Alph

Captain Alph
Name	Captain Alph
Appears in	Pikmin 3
Gender	Male
Home planet	Koppai
Height	Approx. 1.6 cm (0.64 inches)
Weight	~1 unit

This article was a featured article from May, 14, 2021 to December, 25, 2021.

Captain Alph (キャプテン・アルフ) is one of three explorers in Pikmin 3. He serves as the engineer of the ship, the S.S. Drake, which his grandfather, also named Drake, designed. He is very kind and positive in character, and greatly respects Captain Charlie.

Alph is available as an alternate costume for Olimar in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U., as well as Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

Appearance

He has blue-colored hair similar to Captain Olimar's in shape, an average sized nose and freckles on his cheeks. Unlike certain characters, his eyes are always open, much like when other characters such as Olimar or Louie are surprised. He is by far the shortest of all the playable leaders. Like all other leaders, he wears a bulky space suit with a large life support system on his back, and a round helmet topped with a beacon. His suit's details are the same shade of blue as his hair.

Personality

He is kind, positive, and possibly a little absent-minded (based on an early conversation with Brittany, in which he forgets about retrieving the Cosmic Drive Key and saving the Captain). He shows both respect and concern for both his team-mates and the Pikmin. He is a skilled engineer, being able to use both the Data Glutton and the Folded Data Glutton to upgrade the Drake's communication range. According to one of Brittany's Voyage log entries, she had "never seen him so excited!" in regards to them retrieving the Data Glutton. He may also be considered quite talkative, as most of the Voyage Logs are written by him.

His personality seems to stay mostly the same between versions, with most of his dialogue retaining the same meaning even if changed.

Biography

Alph was born the fourteenth youngest to fifteen siblings. Growing up he spent a lot of time with his Grandfather Drake, who was also an engineer. Watching him work was what inspired him to become an engineer as well later in life. He also enjoys writing poems as a hobby, with two of his poems being readable in the North American release of the game in the form of Voyage Log entries (only one is readable in the European version, as the other was turned into a "normal" Voyage Log).

At the start of Pikmin 3, the S.S. Drake crashes into PNF-404, leaving the trio separated. Alph lands in the Tropical Wilds, alongside the S.S. Drake. There he meets Red Pikmin, and with their help is able to recover both his KopPad and the S.S. Drake. From then on he must find and rescue his other two crew members while also collecting fruit and tracking down the Cosmic Drive Key.

Quotes

Non-Specific

Collected a new fruit "We have some new kinds of fruit!" No fruit collected "Today we collected...nothing." Juice consumption (alone) "Look at this! A whole day's worth of food all to myself!" ​"(Sorry, Captain! Sorry, Brittany!)" Juice consumption (when separated from Brittany) "Sorry, Brittany, but you'll have to hold out for one more day." Decent supply of juice "Our supplies should be sufficient to keep us going for a little while." Low on juice "Uh-oh... We're running out of supplies. We'd better find more edible matter soon!" Reached target location "I'm here and awaiting orders!" "I've arrived! So, what now?" "Here at last! Over!" "Arrived and awaiting orders!" Pikmin are suffering "Oh, no! Poor Pikmin!" "We're losing Pikmin!" Pikmin are suffering (other location) "Oh no! We're losing Pikmin somewhere!" Attacked by enemy "Oh, no! Oh, no! Oh, no! " "I need orders!" "I'm under attack here!" Carrying something large "It's huuuge..." Found a place to throw Pikmin across "Aha! If I throw them from here, they should make it across!" Finds ledge "Getting up there's going to be a two-person job." Lily pad "I think we can hop on that lily pad."

Scripted

Waking up from crash "It's a miracle! I'm alive, and I seem to be all in one piece." "Just as the SS Drake was about to land, we lost control and had to make an emergency escape." "I got separated from the other two team members in the commotion." "I hope the other two are safe! I need to find them, and the SS Drake too!" Finds Red Pikmin "What was that?" "It's the creature I saw just now! Looks like it's got friends!" "And what's that thing caught on the branch?" "Is there anything I can do?" "They responded to my whistle!" "What friendly little guys!" Salvaging the Onion "Wow!" "Just need to throw one more!" "Nice!" "What's this then?" "I was hoping it was fruit, but I don't think it's anything edible." "Still, the little red guys seem pretty happy now we've freed it." "Hey! They're following me!" Located Kop Pad "My Kop Pad! Thanks goodness I found it! I can use it to locate the SS Drake!" Try climbing to Kop Pad "Hmm... Doesn't look like I can climb up here..." Finds Fragments "What's this pile of rubble?" Carrying Fragments "What's going on?" "I might need more helpers..." Bridge complete "Wonderful! The bridge is complete!" Obtain Kop Pad "Great! It still works!" "Of course, I'd expect nothing less from Koppaite engineering." "I'll check my surroundings by touching and sliding the Kop Pad screen." "Where's the Drake?" "I should follow that signal." "If I slide the Kop Pad Map..." "Aha! The SS Drake isn't that far from here!" "Maybe the other crew members are there as well. I'd best head in that direction." Finds Pellet Posies "Is that red thing...food?" Bring Pellet to the Onion "It produced sprouts!" Plucks Pikmin Oh, I see... So this is where those little creatures come from. What a strange thing!" Female Sheargrubs appear "Woah!" Finds 5 Pellet Posy "This one is even bigger!" Finds box "What is this enormous thing?" "The Drake must be somewhere on the other side of it..." Finds first data file "Something's in here!" "It looks like someone's left a data file here. Perhaps the KopPad will be able to read it." "Excellent! The KopPad can read the data file." "So these creatures are called Pikmin?" "This information might come in handy later on. I'll save it in the KopPad's Exploration Notes." "It's strange, though... I wonder who created this data file?" "Could there be other intelligent life forms on this planet?" Searching for the SS Drake "According to the Radar...the Drake should be through here." "I hope they're both OK!" Finds Kingcap "Wow! Those are enormous! But they don't look edible..." Finds Dirt Wall "What's this wall doing here?" "Could it be the work of an intelligent life form?" Finds the S.S. Drake "Here it is! The S.S. Drake!" "The KopPad isn't picking up any signs of life in the immediate area." "What am I supposed to do now?" Call from Brittany Alph: "Incoming call! Who's it from?" Brittany: "Alph! It's me, Brittany! Do you copy?" Brittany: "Thank goodness! You're with the S.S. Drake, right?" Brittany: "I made it through the landing in one piece. The thing is, I'm trapped somewhere." Brittany: "And I'm starv-" Alph: "Oh, no! We've been cut off! I wonder how far Brittany is." Alph: "In any case, I'm glad that she seems to be safe and sound." End of first day "What was that strange cry?" "The sun is setting, which could mean that nocturnal predators are starting to wake up." "I should probably get off the planet's surface for now." "Most of the supplies we brought with us from Koppai were ruined in the crash-landing..." "So we now only have 3 days' worth of edible provisions left..." "From tomorrow, I'll have to work on sourcing food locally..." Locate the Garden of Hope "Brittany's signal seems to be coming from over there!" "Right now, meeting up with her has got to be my top priority." "Having said that, I'm also quite worried by the loss of our cosmic drive key." "Without it, the Drake can't reach a high enough speed to get us home." Landing in the Garden of Hope "Brittany should be around here somewhere!" "We're running out of food, so I'd better find her before it's too late." Taking Pikmin out of the Onion "It looks like the Onion has followed me here. So where are the Pikmin?" "Ah, I see. That Onion vessel is a Pikmin nest." "I'm going to configure the KopPad so we can use it to check Pikmin status." Encounter first Bulborb "Shhh...it's asleep." "I think we can sneak up on it!" Located Brittany Alph: "Brittany's just lying there! I hope I'm not too late!" Alph: "Pick up, Brittany! Pick up! Please be OK!" Alph: "......" Brittany: "Alph?! Sorry about that. I was just taking a little nap. So, you're close by?" Brittany: "Why wasn't I moving, you ask? Hee hee, well, you know me. I can sleep anywhere." Brittany: "But never mind that. Listen, I discovered what looks like a huge piece of fruit! It's over there!" Brittany: "But I'm stuck here for the time being. Could you go and check it out for me?" Finds first fruit "Wow! It's even bigger than I thought it would be!" "If this really is fruit, then it's a major discovery!" "I'd like to analyze it at the Drake, but how can I move it?" Obtaining first fruit Drake: "Recovering..." Alph: "Oh! There's an incoming transmission from the Drake!" Drake: "Analysing the recovered plant!" Drake: "Large quantities of Piktamin U detected!" Drake: "This is a seed-bearing fruit, making cultivation on Koppai possible." Drake: "Juice from this fruit is safe for consumption by crew members." Alph: "I'll add a Fruit File to the KopPad, where we can store the results of our analysis." Alph: "But I don't know much about plants at all." Alph: "I'll ask Brittany to write reports later, since she's the botanist." Discover Rock Onion "What is that thing?!" Finding Rock Pikmin "Is there something inside that thing?!" "Are these creatures Pikmin too? They're giving me a funny look..." "What in the-?" "These ones seem friendly too!" "Wow, they really pack a punch!" "Seems like they really want to smash it up..." "There! That's all of it!" "So their Onion was trapped inside that crystal." "Since I have two types of Pikmin now, I can select the ones I want to use with C." "When I want to split them up by type, I'll use (nunchuck shake) to dismiss the squad." Collects Medusal Slurker "Yesterday's foe is today's food." "Wow... Nature is unforgiving." Searching for Brittany "Brittany is on the other side of this wall." Fragments across the water in the Garden of Hope "There are materials for constructing a bridge on the opposite shore." "If I work together with Brittany, I think we can get that bridge built." Closer to signal "So, the signal is coming from beyond here?" Data file on the way to the mysterious signal "Huh? Looks like there's a data file here too." "...Hocotate? I think that's near Koppai." "If I recall correctly, it's a planet populated by treasure-loving vegetable eaters." "Did they come all this way to hunt for treasure? This Olimar fellow seems pretty devoted to his family." About to enter Armored Mawdad arena "Looks like someone or something dug this out..." Enter Armored Mawdad's arena "I've got a bad feeling about this.." Armored Mawdad charges "Here it comes!" Break Armored Mawdad's armor "There we go! Maybe now..." Armored Mawdad missing in action "Where'd it go?" Armored Mawdad defeated "So this was giving off that signal..." "But what does this means for the Captain's whereabouts...?" "I guess for now we should take this back to the Drake for analysis. I think it might be of some use to us." Obtaining Data Glutton Drake: "Recovering..." Alph: "We're receiving a transmission from the Drake!" Drake: "Analysing recovered item!" Drake: "An ancient communication device used on this planet." Drake: "It contains technology unknown to Koppai and is emitting a signal even now." Alph: "If I integrate this device into the Drake's communication system, I should be able to boost our signal's strength!" Alph: "Looks like it's going to be an all nighter for me!" More than 100 Pikmin in the field "Just as the number of Pikmin in the field reached 100, the Onion stopped spitting out seeds." "The Pikmin inside the Onion seem to be increasing in number." "Apparently, once the surface population reached 100, new Pikmin are born inside the Onion." "This means that a maximum of 100 Pikmin can be active outside the Onion at any one time." Onions merge "Wow! They merged!" "Well, well... So two Onions can combine into one..." "Very interesting! I'll have to make a note of this." Morning after Brittany's rescue and fruit is recovered Alph: "We've finally discovered edible matter!" Brittany: "After close analysis, my conclusion is that the fruit juice is delicious." Alph: "I've never tasted anything like that on Koppai!" Brittany: "We need to continue our search. If there is more to be had...we should have it." Alph: "Right! Let's focus all of our energy on finding more fruit and absolutely nothing else!" Brittany: "We still need the cosmic-drive key! We can't get home without that." Alph: "Right! Let's focus all our energy on retrieving fruit and the key and absolutely nothing else!" Brittany: "The captain. We still need to find the captain, as well." Alph: "...Right. So we'll just get the food, the key, and the captain! Is there anything else I'm forgetting...?" Regarding the mysterious signal in the Distant Tundra Brittany: "Brilliant, Alph! You expanded the Drake's receiver range!" Alph: "Aw, thanks... They don't call me the keen engineer for nothing!" Brittany: "Nobody calls you that." Alph: "I know..." Alph: "The origin of the signal is unclear..." Alph: "Maybe it's the captain! We should investigate this at once!" Brittany: "Good idea, Alph! Let's do it." Brittany exits cave Brittany: "Phew! It's good to be outside again. I was getting claustrophobic in that cave!" Brittany: "Hey, there's Alph! And the S.S. Drake is there, too!" Brittany: "Alph! I'm over here!" Alph: "Ah, Brittany! Thank goodness you're OK!" Alph: "I see you're on the other side of the river!" Alph: "Our first priority is to reunite, so let's work together! Press Y when you want to hand over control!" Brittany: "Got it!" Brittany: "This place is absolutely freezing! If we stay too long, I'm afraid we're going to die of exposure." Brittany: "That is, if we don't die of starvation first." Alph: "Hey Brittany!" Alph: "Did you find something interesting over there?" Brittany: "Yes, actually! A new type of Pikmin!" Alph: "Really?!" Brittany: "Yep, they're yellow and have big ears!" Alph: "Wow! I want to meet them too!" Brittany: "OK!" Brittany: "I'll have to find a place where I can throw them across to you." Pikmin's path is abstructed "The Pikmin seem to be having problems carrying their load back. I'd better do something..." Finds soft dirt "This dirt looks pretty soft..." "Maybe we can dig through it..." Morning after crash in the Distant Tundra "I can't shake the idea that the S.S. Drake's crash was my fault..." "Anyway, there's work to be done! First I need to reunite with Brittany, then we can look for the Captain." Finished bridge to Brittany "That's as far as I can build!" "The rest is up to Brittany!" Finds Bomb Rock "I've found a peculiar rock with a powerful energy emanating from it." "I'll keep the Pikmin that's carrying it separate from the others, and then use C/L to select it."

Gallery

Early concept art of Alph.

Alph sitting down.

Alph waking up in a body of water after being ejected from the ship.

A screenshot of Alph.

Alph finding the KopPad.

Alph using the Red Pikmin to salvage the Onion.

Alph encountering the Red Pikmin for the first time.

Alph watching Scornets fly past him.

Alph reuniting with the S.S. Drake.

An artwork of Alph and some Pikmin that are about to be ambushed by a Red Bulborb.

Alph's render for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

Alph walking down the pathway from the boss arena in the Twilight River.

ALPH surprised.

Alph walking down a pathway from the boss arena in the Twilight River.

A Nintendo World NYC visitor posing with a statue of Alph

Trivia

• Alph was the only character playable in the E3 2012 Pikmin 3 demo.
• Alph's name appears to be short for "Alpha", the term used for the letter A in the phonetic alphabet. This makes sense as "Charlie" is used for letter C in the Phonetic alphabet, and Brittany's name is similar to "Bravo," which is the letter B; her name's initial, A, is also the same letter of his prototype name (Character A), just like Charlie and Brittany.
• Alph is the Technical expert of the crew, which is explained by his grandfather designing the S.S. Drake.
• According to Brittany's fruit notes, Alph is allergic to the Heroine's Tear (a mango), and the Scaly Custard (an avocado).
• Alph grew up with his grandfather, Drake.
• Alph has 12 older brothers, a big sister and a little brother.
• Brittany often adressess Alph as "Alphie" and encourages him in a way that implies that she feels protective of him, like a mother. However, some fans interpret this as romance.