Dandori Academy

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Dandori Academy (ダンドリ検定^?, lit.: "Dandori Certification Exam") is a game mode in Pikmin 4 – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Dandori Academy, which releases on November 12^th, 2026. In it, the player is tasked with collecting as much treasure as they can within the time limit, similar to Dandori Challenges. The better the player's performance, the better the medal they obtain.

Uniquely to this mode, players cannot freely choose when to play or in what stages. All players are allowed to practice a selection of stages a few times in the allotted time period, but can normally only perform a real attempt (known as "taking an exam") on each stage once. The levels available and the current possible exam attempt are locked behind certain days of the real-world calendar. This encourages players to practice their dandori on the next stages carefully until they are confident they can get a good result, since they are given limited attempts and limited time.

Players need an internet connection in order to access a stage.

Gameplay

See more: Dandori Challenge#Gameplay.

In a Dandori Academy stage, players are placed in a location with some Pikmin, and are tasked with transporting some objects within a time limit. These objects are typically treasures and Gold Nuggets, but in some stages can be enemy carcasses as well. In order to do so effectively, players must plan their routes carefully and execute them well, essentially making use of dandori.

Timing and attempts

At any given point, players are given 3 stages to practice in, which they can do in any day of the week. The 3 stages are presumably one for each difficulty level. Exam attempts become available on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. On the first Monday of every month, 6 stages become available, 2 for each difficulty mode, totaling to all 72 being made available after 1 year.

While players only normally get one attempt at an exam, they can obtain Encore Tickets that let them try again. If in one such retry the player obtains a better medal than before, that medal will be recorded as the new result. Players receive one Encore Ticket per month, and every 5 practice attempts. Players can only obtain 5 practice-given tickets per month, at most.

Stages that have already been closed can be replayed freely at any time.

Medals

Once time runs out or everything required has been collected, the player is given a medal based on their performance. If everything was collected, the time remaining will be converted to extra points. When the exam attempt is officially done, this medal is recorded in the player's scoreboard, and the exact score they obtained in the stage seems to be discarded. Players have a given amount of total Dandori Points, which depend solely on the medals obtained.

The following medals exist:

• Unknown Oatchi-like medal: Appears as an uninteresting iron-colored medal with Oatchi's face. Presumably given if the player did not manage to obtain bronze.
• Bronze.
• Silver.
• Gold.
• Platinum: Presumably obtained when everything is collected.
• Unknown further medal: Presumably obtained when everything is collected, plus the time remaining reaches a certain specific value. This medal is worth just as many Dandori Points as a platinum medal.

Stages

Dandori Academy contains a total of 72 stages, including stages based on areas in Story Mode, Dandori Challenge stages, and stages in completely new locations. In most stages, leaflings can be found standing around, presumably spectating.

They are split into three difficulty categories: Elementary, Advanced, and Graduate.

The following stages are known to exist:

Gargantuan Garden

• “Collect all the treasures and gold nuggets!”
• Time limit: 5:30
• Treasures:
  •  Gold Nugget × 66
  •  Dusk Pustules × 1
  •  Child of the Earth × 1 (buried)
  •  Daughter of the Earth × 1
  •  Foolish Fruit × 1
  •  Dawn Pustules × 1
  •  Mysterious Carriage × 1
  •  Crimson Banquet × 1

Takes place in an altered form of the Sun-Speckled Terrace. Many fruit-related treasures can be seen. Includes Red Pikmin and Purple Pikmin, with some of either type starting off as sprouts. The Dusk Pustules are hidden behind a bag. A score of 100 results in a bronze medal.

Other stages

Dandori Challenge stages

• Rockaway Cellars. This stage is in the "Advanced" difficulty level.
• Test Tubs. This stage will be available in February 2027.
• 6th Story: Gimmick Gambit.
• 8th Story: Crowded Kitchen.

Sun-Speckled Terrace

Some stages take place in altered forms of the Sun-Speckled Terrace.

• A stage with Red Pikmin, Armored Cannon Larvae, and Fiery Bulblaxes. It is in the "Graduate" difficulty level and is played at sunset.
• A stage with Red Pikmin, Yellow Pikmin, Gold Nugget piles, Pocked Airheads, Portable Sunsets, Scaly Custards, Citrus Lumps, Puffy Blowhogs, Bulborbs, electric gates, dirt-mounds, tunnels, and nectar eggs. The player must bring back treasures, nuggets, and fallen enemies. This stage will be available in December 2026.

Serene Shores

Some stages take place in altered forms of the Serene Shores.

• A stage with Yellow Pikmin, Heroine's Tears, and Noble Bidents.

Cave sublevels

Some stages take place in locations resembling cave sublevels.

• A stage in a brick-themed cave sublevel with Glow Pikmin, Gold Nugget piles, many Fastening Items, breakable pots, dirt walls, and Kingcaps.
• A stage in a dirt-themed cave sublevel with Purple Pikmin and a Golden Vaulting Table.
• A stage in a tile-themed cave sublevel with Yellow Pikmin, Stately Rubber Cuties, and what are either Planetary Rubber Cuties or Universal Rubber Cuties.
• A stage in a sandpit-themed cave sublevel with Yellow Pikmin and a Lamp of Inspiration.
• A stage in a toybox-themed cave sublevel with Yellow Pikmin, Purple Pikmin, Dapper Blobs, Crunchy Deluges, Pocked Airheads, Breadbugs, Giant Breadbugs, electric gates, and nectar eggs. The player must bring back treasures and nuggets. This stage will be available in January 2027.
• A stage in a toybox-themed cave sublevel with Rock Pikmin, Spheres of Vitality, Spheres of Trust, Yellow Wollyhops, and crystal walls.

Pikmin Bloom world map

Some stages take place on a flat plain with a map styled like the Pikmin Bloom world map. Patches of flowers with different colors can be seen, and they pop out from the flat plain. The terrain is mostly grass, but contains some paths and rivers. They stretch for a long distance, and the horizon contains some faint mountains and a sky with a gentle gradient. Items can only be carried along paths.

• A stage with Purple Pikmin, White Pikmin, Gold Nugget piles, Kingcaps, Spotcaps (some with White Pikmin inside), Disguised Delicacies, Cupid's Grenades, and Juicy Gaggles. Its name starts with "C", and Oatchi has a strength level of 10. The player must bring back treasures and nuggets. This stage will be available in November 2026.
• A stage with Rock Pikmin, some of which are Bee-fuddling Rock Pikmin, and Empress Bulblaxes. The sky is a sunset.
• A stage with Red Pikmin, some of which are Bus-Bound Red Pikmin and Extra-Sharp Red Pikmin, Gold Nugget piles, Dwarf Bulborbs, Bulborbs, Puffy Blowhogs, Love's Fortune Cookies, Sweet Torrents, S.S. Peppermints, Puzzle Snacks, Cushion Cakes, Spotcaps, and Kingcaps.

Others

• A stage labelled "Course 1", and called "Courtyard Commands". It features Time Markers, Spouse Alerts, and Path Creators. Its briefing states “Transport all of the treasure and every last nugget.”
• A stage labelled "Course 2". It features Unfloatable Boats.
• A stage labelled "Course 3". It features potted mushrooms.

Scoreboard

Upon completing a stage, the player is presented with their score card.

To the left is the name given to the rookie Rescue Officer, their Dandori status nickname, and their Dandori point score. The nickname is likely to depend on how high the player's Dandori points total is, with higher scores resulting in more authoritative names – Whiz Kid is one of the nicknames.

To the right is a table, where each cell represents the best medal obtained in a stage. The table is split into 12 exams, titled "Exam 1" to "Exam 12", and each is divided further into an "A" cell and a "B" cell. The table shown depends on the currently selected difficulty mode and can be changed by pressing and .

Leaderboards

After completing a stage, the player is shown a leaderboard of scores. There are three categories: Scoreboard (presumably containing the scoreboard), Master Board (contains everyone's rankings), and Friend Board (presumably contains Nintendo Switch Online friend scores).

This leaderboard is a chart representing the scores of other players. The chart can be scrolled left and right, and it is split into different sections, one for each medal, with a line plus the score threshold separating them. Then, stamp-like icons for the different players are placed somewhere along the chart – horizontally they match the score axis, but vertically they seem spread out for aesthetic purposes.

Each player's icon shows their score and their character's head and name, surrounded by a shape; known shapes include Olimar's head, a flower, a Bulborb, Oatchi's head, and an Onion. Each also sports a different color. Both of these things are likely customizable by the player. The player's own icon is larger than the others.

From this menu, it is possible to "update" and to view a list of rewards, though it is unclear what the former does. In the Nintendo Direct footage, the scores of other Story Mode characters are also present, but it remains to be seen whether these are placeholders for real players, added for demonstration purposes, or whether they are fixed arbitrary scores dotted across the chart to encourage the player to outdo other scores.

Rewards

The more medals the player obtains, the more rewards they can collect. Rewards include photo mode frames and stamps, and decorations for the user's icon in the Nintendo Switch 2 HOME screen.

Gallery

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Names in other languages

This section is a stub. You can help Pikipedia by expanding it.

Language	Name	Meaning
Dutch	Dandori-academie	Dandori academy
French	Académie Dandori	Dandori Academy
German	Dandori-Akademie	Dandori Academy

See also

• Dandori Challenge
• Challenge Mode (Pikmin 2)
• Mission Mode