The official reveal of Pikmin 4 has been a long-time coming for fans of Nintendo's real-time strategy franchise. It was first teased by Shigeru Miyamoto as early as 2015, but any kind of gameplay has been under wraps until the September 2022 Nintendo Direct; even if its 30-second trailer is more atmosphere than gameplay. The series has featured diverse gameplay goals since its inception, which leaves fans to wonder what kind of Pikmin experience this upcoming title will be. One area with a lot of room to explore is Pikmin 2's handful of biomechanical threats.
Pikmin and Pikmin 3 are similar experiences. In the 2001 original, Hocotatian Captain Olimar crashes on PNF-404 (an "alien" planet that's clearly Earth after humanity goes extinct) and must reassemble his ship to escape before running out of air. In Pikmin 3, first released on Wii U in 2013, three explorers from the planet Koppai reach PNF-404 to collect seeds that can stop a famine, but similarly crash and have to prepare for a return trip before their food stores deplete. Pikmin 2 is the black sheep, instead focusing on Olimar's return journey to this mysterious planet so that he can clear Hocotate Freight's debts.
Those debts are paid using treasures that have been left on PNF-404, many of which are manufactured human goods - including real-world brand product placement. Some of these treasures appear above ground, but most are discovered in caves with randomly generated elements where time doesn't pass. This system diminished some time-management inherent to the Pikmin formula, but it also let the developers explore some bizarre enemy concepts.
Pikmin 2's Biomechanical Enemy Types
Even casual Nintendo fans unfamiliar with the Pikmin series should recognize its iconic Bulborb enemy, a member of the Grub-Dog family whose distinctive red hide with white spots clearly pulls from the same inspiration as Mario's Super Mushroom. This classic Bulborb appears in the Super Smash Bros. stage Distant Planet, though its family includes an increasing number of variants like the Spotty Bulbear and Fiery Bulblax. These bug/animals have formed a new ecological order alongside creatures such as the frog-like Wollywog and fungal Puffstool.
The original Pikmin's focus on overcoming a natural environment is typified by the final boss, Emperor Bulblax. Its sequel continues this trend with animalistic bosses that appear at the end of many dungeon-esque caves, including Empress Bulblax, a slug-like Ranging Bloyster, and the crustacian Segmented Crawbster. However, Pikmin 2's caverns also hide bosses such as Man-at-Legs, a unique take on the "Long Legs" Arachnorb family that has replaced its main body and one leg with mechanical parts - capable of housing a machine gun turret.
Additional bosses also feature mechanical parts or references to biomechanical lifestyles. Ranging Bloyster appears to have enhanced abilities because it swallowed the Amplified Amplifier treasure, for example. Raging Long Legs is described by Olimar as having a silicon-based exoskeleton and innards coated with heavy metals, and the Titan Dweevil final boss melds with four different treasures to use elemental attacks. The Gatling Groink also stands out, though the 3DS spin-off Hey! Pikmin reveals it to be a more common evolution via the Fireflinger Groink species.
Pikmin 4's Setting can Incorporate More Human Elements
Pikmin 3 leaned away from mechanical terrors, instead presenting players with evolved animals that are so unique one might even call them alien. For example, the Armored Mawdad is coated in a crystaline shell, and the Vehemoth Phosbat is a bioluminescent terror that swoops through dark caves (which are contiguous parts of the world rather than dungeons). This entry also continues a trend of supernatural entities that inhabit PNF-404, such as the Plasm Wraith final boss that moves like golden gelatin and can form its body into different states of matter. Prior enemies like Goolix, Smoky Progg, and the Waterwraith feel like precursors to Plasm Wraith, but mechanical foes get no similar evolution.
To be fair, Pikmin 2's biomechanical enemies built upon the original game's Armored Cannon Beetle, but the sharp gameplay divide between each entry suggests terrors like Man-at-Legs were created through their proximity to abandoned human "treasures." The announcement trailer for Pikmin 4 showcases a massive park bench, as well as a painted fence with a stopwatch in what appears to be a backyard. A more directly human environment could result in more mechanical mutations, both for boss encounters and lesser enemies like Pikmin 2's Careening Dirigibug.
Pikmin 4 launches in 2023 for Nintendo Switch.