Pikmin 4 - Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Dandori Academy is out today. Nintendo launched the upgraded version of Pikmin 4 on November 12, adding a new challenge mode built around Dandori, the series' term for planning and multitasking, along with features made for Switch 2. Nintendo of America marked the eve of launch last night at 10:00 PM MST with the post "It is Dandori time," which has passed 5,700 likes. Check out the official posts down below:
Nintendo Japan's post reads, in translation: "Pikmin 4 Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Dandori Academy is out today. A long-form video of Fuka Koshiba taking on the Dandori exams is also now available." Koshiba also appears in the game's Japanese commercial.
What Dandori Academy Adds
Dandori Academy is a new mode with 72 stages, with 6 more added each month. Its stages are built as exams that test how efficiently players can split up their Pikmin and finish tasks. Exams can be taken every Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and players earn medals and rewards based on their results. The top rank is the Master Medal, and Nintendo Japan says it will start sharing example routes for earning it on the Nintendo Today! app from December, for players who find the exams too hard.
The Switch 2 Edition also adds:
- Voice commands for Oatchi through the Nintendo Switch 2's microphone
- Dandori Battles with a second player through GameShare
- Up to 4K resolution in TV mode
Players who already own Pikmin 4 on Nintendo Switch can buy an upgrade pack for $9.99 to move to the Switch 2 Edition.
The Free Demo
A free demo is available on the Nintendo eShop. It includes Sun-Speckled Terrace, the opening area of Pikmin 4's main story, plus an introductory Dandori Academy stage and part of the exam stages. Demo players can also take the weekend exams. In Japan, taking an exam in the demo earns a postcard in the mobile game Pikmin Bloom. Demo kiosks in Japanese game stores also let players try Sun-Speckled Terrace and an exam stage called Mega Mushroom Challenge. Nintendo of America's Direct segment for the Switch 2 Edition is below:
Nintendo Japan is also releasing new Pikmin merchandise at Nintendo TOKYO, OSAKA, KYOTO and FUKUOKA today, an 8-item line themed around Pikmin living indoors that includes mugs, magnets, a stationery box, a scarf and a necktie. Other new items include a Pikmin sacoche bag for ¥2,750 and a Pikmin and Oatchi IC card case for ¥1,980. In New York, the Nintendo NY store is running a Pikmin Bloom Spot Challenge from November 12 to November 25.
Hello! Pikmin #03: Bowling
Nintendo of America also posted the 3rd short in the Hello! Pikmin series yesterday at 8:00 AM MST, captioned "Living in the fast lane!" The post is below:
The 19-second short, titled "Bowling," is set in a bowling alley. A Red, Purple, Yellow, Blue and Rock Pikmin peek out from behind a set of pins before an orange bowling ball rolls through and knocks out the Rock Pikmin. The others hide behind the headpin and hold it upright when the ball comes back, and they celebrate surviving, until the sweep bar comes down and clears them all away. Nintendo of America's upload is below:
Hello! Pikmin is produced by Nintendo Pictures, with new shorts released on the Nintendo Today! app and Nintendo's channels. The first short, "Frog," debuted at the end of the Pikmin Day Direct on October 31, which also announced the Switch 2 Edition's free demo, as covered in Happy Pikmin Day! Nintendo's Surprise Direct Brings A Free Switch 2 Demo And Animated Shorts. The 2nd, "Dream," followed on November 1.
Are you going for Master Medals in Dandori Academy this weekend, or sticking with the main Pikmin 4 story?
Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.