Louie

Louie first appears in Pikmin 2 and serves as a partner to Captain Olimar, commanding Pikmin as his sidekick. He is relatively new to the shipping business and has a ravenous appetite. He was raised by his grandmother, who made him play with bugs, as well as eat them, which he seems to partake in on the Pikmin Planet.

Olimar's return
Louie's first mission for Hocotate Freight was to transport a shipment of valuable golden Pikpik carrots. He was supposedly attacked by a ravenous space bunny, and the carrots were lost. The President of Hocotate Freight took out a giant loan to cover the losses of the carrots, and had no way to repay the loan other than sell off company assets. The only available asset was the S.S. Dolphin; it was immediately claimed on Olimar's return to Hocotate. Learning that the Dolphin was sold to cover the debt, Olimar was so shocked he dropped a souvenir for his son: a bottle cap. As it rolled to a stop at Louie's feet, an old ship commonly called the Ship was able to use its Research Pod to suck up the rusty bottle cap. The Pod proclaimed the piece of salvage to be worth 100 Pokos, which lowered the debt to 10,000 Pokos. The President instructed Olimar and Louie to head back to the Planet of the Pikmin to search for treasure and save the company.

Paying off Hocotate Freight's debt
As Olimar and Louie head to the Valley of Repose at the start of Pikmin 2, Louie falls out of the cockpit, leaving Olimar alone. After making contact with the Ship, Louie sets off to return to Olimar at the landing area. On the way, he discovers a Red Onion and cultivates some Pikmin sprouts, just as Olimar had done when he was stranded in the first game. The player can reach Olimar through the use of the loyal Red Pikmin, then proceed to find the Courage Reactor, the first treasure of the game, effectively starting the adventure.

The debt is eventually payed off throughout the game, treasures being found in the Awakening Wood and Perplexing Pool as well as that first area. After collecting 10,000 Pokos' worth of treasure, Olimar blasts off from the planet, noticing too late that Louie is left behind.

The Titan Dweevil
Olimar and the President of Hocotate Freight return to the planet to find Louie. Louie aimlessly wanders around the planet for a bit, as seen in the credits roll of the game. Olimar and the President later find him in the Wistful Wild, hidden deep in the Dream Den with the Titan Dweevil. They rescue him and send him to the Ship's treasure hoard (since the cockpit is already full), calling him the King of Bugs.

It is of constant debate whether Louie was a captive of the Titan Dweevil, or in actuality controlling it. E-mails the player receives from Louie's grandmother reflect that Louie was made to play with bugs by his grandmother as a child, so he has a great deal of experience with them, therefore it is possible he had the ability to control the Titan Dweevil. This is heavily hinted at by the sales pitch on Louie, here denoted as the King of Bugs, which in itself implies this as well.

Louie's Dark Secret
Louie is actually the one responsible for the debt Hocotate Freight suffers, not a "ravenous space bunny" as he lead the President to believe at the start; it was truly he who ate the load of golden Pikpik carrots. This is revealed in a cutscene, called "Louie's Dark Secret", unlocked by getting a pink flower for all 30 of the Challenge Mode levels.

Brawl Trophy
"A new Hocotate Freight employee. Louie is responsible for Captain Olimar having to venture back to the Pikmin planet. On his first delivery, Louie was supposedly attacked by a space bunny that devoured his whole lot of pikpik carrots. Pushed to the verge of bankruptcy, Hocotate Freight takes out an enormous loan that Louie and Olimar set out to pay back."

Traits and abilities

 * As a young boy, Louie's grandmother encouraged him to eat bugs. Because of this, he is able to survive eating the creatures of the Pikmin Planet.
 * He has a love of fine cuisine, which drives him to create gourmet recipes for beasts on the Pikmin Planet.

Behind the scenes

 * Louie's name is derived from Luigi's name, as Olimar's is derived from Mario's. The two bear other similarities as well.
 * In Super Smash Bros. Brawl, He appears as a trophy.
 * Also in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, one of Olimar's alternative costumes resembles Louie.

Pikmin: Distant Planet
Louie's connection to bugs is elaborated upon in this non-canon game. The antagonist, the Throne of Bugs, although immensely powerful both mentally and physically, sees Louie as its ruler, possibly due to his connection to the powerful Titan Dweevil before its defeat. Depending upon the choices made towards the end of the game, Louie could be seen as either a hero or a villain.