Pikmin 1 and 2 surprise-released on Switch recently and, unsurprisingly, drawn in quite a few newcomers. As an old fart who played these on Gamecube, I’m having a blast revisiting a human-less Earth and collecting knick-knacks with my small friends.
Pikmin 2 is probably the bigger draw here, and where I’d recommend anyone who’s unsure of how much they’d like to invest their time in the series start. But some newcomers might be daunted by the way the games handle their “Day” cycles, as well as the constantly-changing design around the Game Over condition.
Does Pikmin 2 Have A Time Limit?
A single day in Pikmin 2 has a time limit of around 14 minutes, but it’s a little more complicated than that. When you and your Pikmin venture into Caves, the timer no longer progresses.
This is all to say two very important things: when you’re above ground, keep an eye out so you don’t accidentally abandon Pikmin, and when you’re in Caves Pikmin are your limited resource, not time (you can’t replenish Pikmin while underground).
Related: How to Play Every Pikmin Game in the Series
On to the next important question, is there a time limit for the entire game?
Does Pikmin 2 Have A Day Limit?
There is no day limit in Pikmin 2 – players have as many days as they want to collect as much Treasure as they want. The reason this is important is that in Pikmin 1, Olimar had a 30-day supply of air before the game ended, meaning you were very carefully choosing how to spend each day.
This isn’t the case in Pikmin 2, so don’t fret if you want to spend an entire day or two just growing extra Pikmin (knowing what awaits in endgame, you’re going to need them).
If this is your first Pikmin game, have fun! It’s certainly the most difficult of the three, but also offers the most content and variety of challenge. If you’re looking forward to it as much as I am, check out our guide on how to play the Pikmin 4 demo right now!
