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Perplexing Pool

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Perplexing Pool

PP spiderwort.png

High Definition overhead map of the Perplexing Pool.

Treasures 7
Caves 4
Pikmin discovered Yellow Pikmin
Requirements Collect the Geographic Projection
Music Perplexing Pool

The Perplexing Pool (まどいの水源?, lit.: "Spring of Perplexity") is the third area discovered in Pikmin 2, of the four in the game. It is the most aquatic area in Pikmin 2, with multiple lakes spread across its length and two of the caves being submerged, making Blue Pikmin a necessity. The level contains four caves, seven treasures, and a variety of beasts, many of them spending a lot of time in water. The Perplexing Pool is considered a representation of Summer. There are Poko icon.png × 560 worth of treasure in the US version and Poko icon.png × 520 in the European version.

The area is noted to bear a number of striking resemblances to The Distant Spring in the first game, for which reason it can be confidently considered to be the same area of the Pikmin planet. At one point, Olimar points out how much the area has changed since his last visit.[1]

Additional enemies appear after day 30. These creatures are rather difficult to defeat, making it advisable for inexperienced players to complete the area before that day.

General layout

The Perplexing Pool has a close resemblance to The Distant Spring of the first game, though it does have some changes. There is a big area where there were only small islands and water, there is no water in the middle of the area, the Shower Room is where the Massage Machine was in Pikmin, the Submerged Castle is where the Chronos Reactor was, most of the gates are gone, and there are 3 Burgeoning Spiderworts in the area – two in the middle of the area and one in the water. There are some Yellow Wollywogs and one Toady Bloyster in the water to the south of the landing site.

Yellow Pikmin

A view of the Yellow Pikmin's location in Perplexing Pool.
A view of where the Yellow Pikmin are located.

In Pikmin 2, Yellow Pikmin are discovered in this area. The player must navigate around the stumps and use the scales to get to higher elevation. Alternately, if they are skilled enough, they can throw their Pikmin onto the ledge near the bridge to the right of the large stumps, then carefully guide them to building the bridge. Any Pikmin that fall in the water can be easily whistled back. The Fiery Blowhog in the way can be bypassed. Then, the player must fight a Fiery Bulblax with Red Pikmin. After killing the Fiery Bulblax, White Pikmin must break down a bramble gate with poison pipes inside. The Yellow Pikmin are on the other side of this gate.

Caves

Objects

Treasures

Enemies

Others

  • Egg icon.png Egg × 9 (3 fall from the sky only on day 4 near Beady Long Legs's location, 3 appear between Citadel of Spiders and the Yellow Pikmin spot on days 11-30, and the other 3 are always by Glutton's Kitchen)

Piklopedia and Treasure Hoard

Overview of the Piklopedia version of the Perplexing Pool.
Map of the area as it appears in the Piklopedia.

The Piklopedia and Treasure Hoard version of this area, which can be accessed by placing the ship's icon on top of the area and entering the archives, is similar to the in-game Perplexing Pool, but with the critical difference of having a large, round, open arena as the landing site, instead of a rectangular closed-off room. That circular region is also surrounded by an irregular beach of sand, surrounded by scrap metal. The following differences can also be noted:

  • There is a crack to the southwest of the landing site, indicating the presence of a clog.
  • There is a large metal tube protruding off the ground in the water, to the southeast of the landing site, instead of two plastic tubes.
  • The sand plot near the Chronos Reactor from The Distant Spring is present, and the nearby block with a Golden Candypop Bud, also from The Distant Spring is also present, but sunken into the ground.
  • Part of the original landing site from The Distant Spring is present, but it's mostly covered up by sand except for part of the Red Onion's original spot.
  • The tree in the Yellow Pikmin landing site is not present.
  • The stone block buried to the northwest of the landing site is not present.
  • The wooden structures near the Glutton's Kitchen's entrance and the Optical Illustration are not present.
  • The large stone ramps at the north that provide a one-way access from the lake are absent on the Piklopedia.
  • The ground at the western river and the center of the area is at the same level, so it is possible to walk from one to the other at will. In the in-game area, the center's terrain is higher.
  • In-game, there is a gap to the northeast of the landing site that requires a bridge to cross. It is absent in the Piklopedia variant.
  • In-game, there is a flat stump found to the west of the Glutton's Kitchen entrance. The stump is cut much higher in the Piklopedia version.
  • Most of the trunks at the north of the landing site don't have walls, or have lower walls than in-game.
  • The inaccessible area to the south of the Shower Room entrance is a lot more detailed than shown in-game.

Gallery

Other images

Trivia

  • The section of the map where Yellow Pikmin are first found has three circles of dappled light on the ground, tinted red, yellow, and blue. This section was originally the landing site of the map as seen in prerelease material, and the Onions would respectively be located on the same spots as these circles.
  • The Perplexing Pool was originally going to be called "The Perplexing Spring".[2]
  • While walking through the area, translucent cicada and min-min cicada calls can be heard. In the evening, they are replaced with evening cicadas.
  • Only on day 4, three eggs can be seen falling from the sky if one goes close to the location where the Beady Long Legs spawns. This is the only case in the overworld where an object (other than the Beady Long Legs) can fall from the sky, since all other objects that fall do so in caves. If one opens the game files to look at the definition that creates those three eggs, they can find a comment reading ハテナタマゴ3I?, lit.: "Question egg 3I".

Names in other languages

Language Name Meaning
Flag of France French La Source Troublante (GameCube version)
Source Troublante (Wii version)
The Disturbing Spring
Disturbing Spring
Flag of Germany German Die Mythische Quelle (GameCube version)
Mythische Quelle (Wii version)
The Mythical Spring
Mythical Spring
Flag of Spain Spanish El Arroyo Desconcertante (GameCube version)
Arroyo Desconcertante (Wii version)
The Disconcerting River
Disconcerting River
Flag of Mexico Spanish (NoA) Arroyo Desconcertante Disconcerting River

See also

References

  1. ^ I've recently noted that changes in this planet's environment happen at a very rapid pace. Compared to how it was when I was here before, the Perplexing Pool has changed drastically. Due to frequent tectonic shifts, the region appears slightly different each time I enter it. It could be a natural phenomenon, but it's as if I feel the presence of a guiding hand. ...Maybe it's just my imagination running wild. – Aquatic Mine's entry in Olimar's journal
  2. ^ Pikmin 2/Early English Script on The Cutting Room Floor


Icon of a white flower in the Challenge Mode of Pikmin 2. It represents a course that is beaten, but with Pikmin who were lost.

This article was a featured article from March 30th to April 18th, 2008.

Icon of a white flower in the Challenge Mode of Pikmin 2. It represents a course that is beaten, but with Pikmin who were lost.