Nintendo GameCube

The Nintendo GameCube (codenamed Dolphin) is the home console for which Pikmin 1 and Pikmin 2 have been released. The console was released on September 14, 2001 in Japan, November 18, 2001 in North America, May 3, 2002 in Europe, and May 17, 2002 in Australia, and has sold 21.74 million units worldwide. The console's successor, the Nintendo Wii, can also play GameCube games, and will be the console for the re-releases of the Pikmin games in the "New Play Control!" range.

History
Before being released in Japan, the GameCube's codename was project Dolphin. Due to this, some of the console's games have a reference to the codename, via an illustration or just a name. In Pikmin 1's case, it is the name of the ship, the S.S. Dolphin.

Controller
The Gamecube's controller constitutes of 6 buttons, 2 analog triggers, 2 analog sticks and the D-Pad. Games in the Pikmin series use the following general control scheme:
 * A : Punch/pluck Pikmin/throw Pikmin/confirm options.
 * B : Whistle/cancel options.
 * X : Dismiss Pikmin.
 * Y : View monitor (Pikmin 1)/change Captain (Pikmin 2).
 * Z : Change viewpoint.
 * Analogue stick :
 * Lightly : Move cursor.
 * Fully : Move captain.
 * C Stick : Move group of Pikmin.
 * L : Change the camera's angle to match the direction the cursor is pointing.
 * R : Toggle zooms.
 * D-Pad : Lay Olimar down (Pikmin 1)/use sprays (Pikmin 2)/change color of Pikmin (Pikmin 2).
 * Start : Pause the game.

Memory Card
There are three official GameCube memory card varieties:
 * 59 blocks (grey)
 * 251 blocks (black)
 * 1019 blocks (white)

In the Pikmin series, Pikmin 1 uses 19 blocks, and Pikmin 2 uses 27.