar/ spicy spray, and yeah, I agree there. Most of the time, that is not a disadvantage over using non-ice pikmin for the kill, and can also be actively advantageous. But they're not jarringly unbalanced as some other types have been before, imo, so I definitely think positively of them.

Night missions were way more fun than I expected! I went in with a lot of trepidation, but I love the general concept. It makes a lot of sense that when we finally get night missions, they're defensive endeavours, and we haven't just spent 3 games avoiding the surface at night for nothing. I enjoyed how they increased in difficulty by stacking and creating factors like the extra Lumiknoll, and Smokey Progg egg(s). (Also the Baldy Long Legs. Aghgh. It was a problem.) I didn't really find myself using items like the game kept trying to suggest, though. Only the occasional emergency lightning if something was at the Lumiknoll, or my usual spicy spray.

Glow Pikmin were really cool for the night missions, too. They have a great design, and their mechanics are definitely tailored excellently for night missions. Teleporting to the active player's location is a must-have, and Glow Mob keeps you in the habit of charging like you would usually rush really well. The glow seed mechanic for them was well appreciated, and the ten I made for the Cavern for a King were used to their fullest! (Not exactly like I was able to leave them at the sublevel entrance like I might with all the others...) I am a little sad how they completely invalidate blues in caves, but that's mostly because blues are my favourites; I only used them in the last cave anyway (Along with the blues, of course!) They are kinda just Bulbmin+, but that's fine; they're used uniquely

For the most part, I thought returning pikmin were handled well, too.

Reds got less use than I thought they would, but I think that's because of the three pikmin limit. (Why would I bring out reds for combat when I could just spicy spray the pikmin I actually need for overworld use?) Though their use in Giant's Hearth and the Frozen Inferno was really interesting, I will say.

Yellows felt like a proper staple for the first three or four areas, though did start getting less use, though I think that's just because areas stopped being designed for them. (I was definitely missing them in night missions for those Baldy Long Legs...)

I've already discussed blues a little, but I do appreciate how a lot of what water there was was tailored for using blues rather than wings, ice, or Oatchi. I think they could absolutely benefit from a secondary ability like most other types have, to give me a reason to use them in caves other than personal biases, and glow pikmin only make that more obvious.

Purple Pikmin are back, and I think their reworks were done well! A 1.5x damage multiplier instead of 2x, and lack of stun on impact make them considerably less OP when compared to Pikmin 2, whilst still retaining their core characteristics better than 3. Locking their onion behind a challenge most people will leave until later (people like me. I haven't actually done it yet, but I will) helps to keep them balanced too, so you won't just steamroll with a squad of all purples.

White Pikmin are back too, and whilst they, strictly speaking, only got nerfed, I still think they're pretty good here. Glow pikmin can't match their speed, and I think of their two abilities, that's the more valuable one, anyway, since poison isn't really used much until the final area.

Rock Pikmin cannot be matched by glow pikmin in any way, and are still as good as ever, though, woah, the final area really shafted them. You can't get them in the final cave? And you don't need them for anything? :( (maybe they know my defensive strategies of going in with only rocks to avoid being crushed too well...)

And Winged Pikmin aren't nerfed exactly (unless you count their ai being slightly wonky at times in their pathing for carrying things back), but they definitely have significantly less to do. Like rocks, they aren't in the final cave, though I think I definitely would have used them if they were, so maybe that's on me for not bringing them in.

Otherwise, I adored Dandori. I platinumed all the Pikmin 3 collect the treasure missions with my dad on the Wii U back in the day, and the Dandori challenges gave me that exact feeling again. I'm very excited to go through and platinum them all. (Though I think that might be a little easier than in 3, considering I found it fairly easy to platinum, or come very close to platinum many on the first try...)

Dandori battles were fun too! Nobody ever wanted to Bingo Battle me in Pikmin 3, but now I can have Olimar's trash AI! Yay? Seriously, Olimar's ai is probably a little too bad in some of the early Dandori battles, because it felt like he wasn't even trying. The Louie battles were really good, though. Those felt like an actual competition. (And the final Olimar battle, but that one to a lesser extent.)

I'll talk briefly about areas too, and say that, whilst I think they were lacking in variety compared to usual, I did very much still enjoy their gimmicks and map design. The Serene Shores are a great example of this, with the tide gimmick being fun to work around, and the sand castle overlooking the rest of the map being an excellent base.

As for the caves, the Pikmin 2 callbacks were wonderful (even if the Engulfed Castle did leave me terrified. Seriously, my only other Pikmin post before playing this game was me talking about being terrified of the Submerged Castle...), and I thought the new ones were cool too! The Subzero Sauna, Frozen Inferno, and Below-grade Discotheque, for example, with their interesting use of ice pikmin, use of red pikmin, and cool boss respectively.

Of course, the stand-out cave is the Cavern for a King, which, despite mostly just being a boss rush, has such creative ways of increasing difficulty on past bosses, that I have to praise it. It's incredible how just adding water can make the arachnorb bosses more challenging, and fighting the Smokey Progg without access to a proper glow mob definitely felt scary. The Ancient Sirehound was an excellent final boss too, with its gloom phase being actually decently challenging and intimidating. (Though I wish it had water and poison phases too, for completion's sake) It was definitely appropriate for the final cave!

I'd be remiss to not at least mention the music. I don't think I like the ost quite as much as I like Pikmin 3's (but that is a personal staple...), but that's not to say it's not great! There are still many stand-out tracks such as the tough enemy theme (which?? Just?? Went so hard???), the Groovy Long Legs's theme, Hero's Hideaway's theme, the Dandori challenge theme, and of course, the Ancient Sirehound's theme (with references to Pikmin 3's boss theme, my beloved), to name a few.

So yeah, it's a great game, and one I would definitely recommend :)