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Pikmin 3 Deluxe: Distant Tundra walkthrough

Charlie's brief opening, the Yellow Onion, a river that keeps two captains apart, and the Vehemoth Phosbat's dark cave.

  • About 66 min in the videos
  • 4 parts · 9 steps
  • 1 boss

Compiled from 1 playthrough video and 12 guides · checked Oct 19, 2026

0 of 4 done
Video: BeardBear on YouTube. Loads from youtube-nocookie.com only when you press play.

What each player can do here

P1 · Player 1
  • Left half of the split screen, leading their own captain and squad.
  • On the river day, one player's captain stays on each bank: Brittany on one side, Alph on the other.
P2 · Player 2
  • Right half of the split screen, and free to drop in or out mid-game. Either player can open the radar, hints or Onion menu, which pauses the game for both.
  • Pikmin can be thrown across the river even though captains cannot, so the two sides trade Pikmin at the throwing spot.

If your skill levels differ: Split the day's jobs rather than sharing one squad; that is how Nintendo pitches the second player. For a newer player, Deluxe adds lock-on targeting and optional hints that can be switched on. How to split the roles

Yellow Pikmin

Part 1 of 4. Wake the Yellow Onion.

  1. BothCharlie's short opening: he finds a group of Yellow Pikmin, and his part ends when he walks into a cave.
  2. BothThrow Yellow Pikmin at the electrode by the dormant Onion to bring it to life.
  3. BothGrow at least twenty Yellow Pikmin to roll the iron ball down and break through.

Reuniting the captains

Part 2 of 4. Build the double bridge.

  1. BothCaptains cannot cross the river, but Pikmin thrown at the crossing point can.
  2. BothEach side has two fragment piles; the bridge has two halves and needs both before the captains meet.
  3. BothYellow Pikmin can tear down the electric gate beside where the ship lands, opening the way to another fragment pile.

Where people tend to fall

  • Pikmin head back to the flowerpot after dropping off fragments; intercept them.
  • Until the two meet, Brittany cannot get back to the ship at night and goes without food.

Toward Charlie

Part 3 of 4. Reach the Vehemoth Phosbat's cave.

  1. BothTwenty Pikmin push another iron ball off a ledge, opening a cave.
  2. BothThrow Yellow Pikmin at the cave's electrode so the Bloominous Stemples bloom into a path.single source

Where people tend to fall

  • Fire creatures wait in the hidden cave: send Red Pikmin, which fire cannot hurt.

The dark cave

Part 4 of 4. Beat the Vehemoth Phosbat.

  1. BothTwenty Yellow Pikmin on the big battery light the whole cave.

Boss

Vehemoth PhosbatThe dark-cave boss

  1. Lights: It hates light: Yellow Pikmin switch on the bulbs around the cave and the glare knocks it to the ground.
  2. Pods: Lit bulbs make its pods release baby Phosbats; destroy the pods to stop them.
  3. Vortex: It inhales Pikmin in front of it; whistle them back out of the pull.
  4. Grounded: In the air, Yellow Pikmin thrown onto it weigh it down; on the ground, pile on with Rock and Red Pikmin.
  • With two captains, one can keep the boss busy while the other gets Pikmin onto the battery bridge.
  • After rising it lets off a dust that chokes nearby Pikmin for a moment without killing them.

Extras and notes

  • Beating it frees Charlie, who joins as the third captain.
Sources (13)

Steps compiled from 1 playthrough video and 12 text guides, checked Oct 19, 2026, and written in our own words. We did not play the game for this guide. A step marked “single source” rests on one guide so far.