The Key

The Key
Number	196
Series	Explorer's Friend Series
Value	× 100
Weight	1
Maximum carriers	3 Pikmin
Location	Citadel of Spiders
Challenge Mode levels	All

The Key (あのカギ^?, lit.: "The Key") is a treasure in Pikmin 2, whose name is the only one among the treasures that describes itself exactly. It is a large, golden key. The Key is found inside the body of a Beady Long Legs on the last sublevel (5) of the Citadel of Spiders. Besides increasing the Poko total, The Key unlocks Challenge Mode, which can be found in the main menu after the treasure has been collected. It is the only part of the Explorer's Friend Series that is not found in the Exploration Kit.

In Pikmin 2's Challenge Mode, this treasure is found on every sublevel of every one of the 30 levels. It is required to make the entrance to the next sublevel – or a geyser – appear, and is worth 100 Pokos.

Notes

Ship's dialogs

“Sweet victory! That giant insect's body has crumbled to dust!

I am quite relieved to know I won't have to store such an enormous bug.

...Analyzing soil samples.
... ... ... ...Anomaly detected.
What's that glittering widget?

---

This object seems familiar. I will combine it with the president's parallel-dimension controller.

ALERT!!! Sensors indicates a massive dimensional shift at a distant location.

I'm receiving a message from a far-flung dimension. Displaying the message now ...

"Challenge mode can now be accessed from the title screen."

It appears to be total gibberish. Hopefully the message has reached its intended recipient.

I will name this apparently worthless device the Key.”

Olimar's journal

“This item came from the personal treasure hoard of a massive Pikmin-devouring spider. The whole cave was crawling with all kinds of fearsome creatures. I decided to name that eerie cave the Citadel of Spiders. The ship can't stand bugs... Whenever I ask it to store a specimen for salvage, it threatens to stage a mutiny.”

Sales pitch

“This shape... I have encountered it somewhere before... No, I must be mistaken... Yes, I am mistaken. Thoughts like these strike all who see this cabalistic form. You can feel its immense power!”

Gallery

• 

  Artwork of the treasure.

• 

  The Key's discovery cutscene.

• 

  The Key in the Citadel of Spiders.

• 

  The Key being analyzed by the Hocotate ship.

• 

  The Treasure Hoard icon of The Key in the Nintendo Switch version of Pikmin 2.

• 

  A key from Super Mario World.

Trivia

• The Key bears a striking resemblance to the keys in Super Mario Bros. 2, which are guarded by Phanto masks, or the keys in Super Mario World, which open keyholes leading to secret stages.
• Perhaps erroneously, Olimar calls the Beady Long Legs a "Pikmin-devouring spider", even though the creature does not eat Pikmin.
• Two unused upgrades in Pikmin 3 feature The Key on a pedestal.

Names in other languages

Language	Name	Meaning
Japanese	あのカギ? Ano Kagi	The Key
French	La Clé	The Key
German	Der Schlüssel	The Key
Italian	Chiave	Key
Spanish	La Llave	The Key