This level contains the key for the hidden level Whole Hog. Get all three Cortex Tokens to access his bonus stage and stick around at the end, he drops the key! / sjcage sweetjohnnycage... / sweetjohnnycage
You didn’t show the actual key or gem? Weird for a walkthrough but I got them both anyway. The key shows up almost immediately and I even died a few times during the regular level and once in the bonus and still got the key and gem.
Sorry I misspoke. The key is really small and easy to miss. It's very likely you picked it up as soon as he dropped it. Have you finished the level? It will automatically unlock Whole Hog if you got the key.
Yes I have finished the level about 10 times and still haven’t received the key - so annoying since it is the only thing I’m missing in this game :-( do you think it is possible that I have spun it away? I’ve waited more than 10 minutes in the bonus and it is still not showing..
This might sound annoying, but I suggest quitting the game back to the game selection menu and then trying the level over again from the very beginning. I don't know if you can spin a key away, but it's completely possible that's what happened.