Pikmin are like a cute camoflauge to violence.
The Pikmin come in three different "flavors" if you will (but you won't be eating them). Red, blue, and yellow. Each has a unique trait. Red are your best fighters and can also survive intense heat (fire). Blue are not to strong, but can breathe under water (they are the only Pikmin capable of going through water). Yellow are light so they can be throw higher than other Pikmin and can also withstand electric shock (getting electricuted), and can also carry bomb rocks. You will need to utilize each Pikmin's capabilities to get yourself off of this planet.
Controlling your Pikmin is easy. You can blow a whistle to make them come to you, you can dismiss them and they will all break up into groups with similiar Pikmin (reds with reds, blues with blues, yellows with yellows), you can pik (heh) them up and throw them onto enemies or high ledges, and you can form them into patterns or control their direction with the C stick.
There is a fairly large variety of unique enemies that you will face. Some will be flying and you will need to weight them down with Pikmin then go full force, others you will need to get behind and attack so that they don't eat hordes of your Pikmin. Also, watch out for fire breathing, water shooting, or electrifying enemies. As I said, utilizing your Pikmin's abilities is key.
Your ship parts are hidden throughout a few different locations. Some you will be able to get right away. Others you will need to wait until you have all the Pikmin to get (as you will not have all three kinds right off the bat). There are also some extra large foes (bosses you may call them) hanging out in certain areas so be prepared for those. Not to mention the Emperor Bulbax; the ultimate Pikmin fiend.
The beginning of the game starts off fairly easy, but the difficulty ramps up quite a bit when you get to the third area. It's only logical though as your Pikmin controlling skills should improve over time. At first the game may feel a little overwhelming since you have to do get 30 parts in 30 days and your first day is spent learning how to play the game...but fear not, as you get going you'll be getting 2 or 3 parts on certain good days.
At the end of each day you get the choice to save, move on, or restart the current day. So, if you had a bad day and lost a bunch of Pikmin or you spent the day exploring and mapping out a plan, or you just didn't get as many parts as you'd like then just restart it and do it again. This is a nice touch so you feel like there's more strategy for you to map out your day before you do it.
This is truly an excellent game; one of a kind. It's an original idea, its got gorgeous graphics, and it's got some good strategy and it's definitly one you shouldn't pass up.