Pikmin 2
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| Pikmin 2 | |
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| Developer(s) | Nintendo Entertainment Analysis and Development |
| Publisher(s) | Nintendo |
| Designer(s) | Shigefumi Hino Masamichi Abe |
| Release date(s) |  April 29, 2004 August 30, 2004 October 8, 2004 |
| Genre(s) | Real-time strategy |
| Mode(s) | Single player, multiplayer |
| Rating(s) | ESRB: Everyone PEGI: 3+ OFLC: G8+ |
| Platform(s) | Nintendo GameCube |
| Media | 1 × GameCube Optical Disc |
Pikmin 2 (ピクミン2?) is a real-time strategy video game developed by Nintendo for the Nintendo GameCube. It was released in Japan on April 29, 2004, in North America on August 30, 2004, and in Europe on October 8, 2004.
Pikmin 2 is the sequel to Pikmin, a launch game for the Nintendo GameCube. This game was considered an improvement over the original Pikmin; CNET reported that it "addressed the bulk of the shortcomings of its predecessor by crafting a game that tops the original in nearly every way."[1]
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[edit] Gameplay
Gameplay in Pikmin 2 revolves around using different combinations of Pikmin to retrieve various treasures from the planet's surface. These treasures range from a Duracell battery to a Dannon Fruit at the Bottom yogurt lid. Different obstacles or enemies make the retrieval of each treasure unique. Because of this, the player must carefully consider which colors of Pikmin and how many of those colors will be needed to complete a certain task. This is compounded in difficulty by the fact that no more than 100 Pikmin may be in play at any given time. Typical tasks involved in collecting treasures include defeating enemies, building bridges, destroying walls, or removing other obstacles.
In addition to above-ground areas, caves can be found throughout the landscape. Caves contain multiple treasures and enemies spread across multiple "sublevels." Each sublevel in a cave contains certain treasures and a fixed array of enemies, but the layout of the sublevel and the placement of the enemies and treasures within the sublevel is random, and changes each time the player enters the cave. A player can exploit this, as the game saves automatically after the completion of each sublevel. If the layout of a sublevel is unfavorable to the player, he or she can simply begin the sublevel again, and it will have a new, presumably more favorable, layout.
Special rules apply to exploring caves. When the player is exploring a cave, time does not pass above ground. The main restriction regarding cave exploration is that there is no access to the Pikmin Onions from underground. This means that the assortment of Pikmin the player enters with must stay with him or her the entire way through the cave. In order to assist the player, he or she is warned of some general dangers upon encountering the cave's above-ground entrance, such as which specific hazards it contains, but not their quantities. The player is not informed of which particular enemies a cave contains.
[edit] Multiplayer
Pikmin 2 introduces a competitive two-player mode as well, with the first player as Olimar and the second player as Louie. Olimar controls red Pikmin while Louie controls blue Pikmin. Even though blue and red Pikmin usually have abilities unique to their respective colors, both colors of Pikmin are given the same abilities to even the chances of success for each player. Each player is given an onion of the color of that player's Pikmin. The courses have enemies, items, and marbles strewn about them. The goal is to defeat the other player by either bringing the marble that is the same color as the player's Pikmin to their own onion, bringing four yellow marbles scattered across the cave to the player's onion, causing the other player's Pikmin to all die, or defeating the other player's captain. Pikmin can attack the opposing Pikmin and captain, however Pikmin defeated by Pikmin regenerate at their onion. A vital feature is the roulette, which randomly chooses an action after a cherry is absorbed by the onion. These range from dropping creatures or hazards onto the other player to increasing the number of Pikmin.
[edit] Challenge Mode
In the Perplexing Pool, in the Citadel of Spiders, Olimar collects a key from the cave's boss which causes a transmission from a parallel universe. This unlocks the Challenge Mode. Whereas in the first Pikmin game the point of the challenge mode was to grow as many Pikmin as possible in a limited period of time, the challenge mode in the second Pikmin game demands that the player reach the end of a cave using only a fixed set of Pikmin, both in color and number, and a fixed set of sprays. The only way to reach the next sublevel or to reach a geyser is to collect a key identical to the previous one, which will cause a hole or geyser to appear. The player must also do this in a certain length of time and can collect treasures to get pokos, though the latter is optional. Each level has a high score, based on the number of pokos earned, Pikmin standing, and time left.
Unlike the Challenge Mode in Pikmin, succeeding in this one affects the rest of the game. The levels are accessed by bubbles on a menu screen. Uncompleted levels have leafs on them, completed levels have white flowers on them, and levels completed without any Pikmin dying gain pink flowers, regardless of treasure collected or time used. When all 30 levels have pink flowers, a video is unlocked in the Bonus sections.
[edit] Areas
The main action of the game takes place in four separate areas. The player chooses which area will be visited in a certain day, and only one area may be visited each day. The areas contain treasures, enemies, and other gameplay elements. Also, caves can be found within each area. Each cave contains a set number of chambers called sublevels. Each sublevel is random in layout, but contains a set number of treasures and a set assortment of enemies and obstacles. The final sublevel of each cave contains a "boss" creature. The above-ground areas have fixed layouts.
[edit] Valley of Repose
The Valley of Repose is the first area that is visited in the game. It is winter in this area, and most of it is covered in snow. Players learn most of the basics here, as well as find the red and purple Pikmin. There are three caves in this area, two of which aren't accessible until later in the game:
- Emergence Cave
- Subterranean Complex
- Frontier Cavern
[edit] Awakening Wood
The Awakening Wood is the second area in the game, and is opened up when an item that appears to be the northern hemisphere of a globe is found. It is spring in this area, and flower petals gently float down as opposed to the snow in the Valley of Repose. It is also the area where white Pikmin and blue Pikmin (which are inaccessible without yellow Pikmin) are found. This area was formerly known as The Forest of Hope in the first game, though it has changed, presumably due to the passage of time. There are four caves in this area:
- Hole of Beasts
- White Flower Garden
- Bulblax Kingdom
- Snagret Hole
[edit] Perplexing Pool
The Perplexing Pool is the third area in the game, and is opened up when the other hemisphere of the globe is found. It is summer in this area, and the yellow Pikmin can be found here. This area was formerly known as The Distant Spring in the first game, and like the Awakening Wood has changed since its appearance in the original Pikmin. There are four caves in this area:
- Citadel of Spiders
- Glutton's Kitchen
- Shower Room
- Submerged Castle
[edit] Wistful Wild
The Wistful Wild is the final area of the game, and is opened up when the player reaches the 10,000 Poko mark. It is autumn in this area, and is one of the most difficult levels in the game. This area contains what was known in the first game as The Impact Site, as well as The Final Trial. There are three caves in this area:
- Cavern of Chaos
- Hole of Heroes
- Dream Den
It can be noted that the landing site of Wistful Wild has a yield sign under it. In the Japanese version, it's a stop sign, as stop signs in Japan are triangular, not octagon-shaped as in the United States.
[edit] Story
When Captain Olimar returns home from his "vacation" on the Pikmin planet, he finds that his company, Hocotate Freight, is in serious debt. They even had to sell Captain Olimar's ship, the Dolphin, which was the only remaining corporate asset worth anything. Shocked by this sudden turn of events, Captain Olimar drops the bottle cap he brought with him as a souvenir. It rolls in the vicinity of the company's treasure sensor and is found to have a value of 100 Pokos, the unit of currency on Hocotate. After commenting that this is more than a year's salary, Olimar's boss sends him on a trip with Louie, a fellow employee, to the Pikmin Planet to scrounge up 10,000 Pokos worth of treasure to get the company back up and running. Olimar returns to the planet of the Pikmin (there are some telltale signs that planet pikmin is Earth, because of the two sections of the globe and the visible continents on the planet as seen from space). During their descent, Louie's cockpit bursts open, and the two are separated. The game then centers on finding Louie, exploring the planet, and collecting treasures.
[edit] Characters
The red, yellow, and blue Pikmin from the previous game return, along with two new colors of Pikmin, purple and white. Unlike the originals, they do not have Onions, which typically house Pikmin colors. Instead, they are created when an existing Pikmin is thrown into a "Candypop bud", a type of flower found in the field. There are also Bulbmin, a type of parasitic Pikmin that infects Dwarf Bulborbs. Being in the body of a Dwarf Bulborb protects them from drowning, electrocution, burning, and poisoning. They are found only in a few caves throughout the game, and although they may assist the player-controlled captain in the cave in which they are found. However, they cannot be removed from the cave unless they are changed to one of the five other types of pikmin, via candypops.
[edit] Development
[edit] Differences from Pikmin
There were several major differences between Pikmin and Pikmin 2. The first, and perhaps most important of these, was the elimination of the 30-day time limit which was imposed during the course of the first Pikmin game. In Pikmin 2, a player may continue to search for treasure for as many days as he or she wishes. The game contains 201 collectible treasure pieces, as opposed to the 30 ship parts of the original Pikmin game.
Another addition was the ability to use two captains at once, making multitasking easier. In previous Pikmin game, multitasking was difficult as there was only one captain to direct multiple groups of Pikmin. In both Pikmin games, commands cannot be issued from a distance, meaning that a one captain system caused a lot of running between multiple working Pikmin groups. Another gameplay change was the addition of sprays, which have various effects on gameplay, such as energizing Pikmin, and which can be obtained by collecting various berries.
[edit] Pikmin 2 e-Reader
In Japan, after the release of Pikmin 2, they had also released e-Reader cards that had contained mini games. Some of these mini games involved the player to pluck all the Pikmin in an area in a set amount of steps, or to try to get Pikmin from one point to another. These cards were not released outside of Japan, as the e-Reader was not released in Europe, and had been discontinued in the United States at the time.
[edit] Reaction
IGN gave Pikmin 2 a 9.3, or "Outstanding", and was very pleased at the multitude of ways the game had improved upon what was good about Pikmin and fixed the problems it had, such as a lack of multi-player and a 30-day playing limit. [2]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Pikmin 2. cnet.com.au (October, 12th, 2004). Retrieved on 2006-09-29.
- ^ Casamassina, Matt (August 20th, 2004). Pikmin 2 Review. ign.com. Retrieved on 2006-09-29.
[edit] External links
- Pikmin Official Website
- Pikmin 2 at Nintendo.com
- Pikmin 2 at GameFAQs
- Pikmin 2 at MobyGames
- Pikmin 2 speed run (8 day completion) at Speed Demos Archive
- Pikmin Returns - the Pikmin Fansite.
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