Pikmin is an adorable series about crash landing onto a hostile alien planet. Luckily, you aren’t alone in your expedition into the unknown and are joined by a group of helpful beings called Pikmin. The Pikmin aid you on your quest to find ship parts, treasure, fruit, and more.
However, that doesn’t make the enemies you face any less intimidating. The opponents you encounter on this new planet are vicious, dangerous, and above all else, scary. They won’t hesitate to steal your stuff or make a snack out of you. So, gather your best Pikmin crew and prepare to face the ten scariest enemies in the Pikmin series.
Updated on July 23, 2023, by Branden Lizardi: With the launch of Pikmin 4, we have new renditions of some classic Pikmin enemies. We're seeing the monsters of past games rendered in a new level of HD. To make the most of it, we've updated a few of these entries to include screenshots from Pikmin 4, showcasing how terrible they are.
13 Giant Breadbug
Although the Breadbug family isn't as threatening as the other powerful enemies on this list, that doesn’t make them any less scary. Sure, when you first look at it, you might think it’s just a loaf of freshly baked bread.
But then that bread turns around, and you realize, horrifyingly, that the bread has a face, a pair of feet, and is moving towards your precious treasure. The Giant Breadbug particularly looks as if a parasite has possessed what would usually be a perfect midday snack. It’s so disgusting that we can’t help but shudder in fear.
12 Swooping Snitchbug
What the Swooping Snitchbug lacks in legs, they make up for in powerful arms and a pair of antennae wings. And, even though they won't hurt your Pikmin, they will still be a major stinger in your side. Once the Swooping Snitchbug notices you, it will dive and steal either you or your Pikmin and carry them into the air.
If they grab a Pikmin, they will throw them back to the ground with enough force to bury the colorful helper. If the Swooping Snitchbug grabs a leader, their trip back to earth will be much more painful than the Pikmin's were.
11 Arachnode
What makes the Arachnode so scary is how simple they are. Essentially, the Arachnode is a spider that has built a web. This eight-legged fiend looks unassuming when undisturbed, almost like a tiny black and yellow ball. But, once something becomes stuck in its sticky web, this spider comes alive.
They'll move quickly and efficiently to whatever they have caught and then eat it. Usually, this caught meal is Pikmin. Spiders are already creepy crawly creatures that many people don’t like to deal with. So, to see the Arachnode hungrily chase after the tiny, helpful Pikmin makes this beast look even more terrifying.
10 Fiery Blowhog
At first glance, the Fiery Blowhog looks kind of cute, almost like a cross between a tiny bottle and a wrinkly gray pig. But then this pig-bottle’s eyes narrow, and they suddenly begin shooting flames out of their nose. Because, as their name implies, the Fiery Blowhog likes to make your Pikmin extra crispy.
When facing this enemy, make sure you come with a team of heat-resistant red Pikmin. If they're not available, bring some heavy hitters so they can take care of this fire starter as soon as possible.
9 Burrowing Snagret
Birds are pretty cool. And, if you’re okay with reptiles that have scales and slide on the ground, snakes are cool too. But, on an alien planet that happens to attract a lot of castaway crash landers, birds and snakes are terrifying, especially if they’re the Burrowing Snagret. This hybrid creature likes to slither beneath the dirt and then pop up when you least expect it.
Once you’re caught off guard, they’ll use their sharp beaks to peck your Pikmin to an early grave. As if that wasn’t bad enough, the Burrowing Snagert is an enemy you’ll see in multiple Pikmin titles. There’s just no running from this snake-bird of prey.
8 Scorchcake
Scorchcakes are slow, durable, and generally easy to avoid. Their lava belly can be dangerous to anything outside Red Pikmin, but their only attack is to slowly flip onto their side and back down again. It sounds harmless, but it's that same lethargic motion that makes them so terrifying.
Their large health pool means you won't be taking them down before they can flip over at least once. Watching it slowly tip onto its side, blowing your whistle frantically in hopes of getting your little team out of there, only for them to hop off.. and be crushed by the Scorchcake. It's a slow burn of terror that has us extra cautious around these treacherous little lava patties.
7 Bulborb Larva
What makes the Bulborb Larva absolutely terrifying is their hunger for Olimar and his Pikmin. Now, this is normal behavior for every enemy in this series. But, as the name implies, the Bulborb Larva are larvae, meaning they are newborns. So right after being birthed, these little babies will come after you and try to eat you.
And yes, it is important to feed your little ones, but these larvae chose to immediately go after the Pikmin seconds after they were born. They didn’t learn through trial and error that they were hungry for these carrot lookalikes. Nope, it’s written into their very being that they must eat Pikmin. But it's not just these small Bulborbs who are scary. Their mother, the Empress Bulblax …
6 Empress Bulblax
... Is utterly terrifying herself. The Empress Bulbax has the face of a regular Bulborb and the body of a caterpillar. A very long, very bulky caterpillar who happens to spawn Bulborb Larva as you fight her. Additionally, this queen will crush anyone who gets in her way, whether that be you, your Pikmin team, or even her own spawn.
Even though the Empress Bulbax is small from a human’s point of view, to the tiny Captain Olimar and his Pikmin friends, this creature is enormous and deadly. Actually, seeing the Empress Bulbox in real life would probably make any person scream.
5 Porquillion
In terms of danger and risk, the Proquillion is not one of the higher-ranking enemies in the series. They attack slowly and can be taken down quickly. In fact, they're the very first boss enemy you face in Pikmin 4.
What makes them scary is their design. With a hidden, wrinkly body, beady eyes, and multiple flesh-toned air bladders covered in projectile spikes, these creatures are a little too realistic in their design compared to most Pikmin enemies. And that little touch of realism cranks the discomfort factor up to 11. We aren't scared of fighting a Porquillion, but they instill such a gross sense of unease when we look at them.
4 Sandbelching Meerslug
If you thought the Bulborbs were frightening with their tiny canines, you are not prepared for the Sandbelching Meerslug. Although this enemy and the Empress Bulblax share a similar long, cylinder shape, do not be fooled into thinking they are the same. The Sandbelching Meerslug is a faster opponent that can dig rapidly and consume Pikmin with their many teeth.
As its name suggests, the Sandbelching Meerslug will throw up projectiles of sand in hopes of crushing your party. They will also burrow themselves into the sand and create a sinkhole that will trap your Pikmin if you’re not careful. If you see your Pikmin becoming stuck, blow your whistle as hard as you can and gather them back up.
3 Vehemoth Phosbat
The Vehemoth Phosbat is an enemy you don’t even see at first. All you know about this creature is that they eat Charlie in Pikmin 3’s introduction, moments after he crash lands onto the unknown planet. After that, you don’t get to see this flying bat until Alph and Brittany are reunited.
What makes this enemy scary, besides them eating one of the main characters at the start of the game, is that they are entirely invisible until you can illuminate the cave it lives in. And once you do that, this toothy, flying beast will begin its Pikmin consumption.
2 Smokey Progg
Pikmin is full of rotund animal creatures with elemental powers. Generally speaking, they're all very cute in the end. The Smokey Progg is the exception. Everything, from its design to its combat power and strategy, makes this one of the scariest enemies in the entire series.
The hardest boss of Pikmin 1, the Smokey Progg is hatched from an egg found in the first zone. When hatched, this monstrous pollywog will be encased in treacherous shadows and smog, which damages you and kills your Pikmin immediately. Instead of attacking you, it will run to your home base, forcibly uproot any in-ground Pikmin, and THEN pursue you and your army. It's a creature out of the darker side of a Ghibli film, and we want nothing to do with it.
1 Louie
Turns out that the scariest enemy in the Pikmin series is the friend you made along the way. No, seriously, Louie is truly a frightening beast. Introduced as your co-worker in Pikmin 2, this blue space cadet is actually the cause of Hocotate Freight’s debt. Not only that, but Louie also steals all the food needed to save Koppai from starvation in Pikmin 3.
And if you needed more proof, Louie was also rumored to control the final boss of Pikmin 2, the Titan Dweevil, and went so far as to nickname himself the King of Bugs following the Dweevil's defeat. Perhaps, it's best if Louie stays on his planet and stops invading others.