Thanks to Hamada for helping with edits.
Few games are more synonymous with the GameCube’s launch window than Pikmin. Assuming the role of Captain Olimar, players managed up to one hundred of the titular creatures while traversing picturesque landscapes, searching for parts of his broken spaceship. It’s a magnificent experience, one of the console’s best. Nintendo’s offbeat real-time strategy title inspired a sequel, which itself eventually scored a followup – both of which proudly uphold Pikmin’s gold standard.
The Plasm Wraith, seen in 2013’s Pikmin 3 (Image: Nintendo)
Pikmin 3 (and its Deluxe re-release) stars three newcomers: Charlie, Brittany, and Alph, who hail from planet Koppai. Since their home is dangerously low on food, they’ve traveled to a faraway planet, dubbed “PNF-404,” to harvest edible fruits. Unbeknownst to them, PNF-404 is the Pikmin’s home planet, one Olimar is profoundly familiar with. In fact, while the trio suffer through a harsh crash landing, Olimar’s exploring the globe again alongside his unreliable partner, Louie. Unfortunately, the Koppaites’ Cosmic Key Drive, which they need to navigate back home, inadvertently falls into Olimar’s possession. Searching for him becomes their secondary objective, ultimately leading them down one of PNF-404’s darkest corners.
The Plasm Wraith’s History
The Plasm Wraith debuts during Pikmin 3’s final stage, the Formidable Oak. By the time Alph and his comrades arrive, the Wraith’s taken Olimar into its custody and violently retaliates against those who threaten that. A rarity for the series, its boss fight spans two separate, cleanly defined phases, and upon besting it, Pikmin 3 automatically ends. Additionally, an unlockable video log teases the Wraith’s presence. Pikmin’s blue collar veteran becomes excited after seeing a gold, presumably valuable substance glittering atop the Oak. Louie, meanwhile, senses something is amiss and, upon hearing a sharp roar, runs away. After he leaves, booming footsteps are heard approaching Olimar…
The Plasm Wraith’s scored a few cameos in the Super Smash Bros. series. It appears as a trophy and “Smash Tour” item in for Wii U, and a Spirit in Ultimate. (Image: Nintendo)
So, what’re my thoughts on the Plasm Wraith?
Most of Pikmin 3 is spent tailing Olimar. After a mishap concerning Louie, you’re now finally, unquestionably closing in on the captain. Knowing the stakes are at their highest – the lives of Olimar, Louie, and the entire Koppai population are on the line – you fly there. Immediately upon entering the atmosphere, any anxiety one feels will increase exponentially. The Formidable Oak exudes hostility, channeling the Divine Roost’s unearthly nature despite being rooted in Earth’s ecosystem. Its leitmotif brilliantly accentuates the haunting mood, the sense that something infernal resides here. Nevertheless, you brace yourself, land, and see a linear pathway ahead. Although what exactly lies ahead is still a mystery, you figure all five Pikmin types will prove useful. If you evenly bring twenty of each, your companions will start singing the series’ theme song as you ascend the Oak, a reassuring gesture.
Shortly after finding one of Olimar’s journals (of which four litter the Oak), the group discovers the man and his captor. It’s a weird sight, because the beast doesn’t appear to mean him any harm. In its own way, the Wraith actually looks like it’s caring for him. Olimar is lying atop a makeshift leaf bed, the Wraith’s gently caressing him, and a lullaby even underscores the scene. Of course, the gelatinous blob’s bizarre veneer is also eye-catching. Subtly conveying unease, the Wraith’s bright body is asymmetrical, with its right arm protruding downwards slightly by default. Its “mouth” is a hole going through its head. The thing just looks malformed, something furthered by its stubby legs, potbelly, and frequent slouching. While its relatively large size likely accounts for the latter, the Wraith still comes across as pitiable, radiating sadness or loneliness (the Oak’s Japanese name, Tower of the Sorrowful Beast, reinforces this). Altogether, the malleable glob looks and acts so… alien, standing out brilliantly in a franchise whose bestiary is (with one or two pertinent exceptions, neither of whom appear in 3) otherwise firmly ingrained in Earth’s fauna.
Pikmin 3’s adaptive soundtrack is one of its unsung strengths, a quality the Plasm Wraith uses in a distinct way. (Image: Nintendo)
And its anomalous nature only escalates from there. Displeased with these intruders, the Plasm Wraith inhales Olimar Kirby-style and assumes a defensive stance. Although the goo goes down quickly, a new problem arises: our party jumped down a ledge to reach Olimar, and the only direct way back up is via a geyser, something Pikmin cannot use while carrying the insensate captain. In order to escort him to their ship, the Koppai crew must lug Olimar through the Oak. Brittany volunteers to lead a Pikmin posse to perform the deed, splitting off from Alph and Charlie. Once the duo enters the cave, droplets rain down from the ceiling, which coalesce together to form the “mysterious life-form,” the boss’s first phase. And it follows Olimar wherever Brittany (or, if she faints, Charlie, then Alph) takes him.
The Formidable Oak marks a significant shakeup for Pikmin 3. Heretofore, our heroes only briefly lurked through dark caves, never laboring though such a claustrophobic, massive one. Familiar enemies populate the termite colony, but oddly, none are the genuine articles. Because they dissolve à la the Wraith upon dying, these functionally identical facsimiles are presumably its spawns. From a gameplay perspective, this aberration makes sense – retrieving corpses for Pikmin reproduction would be impractical here – but goes mostly unexplained from a lore one (Olimar’s commentary in Deluxe connects this phenomenon to the planet’s evolutionary history).
Visually, the Wraith resembles what a failed, rudimentary version of Mega Man’s Yellow Devil might look like. (Image: Nintendo)
Anyway, multitasking is a core tenet of Pikmin 3’s, something the Oak pushes to its limit. Alph and Charlie charge through the tunnels, solve puzzles, and neutralize monsters, while Brittany tends to Olimar. Early on, frequently switching between the protagonists is necessary, but the deeper the boys get, the more space the botanist gets to evade the translucent terror. When the Wraith approaches Olimar, one of the heroes alerts you. Should it snag him, a chase ensues, giving you a chance to reclaim the captain, and the day ends if the Wraith successfully escapes. On the plus side, you probably have plenty of juice and Pikmin, and if you don’t, you can revisit the earlier stages freely. Any shortcuts the heroes open kindly remain unlocked, too.
After a day or so, you’ll escape the labyrinth with Olimar. Then the fight proper begins. Here, the Wraith’s elastic anatomy powers its primary attack: skewering your miniature army. It’s swift and brutal, a technique only the Rock Pikmin prove impervious to. However, the ghoul briefly becomes immobile while it’s stabbing. If you dodge it, you can retaliate by throwing Pikmin on the Wraith, which causes some of its goop to split off from it. Soon, it’ll reabsorb these puddles to regain health, but siccing Pikmin on them eliminates them, preventing that. During its first phase, this grotesquery might shield itself by harnessing elemental powers – setting itself on fire, for example – but now starts using these abilities offensively. After losing a quarter of its health, the Wraith begins secreting giant pools of plasm onto the ground, which spawn elemental cubes – which, likewise, can only be damaged by Pikmin of the appropriate type. This can be a long, grueling fight, though all damage dealt kindly carries over into subsequent days.
Hey! Pikmin, which is set on another planet, ignores the Wraith. Strangely, it doesn’t reappear when Olimar revisits the Oak during Deluxe‘s epilogue missions either. (Image: Nintendo)
Ultimately, the Plasm Wraith begrudgingly retreats during the ending, leading into one final, missable twist: it survives, a feat its predecessors couldn’t achieve. Honestly, that feels appropriate; where those were mere predators acting on instinct, the Wraith isn’t. It’s a character, a reasonably intelligent one with an agenda beyond “eating smaller, weaker things provides sustenance.” Its enigmatic nature also raises questions about PNF-404. Is the sentient sap somehow responsible for crashing every craft that dares approach its planet? Is it a singular entity, or are more hiding elsewhere? Aside from the Umibōzu symbolism, what is this nigh indestructible freak’s exact relationship to Pikmin 2’s Waterwraith, if any? Some drew comparisons between the gold goop and the original game’s Goolix – are they connected too? Finally, is the Plasm Wraith really a manifestation of PNF-404, and if not, then what is it?
Mechanically, the Plasm Wraith and its domain provide a satisfying, organic conclusion for Pikmin 3. As a character, the boss enriches its whole series. Even if those lingering questions aren’t ever addressed directly, the speculation surrounding them will keep the Wraith alive. Pikmin’s setting was always interesting partially because you were exploring and recontextualizing Earth through a tiny outsider’s eyes. Now, greater mysteries power PNF-404, conspiratorial undertones revolving around this lifeform. Far from being just another pest to squash, this beast is smart enough to abuse the auto sleep function in Olimar’s suit. And in a series bursting with memorable critters, the Wraith firmly holds the honor of being Pikmin’s most disturbing, dangerous antagonist. Think about how horrifying Olimar’s ordeal really was: he was alone, relentlessly being hunted by this monstrosity for days, and completely powerless to stop it.
Congratulations, Plasm Wraith! You know what you want!
Had the Koppaites not intervened, Olimar would’ve died. I wonder if the Wraith will ever get another chance at its obsession… (Image: Nintendo)
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