The Key is a treasure in Pikmin 2, whose name is one of the only treasures that describes itself exactly. It is quite obviously a large, golden key. The Key is found inside the body of a Beady Long Legs on the last sublevel of the Citadel of Spiders. Besides from increasing the Poko total, The Key also unlocks Challenge Mode, which can be found in the Main Menu after the treasure has been collected. It is the only part of the Explorer's Friend Series that is not found in the Exploration Kit.
In Pikmin 2's Challenge Mode, this treasure is found on every sublevel of every one of the 30 levels. It is required to make the entrance to the next sublevel or the geyser appear and it is worth 100 Pokos.
Notes
Olimar's Journal
"This item came from the personal treasure hoard of a massive Pikmin-devouring spider. The whole cave was crawling with all kinds of fearsome creatures. I decided to name that eerie cave the Citadel of Spiders. The ship can't stand bugs... Whenever I ask it to store a specimen for salvage, it threatens to stage a mutiny."
Sales Pitch
"This shape...I have encountered it some where before... No, I must be mistaken.. Yes, I am mistaken. Thoughts like these strike all who see this cabalistic form. You can feel its immense power!"
The Ship's Dialogue
Found
"Sweet victory! That giant insect's body crumbled into dust!"
"I am quite relieved to know I won't have to store such an enormous bug."
"...Analyzing soil samples. ... ... ... ...Anomaly detected. What's that glittery widget?"
Collected
"This object seems familiar. I will combine it with the president's parallel-dimension controller."
"ALERT!!! Sensors indicate a massive dimensional shift at a distant location."
"I'm receiving a message from a far-flung dimension. Displaying the message now..."
""Challenge Mode can now be accessed from the title screen.""
"It appears to be total gibberish. Hopefully the message has reached its intended recipient."
"I will name this apparently worthless device the Key."
Gallery
Trivia
- The Key bears a striking resemblance to the keys commonly used within the Mario franchise. This particular design bears resemblance to the keys in the non-Japanese Super Mario Bros. 2, Super Mario World, Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island, and Yoshi's Island DS.
- It is unknown why a key would emit interdimensional information, although it could be referring to the real world as a parallel dimension to the game's own.
- In the beta of Pikmin, the Key would originally make a low poly appearance for an unknown reason, with a door model next to it.
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