Short answer
Go to the Timesville apartments with the lockpick, place the lockpick in Mellow's hand, and interact with the middle door on the right. It unlocks Nibbles' room; complete the room interactions to advance both Bear and Cow and open the route toward the Chameleon boss.
When to do it: After obtaining the lockpick and before resolving Chameleon. If Bear and Cow repeat old dialogue, Nibbles' apartment is the missing progression check.
What you need: The lockpick, access to the apartment building, and the lockpick actively equipped rather than merely stored in inventory.
Missable or risky: Retryable while Timesville remains open. Complete it before the boss/area transition if you want the full local quest state.
Confirmed details
The answered Steam thread identifies the exact door as the middle door on the right in the apartment building and specifies that the lockpick must be equipped in hand.
The room belongs to Nibbles. Reaching it is the bridge between having several Timesville tools and actually progressing Bear, Cow, and the Chameleon objective.
The camera, broken phone, fish paper, and an exhausted metal detector are not substitutes for this lock. A player can possess all of those items and still be blocked until the lockpick is used on the apartment door.
This page separates documented requirements from route advice. Names, achievement conditions, platform details, and item counts are checked against the linked Steam records; navigation is cross-checked against recorded gameplay. If an update changes a room, prompt, or trigger, use the verification note below before assuming the save is broken.
Step-by-step solution
Step 1 — Confirm the lockpick is in inventory, select it, and make sure the held-item indicator shows the lockpick before entering the apartments.
Step 2 — Inside the apartment building, face the doors on the right and choose the middle one. Interact while the lockpick is equipped; clicking empty-handed can make the door appear permanently irrelevant.
Step 3 — Enter Nibbles' room and inspect each available conversation and object. Let every dialogue exchange finish so both quest flags can update.
Step 4 — Return to Bear and Cow after the room sequence and exhaust their changed dialogue. Revisit Nibbles if either still repeats the pre-room line.
Step 5 — Continue the now-open Timesville objective toward Chameleon, preserving a save before the boss choice if you want both fight and peaceful achievements.
Common failures and softlock risks
Owning the lockpick is not enough. It must be selected in hand when the middle-right door is clicked.
Do not waste metal-detector uses searching for a separate Bear/Cow item. The confirmed blocker in this state is Nibbles' apartment door.
If the room opens but dialogue does not update, exit and re-enter once, then finish every interaction before advancing the area.
Recovery rule: stop before crossing another chapter boundary. Confirm the current objective, cycle every usable inventory item, and retry the interaction from a clean room entry. If the trigger still fails, close the game before restoring a known-good save; copying or replacing live save files while the game is open can overwrite the recovery state.
Version and verification
The door position, equipped-lockpick requirement, Nibbles room name, and connection to helping both characters were checked against the answered Steam thread dated July 28, 2026 and launch walkthrough progression.
Last verified: July 31, 2026, against the launch PC build, Steam achievement records, linked Steam Community guides, and recorded full-game footage. Endacopia can vary some puzzle clues between runs, so follow the clue in your own save when this page explains a method instead of a fixed answer.
Frequently asked questions
Which apartment door opens Nibbles' room?
Use the middle door on the right. Equip the lockpick before clicking it.
Why does the apartment door not react?
Select the lockpick so it is visibly held. The interaction may not use an item that is only sitting unselected in inventory.