Easter egg
This is a list of "easter eggs" and other interesting scenarios that can be made to happen, or happen of their own accord, in the Pikmin series of games.
If you want to add something, feel free to do so, but please place it in the correct section.
Glitches
- Main article: [[::category:glitches|:category:glitches]].
Glitches are oversights in the making of the game that lead to unexpected results. These can be beneficial, harmful or harmless to the player.
Pikmin
Alter Pikmin species
This is a highly useful glitch that allows you to alter the type of Pikmin you have (convert reds to yellows, blues to reds, etc.) without using Candypop Buds. This glitch works in both Challenge mode and story mode. In order to do this glitch, have a Puffstool transform the Pikmin you want to alter into Toadmin, and then use the Toadmin Helper Glitch so that they can follow you. Now, take them back to the onions and go to the color onion you want to alter your Pikmin to. Stand under the light of that onion, and it will allow you to put your Toadmin into it, so do so. The Toadmin will crawl up the leg of the onion, and go inside like any other Pikmin. Call them back out, and they be the color Pikmin of that onion, even if they weren't that color before they became Toadmin.
Beady Long Legs escape
There is a rare and dangerous glitch that causes Beady Long Legs to leave its arena. This glitch is most likely to happen when you leave the arena without killing it. Pikmin and/or Olimar have to be left at the gate to the small arena. The creature will then try to attack these, possibly leaving the arena. Once outside of the barriers, it will continue to pursue you. If you now run to the island where the Libra is, the enemy may fall into the abyss bellow, causing the game to crash (the game will also crash if you do not kill it after it leaves the arena after a certain amount of time). This glitch can basically happen with any boss that is fought in an arena.
If one wishes to attempt this glitch,the best place to do it without receiving any consequences is the final trial in challenge mode. Go to the arena in the back of the level and try this glitch on the Beady Long Legs in the arena.
Cloning Pikmin
Go to an area with a Swooping Snitch Bug and lure it to the landing site. Get any colour of Pikmin out. Put the Pikmin in the Onion when the Swooping Snitch Bug swoops for them. If done correctly all of the amount of Pikmin will go in and the Swooping Snitch Bug will have two in his hands.
Enemies That Fall Into the Unknown
This is very similar to the way you can strategically kill enemies in Pikmin 2, but is slightly entertaining to some, and there is only one species of enemy this is possible to do with, Shearwigs. Find some Shearwigs in The Forest Navel region, likely near the area where the Automatic Gear is. Lure some or all of them to the area along the edge of the world where you find the Libra and the Analog Computer near the area with fiery geysers. You can lure them into the small lake and they'll lose health, or you can punch them. When they have lost enough health, they begin to fly. Wait for a few seconds while they recover in the air, and if they do, they may fall into to the abyssal depths of the hole. They won't come back out, but they'll still respawn in their original habitat in a few days.
Goolix out-of bounds glitch
If Goolix is near the right of the tree-stump arena and the yellow, brain-like nucleus is hit by a Blue Pikmin, that Pikmin, or the other Blues that are attacking the smaller, blue nucleus may be knocked into the out-of-bounds, forest like terrain. Many things can happen when this occurs, either the Pikmin will slide around (throwing Pikmin onto this ledge reveals that it's slippery, as the Pikmin will slide off) and then fall off the ledge and into the area with the Pearly Clamclamps or where the Main Engine was, or they slide too far for Olimar to call back (some will even continue sliding until they are off-screen and then will die). These Pikmin will be left behind unless you reset the day.
Pellet Posy glitch
In the Forest of Hope, go somewhere near the Nova Blaster on a random day when a Pellet Posy is inside a wall. Try to go between it to fly out of bounds. You can use this glitch to get the Radiation Canopy, Geiger Counter and Sagittarius. When you throw a Pikmin at it, the screen will go black and you will be falling.
Silent Bomb-Rock explosions
If two or three of bomb-rocks go off at once, the area that the explosion covers will be larger and the explosion noise will be louder. If a really large amount of bomb-rocks (about 8 to 10 or more) goes off all at once, 1 of 2 things will happen. Either an extremely loud exploding noise will occur for about a split second and the explosion distance will be bigger than ever, or the explosion noise will not even occur.
Swimming Glitch
If a non-Blue Pikmin is planted by a Swooping Snitchbug in water, the Pikmin will continue to swim until Olimar walks onto land.
Weird Pellet
Sometimes, when the player's Pikmin are carrying a large pellet down a ledge, the pellet's sides will point up and the Pikmin carrying it will appear to be standing in mid-air while holding it. They'll bring it back to the Onion normally. Simply calling them back and ordering them to pick it up again will fix it. This happens with some parts such as the Libra, Whimsical Radar, and the Automatic Gear.
Pikmin 2
Burning Pikmin Jump in a Hole
On certain sublevels of certain caves, there is a fire geyser near the exit hole. If you do not destroy it and you have Pikmin that are not red, they will occasionally catch on fire during the jumping down the hole animation. They will be just fine when you enter the next sublevel, and nothing will happen to your Pikmin count. This also is possible with fire geysers near exit geysers.
Dead Pikmin?
In all the metallic caves like Subterranean complex, it is possible for your Pikmin to fall off the stage. Sometimes when in, the Pikmin don't die and other times they can. It's just best to avoid the dead zone spots.
Double Sprays
Whenever a spray pops out of an egg or a frozen enemy this is a glitch to get two sprays instead of just one. Simply have the second captain run into the spray then he'll start to drink it. While he is drinking it take the other captain and touch the spray to start drinking it this will get you two sprays.
Floating Cherry
Go into 2-Player mode. Have a Pikmin grab a cherry near a dead enemy's carcass. The Pikmin will grab the cherry and start to take it right through the carcass. The Pikmin will get stuck in front of the carcass, walking endlessly until the cherry enters the Onion. Meanwhile, the Cherry will continue to move without any Pikmin carrying it.
Instant Pikmin Extinction
This can be performed in any cave in the game, except two-player caves. It's simply done by pressing X and A together at the right time. Keep in mind that you need to press X instantly before A, next to any random cave you please. The cave chart will say you have all of your Pikmin, but make sure your Pikmin are idle. Press yes and Olimar, Louie, or the President will go in the cave with no Pikmin. During the landing scene, they will fall on the ground and have a ring of smoke around them. After that, the game will announce a Pikmin extinction. In the treasure chart it will say no Pikmin had died, and saving won't harm the player in any way. (S)He will come back to the surface and find all Pikmin in his/her onions/ship.
Invisible Captain
If one of your captains die in any sublevel in a cave, then his body is invisible but he is still there. Wollywogs are most preferable for this. The active captain must attack it where the invisible captain is. When it leaps in the air after being hit enough times, the invisible captain will be hit showing his body suit being damaged. Of course, try to yield after attacking and do not save after your done a sublevel.
Jumping While Laying Down
If one of your captains is knocked over by an enemy just as you are going in a hole, he will jump while lying down. This will not work if he lies down by himself.
Leave boundaries
If you are in a sublevel that looks like an outside area (such as Sublevel 2 of the Snagret Hole or the Brawl Yard), have an enemy push you close to the boundary. If done right, you will be flung to the outside of the walls and can explore the outside. If you go far enough away from the main part of the level, you will hit a massive wall with blurry images of trees and foliage painted on it, or in other cases an invisible barrier.
Make captains fall into the abyss
In caves like the Snagret Hole, there are solid walls. Behind these walls you see nothing but black. If a Bumbling Snitchbug grabs one of the captains, there is a chance that they will drop them into the void the walls are blocking out. If you fall in, you will magically reappear at the Research Pod. Also, if you use the Napsack ability to make a captain fall asleep, a dweevil (excluding titan and volatile dweevils) may pick you up as an item. If this happens, there is a chance it could walk off an edge and take you with it. For more info, go here: Frozen Captain glitch.
Struggling Waterwraith
In the Area Selection screen, press the L or R buttons and view the Piklopedia. Go to the archive of the Waterwraith, if you have it unlocked. Right when you open it, immediately press or repeatedly press the "Z" button to petrify it. The rollers will become petrified, and then the Waterwraith's body. The rollers will break free first. When they do, immediately re-petrify them. The Waterwraith will then break free, and appear to have a very difficult time trying to lift its petrified boulders. This can easily be repeated indefinitely as long as you keep the rollers and the Waterwraith petrified at the right times.
Treasure in the Background
Whenever a treasure is evaluated sometimes a miniature of the treasure can be seen in the top right in the background. Though this glitch will not always occur it can be a little interesting.
Visible seeds and Magic Growth
In 2-Player Mode, if the Onion is on a ledge and if a Swooping Snitchbug throws a Pikmin at the very edge of the ledge, the Pikmin seed underground will be visible (it looks like it does when it pops out, only with a longer stem). If you try to pull it out, the bottom will "magically" form a Pikmin body, and the Pikmin will fall off of the ledge.
Weird Waterwraith
If your on the 5th sublevel and you've destroyed the waterwraith's rollers, if you repeatedly switch between captains when they are far away from each other, the Waterwraith will freeze and still be moving like it can't walk but it still moves around.
Easter Eggs
Easter Eggs are specially hidden secrets that have been put on purpose. Normally, these do not affect gameplay and are just for entertainment. This section will also include smaller secrets that do not qualify as Easter Eggs.
Pikmin
Fireworks
A commonly recognized bonus. Simply hold down on the D-pad (or 2 if you have New Play Control!). The Pikmin will pick you up, and take you to one of the Onions. When you are put in, you will hit the bottom of the Onion, and a light will appear from the large flower on the ship. It will rise into the air, and explode into a burst of light, similar to fireworks. Nothing else happens. This was removed in Pikmin 2, but you can still allow Pikmin to carry you.
Nintendo Logo
Every time the game is turned on, the word "Nintendo" will appear on a completely black screen, and a Pikmin will be heard saying "Pikmin!". However, the Pikmin can make different sounds, like "Whoo!" or a sigh. The cause for this is unknown, but it seems to happen randomly, despite being rumored that it changes according to the buttons pressed.
Pikmin 2
Pikmin Theme Song
Once you uncover all five colors of Pikmin, take out 20 of each color and stand still. The Pikmin will sing (or hum) the theme song that was used in the Japanese commercials for the first game, Pikmin, Ai No Uta. This song became very popular in Japan, and was released as a single. It even outsold the game for a while. You can also listen to the song in Super Smash Bros. Brawl.
Play with the Title Screen
A fairly obvious Easter Egg. At the Title Screen, the following can be done:
- Press the L button to make the Pikmin forming the title disperse and reform the letters "PIKMIN 2". This is possible even if "PIKMIN 2" is already spelled out.
- Press the R button to make the Pikmin forming the title disperse and reform to spell out "Nintendo". This is possible even if it already says "Nintendo". Note that there are no White Pikmin or Purple Pikmin in this formation (identifiable by their pink flowers).
- Press and hold the Y button to make an Iridescent Flint Beetle appear on the screen. The Pikmin will chase after it, but nothing happens to it. If you press R or L, it will leave with the Pikmin. If you tilt the C-stick in any direction, you can control it. Tilt left and right (not clockwise and counterclockwise) to turn, and push forward to move straight. (Backwards movement is impossible.) You can only go as far as the border of the screen.
- Press the X button, and a Red Bulborb will appear on the screen. It will make the Pikmin on the screen run around in a panic. The Bulborb will attempt to make two bites and then go away, whether or not it misses with its attacks. You can control it if you tilt the C-stick. Control it the same way as you would the Iridescent Flint Beetle. Press the Z button to make it eat the Pikmin: you can bite as many times as you want when controlling it. Note that any Pikmin eaten will not reappear until the Title Screen is refreshed.
Totaka's song
Enter a cave you have not completed yet. Then, collect all the treasure to complete it. Next, wait on the treasure salvaged screen for exactly 3 minutes, 50 seconds, and you will hear Totaka's song. This song has been hidden in many Nintendo games ever since it was found in the SNES game, Mario Paint.
Fun stuff
This section will cover some miscellaneous things that can be done.
Pikmin
Area selection shenanigans
When on the area select screen, if the player switches area with a certain timing, the ship will go in circles or make crazy paths in order to catch up to the cursor. Additionally, if the player enters an area accidentally, even after the confirmation, (s)he can still press B to cancel.
Pikmin 2
Enemies that fall into the unknown
In some caves, there may be a level with a metallic layout. When fighting enemies you can lure them to fall into the void around the sublevel. This also works with Shearwigs in 2-Player Mode. It can be useful for getting rid of some enemies. This trick can work with Swooping Snitchbugs, Careening Dirigibugs, Withering Blowhogs, Red Bulborbs, Munge Dweevils, Gatling Groinks, Fiery Dweevils, Spotty Bulbears, Fiery Bulblaxes, and Shearwigs. It can also be achieved by throwing a Purple Pikmin onto an airborne enemy that is floating above the void, both of which will fall does if correctly timed. This works in Sublevels 2, 6, & 7 in the Subterranean Complex and Sublevels 3 & 5 in the Dream Den. For Shearwigs, you'll need to dig up a marble in 2-Player Mode in Hostile Territory or the Rusty Gulch. If an enemy containing a treasure happens to fall down into an abyss, the treasure will magically reappear in midair a few seconds later. This is obviously to allow the treasure to be collected regardless (as opposed to the Libra glitch in Pikmin 1).Also,if a dweevil falls while it is holding a treasure,the dweevil will die and the treasure will reappear in its usual spot!
Flying to nowhere
On the Area Select screen, moving the ship back and forth between two adjacent areas (e.g. Wistful Wild and Awakening Wood; Perplexing Pool and the Valley of Repose) will cause the ship to go off-screen. Switching between the Awakening Woods and the Valley of Repose will often make it go off the the bottom, then shoot back up to the top.
Half activated Volatile Dweevil
Start up the Piklopedia. Then go to the Volatile Dweevil archive. First petrify it, then wait. Right before the second you think it will break free, petrify it as quick as you can. If you do it correctly, which can be pretty hard, only the bomb-rock on the Dweevil's back should be turned into stone. You can throw Pikpik carrots at it, and if they hit it, it will wake up, but the bomb rock won't activate. Before the rock breaks free, petrify the Dweevil, and only the body will be petrified, but the bomb rock will activate. The bomb rock may even explode and kill the petrified Dweevil!
Invincible Cannon Beetle
Activate the Piklopedia. Select the archive for the Decorated Cannon Beetle. Throw Pikpik carrots at the Beetle, making sure that they land in front and to the side of it. The Beetle will then spit out a rock, which will roll around to hit the Beetle if you have done it correctly. When the rock crashes on the Beetle, the Beetle doesn't die, no matter how many times you do this.
Pushy Flitterbies
Once you have seen at least one Red Bulborb, Orange Bulborb, and Flitterby (Unmarked Spectralid), you can see this interesting sight. Once you open up the Piklopedia, go to either the red or orange Bulborb log. You should see the Flitterbies hovering around the Bulborb's bodies. Sometimes they may (surprisingly) shove the Bulborbs around, and even bump them a good distance away without waking them!
The Terrors of the Night
Begin by ending a day in either Wistful Wild or Valley of Repose. If a Gatling Groink appears it will fire mortars at your ship. If there is an enemy near your ship when it lifts off, the mortars may kill the enemy. An Armored Cannon Beetle Larva or Decorated Cannon Beetle may harm the enemies surrounding the landing site with a boulder. Also, if you end a day in either Awakening Wood or Wistful Wild and a Dwarf Red Bulborb and a Yellow Wollywog appear, it is possible that, if the Bulborb and the Wollywog are attacking The Ship at the same time, as the Bulborb runs into the ship, the Wollywog might crush it as it (the Wollywog) lands from jumping. It is, of course, not possible to retrieve the carcasses of enemies that die at this time. This can also be done with White Pikmin: take out as many White Pikmin as available and end the day; all creatures that eat will most likely be killed, as not many can withstand so much poison. However, it is not recommended to save that day.