Pikmin 2

Pikmin 2 is the second mainline installment in the PS undefined, released in 2004 for the GameCube. The game takes place directly after the events of, and sees Captain Olimar returning to the planet of the Pikmin with Louie to collect treasure to pay off a large debt. Elements new to the series include a 2-Player Battle mode, underground caves, and three new types of Pikmin. The game has been ported to the Wii under the title, and ported to the Nintendo Switch under the title Pikmin 2. Its sequel,, was released nine years later.

Plot
Upon returning to Hocotate after his adventure on the planet of the Pikmin, Captain Olimar meets up with his employer and a newly hired, supposedly inexperienced employee named Louie. Olimar learns that Hocotate Freight is massively in debt due to the loss of a shipment of golden Pikpik carrots, a situation brought about by Louie. Olimar's ship, the S.S. Dolphin, is consequently sold in order to repay some of the debt, despite this not being enough. Upon hearing this, Olimar drops a bottle cap in shock, brought back to Hocotate as a souvenir for his son. An old ship proceeds to absorb the bottle cap and values it at, leading to the President then sending Olimar and Louie back to the Pikmin planet, in order to retrieve treasure that can repay the company debt. Their goal is to repay the of debt remaining.

Whilst landing, they come across a small blizzard on the Valley of Repose. While trying to maneuver through some tree branches, Olimar hits one of them, which knocks Louie off of his cockpit and into the area below. The ship with Olimar inside manages to drop with a thud, ejecting the leader to the ground. He gets up and discovers some Red Pikmin fighting a Dwarf Red Bulborb. He tries to whistle them to his side, and helps them defeat the enemy when he realizes that they obey him still. With the Pikmin's help, Olimar and Louie, both in different parts of the area, manage to reunite and recover a treasure, the Courage Reactor, from Louie's side.

During the following days, Olimar and Louie enter a cave in the area and discover Purple Pikmin inside. With their help, they gather a treasure that allows them to travel to a new area, the Spherical Atlas. On this area, the Awakening Wood, they find White Pikmin, and gather a new treasure which provides access to the Perplexing Pool. Between the three areas, the two leaders gather treasure, explore caves, and discover Yellow and Blue Pikmin. Eventually, Hocotate Freight's debt is repaid, at which point, the duo triumphantly returns to their home planet.

On the way, however, Olimar discovers that Louie was left behind. When he meets up with the President, he notifies him about the fact that there are still more treasures available. The President gleefully tries to command Olimar and Louie to go back and gather more goods, until he realizes that Louie is not around. He chooses to take his place instead. At this point, the final area is unlocked: the Wistful Wild. In it, they manage to find Louie in the Dream Den, atop the Titan Dweevil. They save him, and at their own pace, they eventually manage to clear the areas of all treasure.

Endings
This game has two endings, but these are not alternate endings, as one always occurs after the other. The first ending occurs when the debt is repaid, while the second happens when all treasures are collected; while both are technically canon, the debt repayment ending is just a break in the story to introduce the President as a playable character. The side game of involves the Hocotatians returning for more treasures after the rescue of Louie from the Dream Den sometime later, as both Captain Olimar and Louie are featured in Pikmin 3 story.

Gameplay
The gameplay of Pikmin 2 is similar to the series' first game, with a few changes. For example, no longer opens up the map of the current area; instead, it is accessed via. The previous button is now used to switch control between the two currently available leaders, introducing a multitasking aspect. Unlike the first game, this one has an endless amount of days in which to complete all objectives.

At the end of a day, the nocturnal enemies of the planet awaken, posing an impossible threat, and any Pikmin left behind are killed. After the ship has risen into a low orbit, it is possible to view the treasures salvaged that day, the current Pikmin count, and any mail sent by various characters.

There are two new hazards introduced in Pikmin 2: electricity and poison. The majority of obstacles are present again, along with new ones, such as bags and electric gates. Red, Yellow and Blue Pikmin are stored in Onions, while Purples and Whites are stored in the ship's hull, due to their production being through appropriate Candypop Buds, thus having no respective Onions.

Other additions to this game include sprays and treasures that provide upgrades.

Challenge Mode
Challenge Mode features 30 standalone challenges, where the goal is to reach the end of a special cave by collecting The Key on each sublevel. On the final sublevel, it is required to dig up the geyser to escape. The player's score is calculated based on several factors, such as the time they took, and the number of Pokos won. The mode is somewhat similar to challenge mode and Mission Mode in.

2-Player Battle
In 2-Player Battle, two players control one leader each, and attempt to beat the other player by collecting marbles in cave-like environments. Players can also fight against each other using their own army of Pikmin. The mode is similar to Bingo Battle in.

e-Reader
The Japanese version of Pikmin 2 features e-Reader compatibility. Sets of Pikmin e-Reader cards were sold, which unlocked new mini-games. This feature was not available in other regions, because the peripheral had been discontinued. The option on the bonuses menu of these versions was removed (though it is still accessible through hacking and will work with a Japanese e-Reader). When the e-cards were first announced for Pikmin 2, many people thought it was an announcement for a Game Boy Advance version of Pikmin 2.

Pikmin
The Red, Yellow and Blue Pikmin that debuted in the first game haven't changed, except for the Yellow Pikmin, who are no longer able to handle bomb-rocks (which are all larger in this game), but are instead immune to the electrical hazards in the game. Mushroom Pikmin are not seen in Pikmin 2, and there are three new kinds of Pikmin that can be discovered in underground areas.

Returning types
The following Pikmin types introduced in the first Pikmin game are in Pikmin 2:


 * Red Pikmin
 * Yellow Pikmin
 * Blue Pikmin

Purple Pikmin


Purple Pikmin are the first underground Pikmin and the second kind of Pikmin discovered in the game. They are found by using the Violet Candypop Buds in the last sublevel of the Emergence Cave. They have a bulky appearance and have visible hairs on their head. Purple Pikmin are needed to carry the heavy Spherical Atlas in the cave, because Purples have ten times the strength of ordinary Pikmin. Their great weight means that they shake the ground upon landing from a throw, which can temporarily stun nearby enemies of most species that are on the ground. Purples are also the strongest type of Pikmin, dealing the most damage in attacking enemies. They possess an advantage over other Pikmin when dealing with some bosses: for example, they can harm Giant Breadbugs and can make a Waterwraith vulnerable to attack by any Pikmin.

White Pikmin


White Pikmin are the second underground Pikmin and third type of Pikmin found in Pikmin 2. To find the game's first White Pikmin, the player must have more than twenty Purple Pikmin, to flatten the bag in order to get to the White Flower Garden and progress to sublevel three, where the Ivory Candypop Buds are. They are smaller than other Pikmin and have red eyes. The poison clouds produced by poison pipes and Doodlebugs will cause any other Pikmin to choke, but White Pikmin are immune to them. These Pikmin can locate buried items on their own, making them essential for unearthing buried treasure. They are also the fastest of the Pikmin, both in terms of carrying items and keeping up with the leader. When eaten by an enemy, they poison their foe and cause it to lose some health; smaller enemies are killed instantly.

Bulbmin


Bulbmin are the last type of Pikmin the player may find. They are found in three caves – the Submerged Castle, the Frontier Cavern and the Hole of Heroes. Bulbmin may look like Bulborbs, but they can be used like and act similarly to any other Pikmin. To retrieve Bulbmin, one must defeat their parent and then call them with a leader's whistle. Bulbmin are immune to all the hazards on the planet except physical threats posed by enemies, but cannot leave underground areas, making them a good choice to use in Candypop Buds.

Areas
The following are the aboveground areas in which it is possible for the Hocotate ship to land:
 * Valley of Repose: A snowy region in which Captain Olimar and Louie first land. They discover the Red and Purple Pikmin here.
 * Awakening Wood: A garden-like area populated by several types of enemies; it is where Olimar and Louie first discover the White and Blue Pikmin. It is unlocked when the Spherical Atlas is collected.
 * Perplexing Pool: A wetland-like area with many aquatic enemies; it is where Olimar and Louie find the Yellow Pikmin here. It is unlocked when the Geographic Projection is collected.
 * Wistful Wild: An autumn forest native to many formidable enemies. It is unlocked after the debt is repaid.

Caves
Each of the areas in the game has a number of caves. Each cave is composed of multiple floors, and each time a floor is entered, its layout is randomly generated. Since there is no access to the Onions inside caves, Pikmin cannot be easily grown.

Treasures
Treasures are the main collectible in Pikmin 2. Each treasure helps repay the debt, and they have varying sizes, weights, and values. Enemies can also serve as a source of money, albeit minimal. Most of the objects considered treasure by the Hocotatians are everyday objects in the real world.

Enemies
The enemies in this game are more varied than the ones in the previous one, and more of them make use of hazards to hurt the Pikmin with.

Plants and fungi
There are more types of plant and fungus in Pikmin 2, but they are still mostly decorative. Some of them have their own Piklopedia entry.

Characters
Pikmin 2 features three main characters.

Captain Olimar


Captain Olimar returns in Pikmin 2. After Olimar's success on PNF-404, he was able to escape the planet to return to Hocotate, hoping to see his family again and return to his everyday life. After arriving at Hocotate Freight, he met up with the President and a new employee named Louie. After landing his ship, he learned that the company was in debt, having to pay at least for the loss of a golden pikpik carrot shipment. Learning that the Dolphin was sold to help pay the debt, Olimar was so shocked he dropped the souvenir for his son. As the bottle cap rolled past Louie, an old ship was able to suck up the item. Its pod analyzed the piece of salvage to be worth, which lowered the debt to. The President commanded Olimar and Louie to return to the Pikmin Planet and collect more treasure as a result.

Louie


Louie makes his debut appearance in Pikmin 2. He is Olimar's partner and co-worker. Louie's first mission for Hocotate Freight was to transport a shipment of valuable golden pikpik carrots. In it, 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 debt other than sell off company assets. On Olimar's return to Hocotate, the President learns of the existence of treasure on PNF-404 and orders both Olimar and Louie to retrieve objects that can be sold for profit, in order to save the company.

Louie is playable in the Story Mode until he is left behind, and the President replaces him as the secondary captain for the remainder of the game. He is also playable in 2-Player Battle and Challenge Mode.

The President
He runs into financial trouble after Louie, shipping a supply of the very valuable golden pikpik carrots, is reportedly attacked by a ravenous space bunny who is said to have devoured the entire cargo of carrots. The President takes out a large loan to reimburse the loss of the golden pikpik carrots, and has no way of repaying the enormous debt. He sells off the only company asset, Olimar's ship, the S.S. Dolphin, in Olimar's absence, but it only makes a small dent in the enormous loan, as are still owed.

This, occurring after the events of Pikmin, surprises Captain Olimar who just returned to Hocotate. He is so surprised by the news, in fact, that he drops a souvenir he brought back from his adventure for his son. The souvenir, a bottle cap, is collected by the ship, which then evaluates the item as a treasure and worth, reducing the debt to an even 10,000. The President then orders Olimar and Louie to recover more treasure so that the debt is repaid.

After Louie is left behind, The President replaces him as the secondary captain for the remainder of the game.

Controls
Players control a leader with the GameCube controller. It is possible to swap between the two leaders, provided they're both conscious. Players can also control the camera to a degree, as well as issue basic commands to their Pikmin, which in turn, perform whatever complex task is necessary.

Development
The development of Pikmin 2 started after was finished, and was originally supposed to take two years, though it ended up taking two-and-a-half. Director Shigefumi Hino wanted to include various things that couldn't be done in the first game, such as 2-player gameplay. The biggest change compared to the first game was removing the day limit, which removed a large source of tension from the game. In response, caves were added, with the fact that Pikmin cannot be grown in them adding a new source of tension. Two new Pikmin types were added to give players more freedom in how to approach challenges, and real-world objects were chosen to be the main collectible items to give a sense of scale to the world.

Release
Pikmin 2 has been re-released as part of the New Play Control! series of games for the Wii in Japan, Europe, Australia and North America. The game incorporates the Wii's controller's capabilities to allow aiming the cursor by pointing, as well as graphical enhancements and an updated save system. The Japanese version of the game is only available in Japanese, while the American version is only available in American English, and the European version of the game is available in American English (though the Magical Stage's sales pitch is in European English), European French, German, Italian, and Castilian Spanish.

Versions
The first version of Pikmin 2 to release was the Japanese GameCube version. Later, the game was localized for and released in North America, and later still, the same happened for Europe and Oceania. All three of these count as different versions, and contain notable changes from one another. Besides the Japanese version using Japanese text, the North American version using English text, and the European version using European-language texts, the biggest difference between all of these versions is the list of treasures. A majority of the treasures are the same everywhere, but a handful of them were changed entirely to better suit each region's player-base. Other, minor versions also exist between all of these versions.

In 2009, a Wii enhanced port of this game was released, titled. This port has some notable differences, with the most important one being the different control scheme. Japan, North America, and Europe/Oceania each got a different version of ''New Play Control! Pikmin 2'', with changes very similar to the ones between the GameCube releases.

On 21 a Nintendo Switch port of the game based on the New Play Control! version was released, albeit with a number of changes.

Reception
Pikmin 2 has some of the best scores of any Pikmin game. It was applauded for the removal of the 30-day limit, which was not well received by some players. It scored 89.44% on GameRankings, and 90/100 on Metacritic.

Connections to other games
Pikmin 2 plot takes place directly after 's events, and Olimar's first encounter with the Pikmin from that game is referenced. Besides that, the game explains everything about the canon on its own.

Trivia

 * In the Wii game WarioWare: Smooth Moves there is a mini-game based on and called "Pikmin 2". In it, the player controls an Empress Bulblax and must use the Wii Remote to roll it from side to side squishing Pikmin.
 * This is the only game in the series in which the plot does not involve repairing the ship the protagonist uses to get home.
 * On the European boxart for Pikmin 2, one can faintly see a Red Bulborb in the background.
 * The GameCube flavor text is.
 * The game does not technically have infinite days, as the day counter resets at the end of day 4,294,967,296, which displays as day 0. This results in multiple glitches.