Pikmin / GAME HISTORY

Pikmin’s Crushing Glitch Still Has Switch Reports

Pikipedia still records the crushing glitch in Pikmin’s Switch release.

By Patchlo Editorial Desk · Published October 28, 2026 · Sources checked October 28, 2026

Scope: Pikmin on GameCube, New Play Control! Pikmin on Wii, and Pikmin 1 on Switch, as distinguished by Pikipedia.

The loss can happen without the usual death cue

Pikipedia describes Pikmin being pushed through the ground and dying below it, sometimes without a soul animation or death sound. A player can therefore finish an encounter and find the squad smaller without seeing an ordinary enemy kill.

The documented situations include large enemies, falling bodies, pellets and lowering gates. Crowding a target with many Pikmin is associated with more occurrences than throwing Pikmin at it. Throwing reduces exposure to that situation; it is not a tested promise of zero losses.

The encounter sequence

The important distinction is between a legitimate attack killing a Pikmin and a Pikmin passing through the floor. The community record describes the latter.

1. A group crowds an enemy or another moving object.
2. Some Pikmin become compressed against the ground.
3. They disappear below the floor rather than completing the normal visible death sequence.

What the later versions changed

The wiki’s version table marks the glitch as possible on GameCube, Wii and Switch. Its notes say it is more frequent in New Play Control! and less frequent on Switch. It also records related crushing behavior in Pikmin 2.

The suggested explanation involving collision forces is explicitly presented as a possible explanation. The checked source does not supply a Nintendo patch note establishing a final, complete fix.