Mastering Pikmin 4: Unveiling the Ultimate Ability Upgrade for Domination

Pikmin 4 introduces Oatchi, the dependable Rescue Pup, who provides valuable assistance to players in various ways throughout the game. While Oatchi independently aids players in battling, defending, and exploring the terrain alongside their Pikmin companions, he also possesses the capacity to acquire new skills and upgrades, enhancing his own capabilities.

These upgrades offer players greater freedom in gameplay, granting Oatchi the ability to control tasks such as extracting fresh Pikmin or locating lost ones scattered across the map. To learn how to unlock Oatchi's ability upgrades and discover the optimal choices within Pikmin 4, continue reading.

How To Unlock Oatchi's Ability Upgrades

To access Oatchi's skill upgrades, players must first rescue one of the lost Rescue Officers on the planet. Look for Russ, who can be found in the first cave players explore alone.

Fortunately, Russ is one of the first castaways players will come across, so accessing ability upgrades does not require excessive gameplay. Similarly, players will discover that Oatchi can learn ability upgrades once it grows larger and becomes rideable by the player and their Pikmin.

Best Ability Upgrades To Get

After discovering Russ and gaining access to his Lab, players will need to accumulate sufficient currency to unlock their desired ability upgrades. Fortunately, every ability has the potential to be upgraded in due course, alleviating concerns about having to stockpile Pup Drive until players have a clear understanding of the optimal choices to unlock. Nevertheless, determining the initial priorities can still pose a challenge.

Buff and Super Buff

Buffing Oatchi's ability to push boxes and carry treasure, the Buff power-up proves its usefulness in both the early and late stages of Pikmin 4. This enhancement grants Oatchi the flexibility to carry a significant load, allowing players to leverage his skills regardless of their progress. Given the game's emphasis on multitasking, the ability to assign Oatchi to transport valuable items back to the ship while the other Pikmin focus on other tasks becomes a tremendous advantage.

Additionally, expending sufficient time and exertion on Buff and Super Buff will enable players to attain early access to the Blue Onion, thereby unlocking the Blue Pikmin and facilitating easier reach to previously inaccessible regions. Moreover, attaining the maximum level of the Super Buff skill will also grant access to Swallow in the post-game, thereby exposing players to another valuable ability upgrade.

Doggy-Paddle

Even with Blue Pikmin accessible to players, having Doggy-Paddle as a backup proves to be immensely helpful. Once Oatchi masters Doggy-Paddle, he gains the ability to swim, allowing him to traverse water and reach otherwise inaccessible areas. Moreover, Oatchi can serve as a mode of transportation, carrying both the player and their Pikmin on his back. This opens up opportunities for teams of Pikmin, beyond just Blue Pikmin, to be transported across the map and assist in solving puzzles requiring specific types of Pikmin.

Rush and Mega Rush

Additionally, by enhancing Doggy-Paddle, Oatchi will gain the ability to launch attacks against adversaries while submerged in water. This remarkable upgrade will essentially turn him into a colossal Blue Pikmin, greatly simplifying the exploration of different areas and ensuring the safety of the Pikmin under his care. As a result, players will experience significantly reduced levels of stress during gameplay.

When starting to play Pikmin 4, players will likely rely heavily on the Rush ability due to its effectiveness in various aspects: exploring, attacking enemies, and defending the Pikmin. Devoting ample time to enhancing the Rush skill is highly recommended as it significantly enhances Oatchi's Rush ability, enabling him to better shield against enemy assaults.

Upgrading Rush to its Mega Rush form is a fantastic idea. The Mega Rush ability not only stuns enemies for an extended period of time, but it also grants players additional time to devise a formidable attack strategy (or to safely flee from a particularly perilous situation). Additionally, by further enhancing the Mega Rush ability, players can unlock the legendary skill known as Infinite Rush. With Infinite Rush, Oatchi is empowered to incessantly rush without any pauses, enabling him to effortlessly traverse the entire map for an indefinable duration.

Command

Command is a decent skill that allows Oatchi to find even more things by tracking a scent, with the ability to find more items increasing the more Command is upgraded.

Swallow

Another significant advantage is that Command enables Oatchi to locate any forgotten Pikmin that players may have misplaced throughout their day. Once discovered, Oatchi will gather them together and escort them back to the Onion. This feature proves exceptionally valuable for players prone to losing track of their Pikmin or those who are unwilling to abandon any Pikmin behind when facing the potentially eerie nights in the world of Pikmin 4.

Completing the main story is a prerequisite for unlocking Swallow, but it is definitely worth it considering how incredibly useful it is. Swallow empowers Oatchi with the ability to carry defeated enemies or objects in his mouth, a task that would typically require 100 Pikmin. This means that players can now delegate the often tedious chore of transporting items back to the ship to Oatchi, allowing them to focus on exploration or combat with their entire Pikmin party.

Pluck

In a sense, it bears some similarity to Buff and Super Buff, but with a sole emphasis on transporting valuable treasure. This particular ability holds great appeal for achievement-oriented individuals or seasoned players embarking on the advanced stages of the game, as it provides significant assistance during later phases.

Although not the most essential ability, Pluck can greatly assist players who struggle with multitasking or have a busy schedule. It pairs well with Command and enables Oatchi to efficiently retrieve Pikmin from the ground after they are released by the Onion. This eliminates the need for players to spend time collecting Pikmin or waiting for them to sprout.

Once more, with the Pikmin plucking process being automated, it doesn't offer significant time savings. However, for players seeking a swift accumulation of a specific Pikmin type or a rapid expansion of their team, it presents a favorable alternative.