Zero death challenge
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A zero death challenge is where one tries to accomplish completion of one of the Pikmin games without losing any Pikmin whatsoever. This can be very difficult, even for skilled players. However, there are a number of ways whereby this can be made easier, listed below.
Be prepared
The Pikmin games were designed with Pikmin deaths so that hard battles would take a toll on the player's Pikmin. Hence, it's only natural if a frail member in your army collapses with ease. Be mentally prepared to accept that this challenge will require you to restart from previous checkpoints several times over, and avoid getting upset over it. There is no reward in going through with this challenge, so only embark on it if you have the patience for it.
Take your time
Especially in the first game, where enemies can be a lot harder to beat due to generally higher enemy health points, the absence of Purple Pikmin, and several glitches (like the crushing glitch), you need to take your time so as to avoid even the slightest of accidents; carefully avoid the enemies' attacks, and if you fail, you can always reset the game. Patience is vital when fighting difficult enemies like the Beady Long Legs and Emperor Bulblax, or the likes of the Titan Dweevil in Pikmin 2.
Reset
Even if only one of your Pikmin dies, reset the day or cave sublevel. The fastest way is press the "RESET" button on your console or select "Reset" from the Wii's Home Menu. Alternately, press the "POWER" button so it goes on and off, or hold X + B + Start. This is especially useful in caves, where your progress is saved between sublevels, meaning you will lose little progress should you restart. In Pikmin 3, you can just pause the game and select "restart area".
Use force
Some enemies are hard to beat without a large onslaught, so take the strongest forces of Pikmin you can muster, and use them correctly. In Pikmin 2, you should always try and defeat enemies with Purple Pikmin whenever possible, because of their immense power. In the first game, there are also a number of alternative, safer ways to defeat enemies, such as using bomb-rocks.
Learn tricks
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There are some tricks and strategies that make your Pikmin more effective. Knowing these could be the key to a death-free day. The following tricks are recommended:
- Faster throw trick – by using C while throwing, you can remove the delay between each Pikmin toss, allowing you to throw Pikmin at a faster rate.
- Double sprays glitch – by having an idle leader absorb a spray drop, and quickly having the current leader absorb it as well, two doses can be obtained from a single drop.
- Digging speeds: learning what types of Pikmin are the most and least effective at digging out objects can allow the player to leave fewer Pikmin work on a task or gain time.
- Carrying: White Pikmin are the fastest Pikmin: as such, they have fewer chances of being killed by an enemies. In Pikmin 3, Winged Pikmin carrying an object cannot be noticed by enemies, which makes them the best choice for retrieving it.
Be sneaky
While the enemies that lurk on the main paths should always be dispatched, many enemies near parts and treasures that are on the road less traveled don't always have to be killed. Most enemies will follow a leader with or without Pikmin, so use a leader to distract the enemies while a small group of Pikmin slip by with a part or treasure. In caves, you should find the most direct route to the treasures and only kill the enemies on that route.
Don't overburden yourself
Although it may make the next few days a little easier, killing all the enemies in the level or trying to kill multiple bosses in one day will likely result in multiple resets and frustration. If you end the day often, you won't lose as much progress should you have to reset the day. Be careful not to reset too often, or else the days will pass faster than what is recommended, and you'll find yourself with only a few days left until a game over.
Use leaders
The leaders' punch can take out most of the threatening non-boss enemies rather efficiently. Just be sure to avoid taking too much damage (although this applies less to the first game due to the ability to heal at the Dolphin). Leaders can run around the sublevels of later caves to activate any traps and assess the dangers within the sublevel.
Know your enemies
Attempting a zero death challenge isn't a good idea during your first shot at the game – all of the games are quite difficult simply to complete, let alone without casualties – but don't senselessly sacrifice your Pikmin; rather, study what the enemies and hazards of the Pikmin games do and look for exploits, easier ways to dodge their attacks, and defeat them. Some enemy attacks can harm or kill other enemies, such as the Yellow Wollywogs "ground-pound". Many of the guides here can help you in learning about the enemies, but only by playing the game can you gain experience.
Use sprays
In the second game, sprays are acceptably common, doubly so if you use the spray glitch mentioned above. Do not be afraid to use an ultra-bitter spray to defeat an enemy like a Fiery Bulblax, even if you need to spend an extra day at the Perplexing Pool in order to obtain more. Ultra-spicy sprays are less helpful, but can still be used to defeat a boss enemy faster.