Spotty Bulbear
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Appears in | Pikmin, Pikmin 2, Pikmin 3 | ||
Scientific name | Oculus terribilis dotticum | ||
Family | Grub-dog | ||
Areas | The Distant Spring, Perplexing Pool, Distant Tundra | ||
Caves | Frontier Cavern, Glutton's Kitchen, Hole of Heroes, Dream Den | ||
Challenge Mode stages | The Forest of Hope, Subterranean Lair, Emperor's Realm | ||
Mission Mode Collect Treasure! stages | None | ||
Mission Mode Battle Enemies! stages | None | ||
Side Story days | None | ||
2-Player Battle stages | None | ||
Bingo Battle stages | None | ||
Attacks | Eats Pikmin |
Spotty Bulbears (クマチャッピー?, lit.: "Bear Chappy") are creatures in all three Pikmin games that resemble Red Bulborbs with a different color and stature, and larger mouths with wider lips. They are black with red spots, and their face is a creamy yellow. Its large mouth allows it to eat Pikmin more rapidly and easily, making it a rather formidable foe. These enemies are often found with a number of following Dwarf Bulbears, which are supposed to follow this guardian as a source of protection and general aid.
In Pikmin, these creatures sleep if left alone, and have bloodshot eyes upon waking up. They have about one and a half times more health than a Red Bulborb, and their red spots constantly change in size, even after death. Returning a dead member of the species to an Onion produces 15 Pikmin sprouts, but the crushing glitch may make carrying its body difficult in this game. They do not revive after they have been killed, but they regenerate if the player takes too much time to kill them.
In Pikmin 2, Spotty Bulbears have far greater maneuverability than other members of the same family, as well as a less focused patrol area; they have the ability to move almost anywhere in most areas, below as well as above ground. They can be found in the Perplexing Pool after the thirtieth day, and may even enter the landing site. If the creature is defeated and its corpse remains, its health will steadily grow back, the creature reviving itself; after what may be minutes, it may return to consciousness, requiring a repeated "kill", similar to the Gatling Groink. For this reason, it is recommended that the body be quickly returned to an Onion or the Research Pod, or that the sublevel is exited quickly.
In Pikmin 3, Spotty Bulbears are more rare. There is only one in the story mode. In the Distant Tundra, once the player moves the 2nd iron ball and explores the cave that opened up, there is a gate, with the creature on the other side, guarding an Astringent Clump. In Mission Mode there is one in Thirsty Desert and Twilight Hollow. Even though they are faster and more resistant to bomb rocks in this game, they have new weaknesses:
- When a Bulbear snatches Pikmin, it stops to fling them into the air and land them down its throat. Then, it pauses for about two seconds. This small sliver of time should be enough for a wary player to escape or attempt an attack.
- After a Bulbear eats a Pikmin, there is a chance that it will release a small burp afterwards, allowing the player to retreat.
- Bulbears now emit a heavy, snarly breathing noise when giving chase, which can be heard from a distance, alerting players of their presence. When in a dark area, their glowing purple eyes can also be seen from a distance.
- They no longer revive themselves after death, unlike the second Pikmin game.
- If a Bulbear spots the player, it will now give a glance at the group, making it much easier to tell if the Bulbear can see its prey or not.
Notes
Reel notes
Olimar's notes
Louie's notes
Nintendo Player's Guide
"Possibly the most vicious of the Bulborb/Bulbear family, the Spotty Bulbear feasts on Pikmin and doesn't give up. Have one group distract the villain while you send another behind it to attack."
Pikmin 3 Prima Guide
"The Spotty Bulbear is extremely durable, and its wide jaws allow it to gobble a great amount of Pikmin with each attack. To avoid a prolonged and costly battle, use Bomb Rocks to attack this creature from a safe distance."
Strategy
Pikmin
The exact same strategy for the Red Bulborb is effective here, but take care of the Bulbear's increased health. A large group of Red Pikmin or three bomb-rocks will do it in.
Pikmin 2
Spotty Bulbears do not sleep in this game and are constantly roaming the map, making a surprise attack nearly impossible. It is possible to trick the Bulbear into attacking and missing, allowing the captain access to its backside, but they frequently have Dwarf Bulbears following them, making this tactic risky. Another means of accessing its rear is to split the Captains, using the one without Pikmin as a distraction. If Purple Pikmin are available, they make the battle easier as they can injure and stun the adult and children, but with other types it may be wise to use an Ultra-Bitter Spray. It is often effective to switch roles with and hunt the Bulbear itself before it can pick up any Dwarfs, and then stun and attack it.
If time is not a concern, captains can be used to punch and kill the Dwarf Bulbears and even the adult without the risk of losing Pikmin. The Rocket Fist upgrade makes this especially easy.
In the Perplexing Pool, you can trap the Bulbear in between the wall and the small maze next to the bridge. It will be unable to get out, so it won't be an issue anymore unless you want to kill it. Just begin to rain Pikmin down on its head, it should shake once or twice before dying. You then can carry its corpse and the 10-pellet it dropped out of the area and they will be able to get to the Onion. In most caves, leaving a Pikmin on one side of the wall that the Bulbear cannot reach allows a slight edge. Be quick and you can severely damage, if not kill it, with few losses.
To defeat the Spotty Bulbears in the Subterranean Lair in Challenge Mode, lure all three close to one another, then hit them all with a single shot of ultra-bitter spray to petrify all three at once, hopefully along with the dwarf compainions.
Since Bulbears follow the active captain, they can be lured into falling into bottomless pits that are between the pilot and the beast. Any treasures the creature would drop will be, unlike in Pikmin, safely returned to the sublevel for collection. One such level is sublevel 3 in the Dream Den.
If you want to get rid of the posse of dwarfs following the Spotty Bulbear, you can bring twenty Purple Pikmin and sneak up on the farthest dwarf in the group. Throw the purple on its back and it will die instantly. Do this to all the dwarfs without the Spotty Bulbear "noticing" and then you can defeat it with ease.
Pikmin 3
A Spotty Bulbear appears inside a dark cave in the Distant Tundra. It is accompanied by the usual Dwarf Bulbears and some Fiery Blowhogs. In the cave, there are 10 Bomb Rocks. It will take 3 or 4 bombs to kill the Bulbear itself, and the remaining can be used to deal with the other enemies with ease.
For a head-on attack, make sure all other enemies are dead before facing it as otherwise shaken off Pikmin may become eaten or set on fire. Chuck Pikmin at its eyes until you hit them. Don't throw any more Pikmin until it's ready to attack again. This keeps it flinching over and over. Whistle some Pikmin when your standby group is small. Rock Pikmin and Red Pikmin can help defeat it quicker, as will an Ultra-Spicy Spray.
If it does eat Pikmin, it chucks them in the air and may burp afterwards. This time is enough to escape or whistle the Pikmin back to hit its eyes again.
Technical information
showPikmin technical information (?) |
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showPikmin 2 technical information (?) |
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Gallery
A Spotty Bulbear in the enemy reel.
A Spotty Bulbear on the Piklopedia.
A Spotty Bulbear on the Thirsty Desert.
- Spotty Bulbear Pikmin 2 Beta.jpg
A Spotty Bulbear in an earlier version of Pikmin 2.
The Spotty Bulbear in an unused cave used for testing its A.I.
- NPC Spotty Bulbear.jpg
Official artwork for the Spotty Bulbear.
Names in other languages
Language | Name | Meaning |
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Japanese | クマチャッピー? Kuma Chappī |
Bear Chappy |
French | Bulbours | |
German | Getupfter Punktbär | Spotted Dot Bear |
Trivia
To do: What cave, exactly? |
- In the enemy reel in Pikmin, Bulborbs are present in places that Bulbears inhabit in the finished game, suggesting that this is how it was in a development version.
- Also in the enemy reel, it says that the enemy has a certain indefatigability (meaning it's seemingly incapable of being tired), which is strange, since the only thing related to fatigue that is relevant to the enemy is the revival mechanic, but that was only introduced in Pikmin 2.
- The Spotty Bulbear was one of four enemies that were planned, but ultimately removed, for the roulette wheel in Pikmin 2's 2-Player Battle, along with the Antenna Beetle, and the Fiery and Caustic Dweevil.
- Their scientific name, oculus terriblis dotticum, means "Terrible Dotted Eye".
- An unused cave with a maze-like single floor was used to test the Spotty Bulbear's AI in Pikmin 2. This cave can be found in the game's files, and its caveinfo name is known as 敵チェック (meaning "Enemy Check").
- If a Spotty Bulbear bumps into a member of the Grub-dog family that is sleeping, it will wake them up. Although surprisingly, this is not the case with the Orange Bulborb, which otherwise wakes up easier than the remaining members of the family. This behavior can be seen on sublevel 9 of the Cavern of Chaos.
- The Spotty Bulbear and the Gatling Groink are the only enemies that can revive in Pikmin 2. Oddly, Dwarf Bulbears, which are just the same creature at a young development stage, cannot.
References
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