Pikmin 4 Switch 2 Edition Guide: Dandori Academy, Price and Demo

What is new in the Switch 2 Edition

The Switch 2 Edition is the 2023 game plus four new things. Nintendo lists them on its store pages, and they are the whole reason this edition exists. Here they are, in plain words.

New feature	What it does
Dandori Academy	A new series of timed exam stages that test how fast and how well you command your Pikmin and collect treasure, with in-game medals to earn
Oatchi voice commands	Speak orders to Oatchi, your rescue pup, through the Nintendo Switch 2 system microphone while you play
Improved visuals	Sharper detail with improved high-resolution visuals in both TV mode and handheld mode
Dandori Battles with GameShare	Battle a friend on the same system, or share the game with a friend who does not own it, locally or online through GameChat

Everything else in the game is the Pikmin 4 you already know: the Rescue Corps story, the Pikmin types, the caves, the night expeditions, and the Rewind Time feature. This guide does not repeat that walkthrough. If you want the new stuff only, the table above is the short version.

Price and which version to buy

There are two ways in, and the right one depends on whether you already own Pikmin 4 on Nintendo Switch. The Upgrade Pack is the cheap route for existing owners. The full edition is the route for new players.

Version	Price	Who it is for
Dandori Academy Upgrade Pack	$9.99 in the United States, £7.99 in the United Kingdom	You already own Pikmin 4 on Nintendo Switch; the full game is required for the pack to work
Full Switch 2 Edition, physical	$69.99 in the United States	You do not own Pikmin 4 yet; the game and the upgrade pack come together
Full Switch 2 Edition, digital	Not published by Nintendo in the United States yet	New players who want a digital copy; check the eShop listing on launch day
Pikmin 4 on Nintendo Switch, original	$59.99	Still on sale; buying it plus the $9.99 pack comes to $69.98 in total

A note on the prices, because one wrong figure is floating around. One outlet printed $7.99 for the Upgrade Pack, but that is the United Kingdom price in pounds, £7.99, not a United States price. The United States price is $9.99, and that figure is confirmed by several outlets that read Nintendo’s listing directly. Nintendo’s own store pages do not show the price in a plain text read, so we print $9.99 as reported from the listing, not as a figure we saw printed on Nintendo’s page ourselves.

The full digital edition is the one open price. As of November 11, Nintendo had still not published a United States digital price for the complete Switch 2 Edition, while the physical edition was listed at $69.99. If you want a digital copy and you do not own the game yet, check the eShop on November 12 before you pay, because the digital price may appear at launch.

The Upgrade Pack itself is a small download at 1.2 GB, and Nintendo says it can be pre-loaded so you can play as soon as the game is released. The full Switch 2 Edition download is about 12.8 GB, while the original Switch game is 11.3 GB. Remember the one hard rule: the Upgrade Pack needs the full Pikmin 4 game to work, and the game is sold separately.

Dandori Academy explained

Dandori Academy is the headline addition, and it is a mode built for players who like a timer and a score. Dandori is the art of planning ahead and working efficiently, and each exam stage asks you to do exactly that: command your Pikmin well, collect the most treasure, and beat the clock.

Nintendo describes it as an extensive series of Dandori exam stages to test your skill and earn in-game medals. A total of 72 stages will be released over time, and they vary in difficulty, so you can choose the ones that match your skill level. There are three difficulty levels. That is everything Nintendo itself states about the mode, and it is worth reading carefully, because two details matter.

• 72 is the planned total, not the launch count. Only the first stages are live on November 12, and the rest arrive over time.
• Nintendo has not stated a release schedule for the later stages. Reports say the stages arrive in small monthly sets, but that cadence comes from coverage, not from Nintendo, so treat it as reported until Nintendo confirms it.

Review coverage of the finished game reports that the launch set holds six stages, two at each difficulty level, which fits the pattern of small sets over time. If you play at launch, expect a short first set, not all 72 stages on day one. The medals are the hook: each exam grades your run, so the replay value comes from beating your own score and earning a better medal, not from finishing a stage once.

How to approach the exams: play the easy stages first to learn how each exam scores you, then move up a difficulty when your medals stop improving. The exams reward planning more than speed alone, so pause before you act, send your Pikmin to the nearest treasure first, and keep Oatchi close for the heavy carries. That is the whole skill in one sentence: plan the route, then run it.

Oatchi voice commands

Oatchi, the rescue pup, can now listen for your voice commands through the Nintendo Switch 2 system microphone as you play. Nintendo’s own words are simple: he can listen for your voice commands via the system microphone. Coverage of the Pikmin Day Direct reports example commands such as telling him to rush or to get to work, so you can call out orders mid-mission without pausing the action.

Two honest limits to know. First, the voice commands are not in the free demo, according to hands-on reports, so you cannot test them until the full game launches on November 12. Second, this is a small quality of life addition, not a new control scheme. You still play the game with the controller. The microphone just lets you send Oatchi off with a word instead of a button press.

Dandori Battles and GameShare

Dandori Battles are the competitive side of the game: two players race to collect the most items before time runs out. You can play them with a friend on the same system, and the Switch 2 Edition adds a friendlier way in through GameShare.

With GameShare, a friend can join your Dandori Battle even if they do not own the game, locally or online through GameChat. The fine print from Nintendo matters here: the Nintendo Switch 2 system must start the GameShare session, a player who receives the game through GameShare can only play it during that session, and a Nintendo Switch Online membership and a Nintendo Account are required for online features, including GameChat. So the free ride works, but only while you are in the session together, and only with a membership for the online side.

Improved visuals: what Nintendo actually says

Nintendo promises sharper detail with improved high-resolution visuals in both TV mode and handheld mode. That is the full official statement. Nintendo has not published a resolution number or a frame rate for the Switch 2 Edition on its store pages, so this guide does not print one as Nintendo-confirmed.

What review coverage adds: reviewers of the finished game report that the picture is sharper on Switch 2, with one review describing native 4K resolution in TV mode, and another reporting that the frame rate stays locked at 30fps. Those figures come from hands-on coverage, not from Nintendo, so treat them as reported. If exact numbers matter to you, the free demo is the honest test: it runs the Switch 2 Edition visuals, so you can compare TV and handheld mode on your own setup before you pay.

Free demo: what it includes and whether your save carries over

A free demo arrived on the Nintendo Switch 2 eShop on November 2, 2026, ten days before launch, and it is the best way to try the Switch 2 Edition before you buy. Nintendo announced the demo in its Pikmin Day Direct on October 31, and coverage agrees on what it holds.

• The opening area of the story, Sun-Speckled Terrace, playable until you collect 1,500 Sparklium.
• Two Dandori Academy exam stages, so you can try the new mode before launch.
• Your save carries over to the full game, with one catch for returning players: if you have not played Pikmin 4 before, your demo save carries over in full, story progress included. If you already played Pikmin 4 on Switch, only your Dandori Academy data carries over.
• Oatchi voice commands are not in the demo, according to hands-on reports.

One careful note: we could not open Nintendo’s own demo listing first-hand for this guide, so the demo details above trace to coverage of Nintendo’s announcement, not to a page we read ourselves. The date, the contents and the save transfer are reported consistently across several outlets, and the demo is live on the eShop now, so you can confirm it in seconds on your own Switch 2. If you are new to Pikmin 4, start the story in the demo and keep the same Switch 2 user when you open the full game, so your progress comes across.

Download sizes at a glance

Version	Download size
Dandori Academy Upgrade Pack	1.2 GB
Full Switch 2 Edition	12.8 GB
Pikmin 4 on Nintendo Switch, original	11.3 GB

Nintendo lists these as estimated sizes, and its pages warn that information about the game, including download size, may not be final at pre-order. The Upgrade Pack is small enough to pre-load in minutes, while the full edition needs about 13 GB free.

What to do on launch day

1. Check which version you need before you pay. If you own Pikmin 4 on Switch, buy the $9.99 Upgrade Pack. If you do not, buy the full edition, and check the eShop for the digital price if it is still unpublished.
2. Pre-load the Upgrade Pack if you have not already. At 1.2 GB it is quick, and Nintendo says pre-loading lets you play as soon as the game is released.
3. Play the first Dandori Academy exams on easy first. Learn how each exam scores you before you chase medals on normal and hard.
4. Try an Oatchi voice command in a quiet moment, not in the middle of a timed exam. Learn what the microphone hears before you rely on it.
5. If you played the demo, open the full game with the same Switch 2 user so your save carries over. New players keep the story progress; returning players keep the Dandori Academy data.

Pikmin 4 Switch 2 Edition questions

How much is the Pikmin 4 Switch 2 Edition upgrade?

The Dandori Academy Upgrade Pack costs $9.99 in the United States and £7.99 in the United Kingdom for players who already own Pikmin 4 on Nintendo Switch. The full physical edition costs $69.99, and the United States digital price for the full edition had not been published by Nintendo yet.

Does the Pikmin 4 Switch 2 Edition demo save carry over?

Yes. If you have not played Pikmin 4 before, your demo save carries over to the full game, story progress included. If you already played Pikmin 4 on Switch, only your Dandori Academy data carries over from the demo.

How many Dandori Academy stages are there at launch?

Nintendo plans 72 Dandori Academy stages in total, released over time, but only the first stages are live at launch. Review coverage reports the launch set holds six stages, two at each of the three difficulty levels, with more stages to follow.