- This article is about the Side Mode in Pikmin 4. For the Side Stories in Pikmin 3, see Side Stories.
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Olimar's Shipwreck Tale is a game mode in Pikmin 4. As the name implies, it involves the shipwreck of Captain Olimar, and his quest to recover the S.S Dolphin's 30 ship parts. It features altered versions of the first four areas of the main campaign, no caves, and only Red Pikmin, Yellow Pikmin, and Blue Pikmin.
The length of a day is shortened to 11 minutes from the main game's 15 minutes and there is a 15-day limit, forcing players to be efficient in gathering parts for the S.S. Dolphin. At the end of each day, Olimar holds a short monologue and an item, a piece of gear, or a skill for Moss is acquired for each ship part recovered during that day.
Upon completion, a new cave is revealed in the Rescue Command Post: the Trial of the Sage Leaf.
Plot
As described in the opening cutscene of the main story, Olimar crash lands on PNF-404. This crash landing caused him to lose the 30 ship parts across 4 areas. His life support system is only capable of keeping him alive for 15 more days. Luckily, he meets Red Pikmin, a species who seems eager to help him find his missing ship parts.
He first lands in an area he names the Sun-Speckled Terrace. With the help of the Pikmin, he collects enough parts to land in a new location: the Blossoming Arcadia. There, he meets a green dog who he names Moss. Feeding it a bone, Moss licks Olimar and joins him in collecting his ship parts. After collecting more parts, and finding two new types of Pikmin (Yellow Pikmin and Blue Pikmin), Olimar can now land in an area he dubs the Serene Shores.
After collecting even more of his ship parts, the final area is opened: Hero's Hideaway. Olimar notes that this area is stranger than the others, but before he can contemplate much, the Pikmin leave their Onion by themselves and hide throughout the area. Olimar rounds them up and defeats a Porquillion that has his Interstellar Radio, which he uses to call for help (as was shown in the main story's opening and initial tutorial). He discovers a Gildemander as the source of the Pikmin's strange behavior, and defeats it as well.
Ending
If Olimar collects all 30 of his ship parts, the S.S. Dolphin successfully launches, and he leaves the planet. However, he notices Moss had snuck aboard the S.S. Dolphin with him. She seems distressed for reasons unknown to Olimar, who chooses to turn back around and try to help her. As he does, his life support systems fail mid-flight and he crashes again.
If instead Olimar does not collect all 30 of his ship parts, then the S.S. Dolphin will fail to launch, and crash land.
Either way, the Pikmin and Moss carry Olimar to the Onion, which sucks him up and spits him back out as a leafling. From here, Pikmin 4's main story begins.
Unlocking
To unlock this mode, the player must first rescue Olimar in the main campaign by completing Leafy Showdown (and the three other Dandori Battle stages before it). After the credits, the player must return to the Rescue Command Post and talk to Olimar, who is next to the S.S. Dolphin. He will also award the player with Oatchi's Swallow ability for saving him, if Oatchi's Super Buff is maxed out. If it is not, Olimar will offer to teach the skill the first time he is talked to after Super Buff is maxed.
Ship parts
| Icon | Name | Location(s) | Weight | Max. carriers | Count |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Whimsical Radar | Sun-Speckled Terrace | 10 | 20 | 1 |
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Ionium Jet | Sun-Speckled Terrace, Blossoming Arcadia | 10 | 20 | 2 |
|
Radiation Canopy | Blossoming Arcadia | 20 | 40 | 1 |
|
Sagittarius | Serene Shores | 5 | 10 | 1 |
|
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Libra | Sun-Speckled Terrace | 5 | 10 | 1 |
|
Chronos Reactor | Hero's Hideaway | 30 | 60 | 1 |
|
Geiger Counter | Hero's Hideaway | 5 | 10 | 1 |
|
Bowsprit | Serene Shores | 30 | 60 | 1 |
|
Omega Stabilizer | Blossoming Arcadia | 15 | 30 | 1 |
|
Repair-Type Bolt | Sun-Speckled Terrace, Blossoming Arcadia, Serene Shores, Hero's Hideaway | 10 | 20 | 4 |
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Nova Blaster | Sun-Speckled Terrace | 20 | 40 | 1 |
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Interstellar Radio | Hero's Hideaway | 10 | 20 | 1 |
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Extraordinary Bolt | Sun-Speckled Terrace, Blossoming Arcadia (3), Serene Shores, Hero's Hideaway | 5 | 10 | 6 |
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Automatic Gear | Sun-Speckled Terrace, Blossoming Arcadia, Serene Shores (3), Hero's Hideaway | 15 | 30 | 6 |
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Secret Safe | Serene Shores | 50 | 100 | 1 |
|
Pilot's Seat | Hero's Hideaway | 10 | 20 | 1 |
Recovery bonuses
Unlike the main game, Olimar and Moss obtain gear, items, and skills from the collected ship parts as recovery bonuses at the end of the day. The bonuses depend only on the total amount of ship parts acquired. This amount also determines the areas Olimar can explore with his ship.
The recovery bonuses are listed in the table below. For example, if Olimar has found 19 ship parts at the start of the day and ends with 21 ship parts, the bonus is the skill Triple Threat for Olimar and the item Lightning Shock. However, if Olimar has not encountered Moss, the bonuses related to Moss's skills and gear are retroactively rewarded at the end of the day when they do.
| Ship parts | Recovery bonus | Ship upgrade |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Charging Horn | |
| 2 | Survey Drone, Bomb Rock | Can access Blossoming Arcadia |
| 3 | Lineup Trumpet | |
| 4 | Emergency Kit, Buff (level 3) | |
| 5 | Lightning Shock | |
| 6 | Homesick Signal | |
| 7 | Emergency Kit, Super Buff (level 1) | |
| 8 | Rush Boots | Can access Serene Shores |
| 9 | Trackonator | |
| 10 | Idler's Alert | |
| 11 | Emergency Kit | |
| 12 | Parts Detector | |
| 13 | Bomb Rock | |
| 14 |  Pup Tuff Stuff+
|
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| 15 | Trackonator | |
| 16 | Tuff Stuff+ | |
| 17 | Lightning Shock | |
| 18 | Pup Air Armor+
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| 19 | Super Buff (level 3) | |
| 20 | Triple Threat | |
| 21 | Lightning Shock | |
| 22 | Air Armor+ | |
| 23 | Swallow | Can access Hero's Hideaway |
| 24 | Ice Blast | |
| 26 | Trackonator | |
| 29 | Ice Blast |
Trivia
- Most of the area themes in Olimar's Shipwreck Tale have references to the ones from Pikmin.
- Sun-Speckled Terrace resembles The Impact Site.
- Blossoming Arcadia resembles The Forest of Hope.
- Serene Shores resembles The Distant Spring.
- None of the tracks reference The Forest Navel likely because its theme is already referenced in Giant's Hearth.
- If Moss is never encountered in Blossoming Arcadia, she will not be present in the bad ending cutscene.
- On the last 3 days of Olimar's Shipwreck Tale, Olimar will make a comment each time he lands at the beginning of the day. The "Days Left" text during each countdown and on the clock in gameplay will be yellow for 3 or 2 days remaining and then turn red on the final day remaining. An ominous sound effect will also play when counting down to these days, with the final day having the deepest sound.
- On the final day, the area music will be sped up, but the sunset variation of it will be slowed down.
- Although the Ionium Jets are considered duplicate items, they appear on set sides of the ship when collected. The one in Sun-Speckled Terrace appears on the starboard side, and the one in Blossoming Arcadia is on the port side. If this parallels Pikmin, the Jet from the Sun-Speckled Terrace is the #1 Ionium Jet. Functionally, this does not matter, as both Ionium Jets are the same weight, and ship parts are not distinguished in their effect on gameplay.
- When the unconscious Olimar is being carried to the Onion in both endings, a remaster of Live as a Pikmin from the first game can be heard.
Names in other languages
| Language | Name | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
 Italian |
Diario di Olimar | Olimar's Log |
 Spanish |
Las desventuras de Olimar | Olimar's Misadventures |