Nintendo has blown the gates open on Splatoon 3 with a Nintendo Direct that revealed pretty much everything you could hope to know about the upcoming threequel. From the intro hosts to the levels, new weapons, customisation options and so much more, there’s a lot to take in.
Splatoon 3 will be out on 9th September 2022 for Nintendo Switch, but a special demo Splatfest will take place at the end of August.
Where the first two Splatoon games features a pair of characters hosting the news programs when you load up the game, Splatoon 3 features a trio of hosts called Deep Cut. They include Shiver, Frye and the excellent stingray Big Man.
Three will be a huge part of the game going forward, with Splatfests returning as live game events, but now with three teams to choose from – rock, paper, scissors will be the first. They’ll now have two halves, in which teams compete in traditional 4v4 Turf War battles, before switching to Tricolor Turf War where all three teams compete. The maps will be the same, but the top team will have start from the middle of the map with two players each from the second and third-placed team.
Outside of Splatfests, the regular Turf War battles are accompanied by new Anarchy Battles, which challenge you to win five games, with three losses resetting your streak. The game modes include Splat Zones, Tower Control, Rainmaker and the new Clam Blitz. This can be played solo or with friends.
Twelve stages will be featured in the game at launch, with Scorch Gorge, Eeltail Alley, Mincemeat Metalworks, Undertow Spillway and Hagglefish Market set in Splatlands, while there’s also the new Museum d’Alfonsino, Hammerhead Bridge, Mahi-Mahi Resort (with platforms that sink as battle goes on) set in Greater Inkopolis. From previous games, Inkblot Art Academy, Strugeon Shipyard, MakoMart and Wahoo World will return. More stages will be added with free updates.
All of the basic weapon types from Splatoon 2 will also return, but there’s new weapons including the bow-like Stringers, windscreen wiper-like Splatanas that flings ink quite far. New Special Weapons include the fridge Tacticooler that gives player buffs to up to four players, the Wavebreaker that unleashes damaging waves in the area and marks opponents, an the Reefslider that drives forward before exploding. Tenta Missiles, Inkjet, Ink Storm, Ultrastamp and Booyah Bomb will all return.
Ammo Knights returns, but you’ll now need to earn Sheldon Licenses by levelling up in battles and consistently using the same weapons in order to buy new weapons. You can also skip ahead by spending more Sheldon Licenses compared to your level.
Fashion returns with Headgear, Clothing and Shoes as familiar categories. As before, they all have various buffs and modifiers. You can swap abilities later on… for a fee. You now have the ability to save ‘Fits’ for particule clothing and weapon combos.
The lobby features a locker room that features your locker alongside those of people you’ve recently played again. You can customise your locker to show off some gear, hanging it up and placing it just so for when someone checks it out, adding stickers and swapping the locker colour as well.
Customisation also extends to your name card Splashtag, with banners, badges and titles. You can also choose the emote to perform when you win a battle.
Also in the lobby is the Test Range, which runs before you enter a matchmaking battle. The lobby system also supports joining online friends mid-battle to join them, with ghosts in the lobby appearing in real time. Battle Replays will capture recent battles and let you inspect the fight, which can be shared online as well.
It’s not just Turf War, Splatoon 3 features a new minigame called Table Turf Battle, a little card game that inks shapes depending on the card you play, charge up powers and then unleash special attacks. Over 150 cards are in game for this quirky card-based counterpart to Turf War.
Co-op also returns with Salmon Run, fighting waves of Salmonid enemies to collect the golden eggs from Boss Salmonids to deposit. There’s new Salmonids including a Slammin’ Lid that protects Salmonid and tries to crush you, Big Shot that fires a mortar at you. And then there’s the new King Salmonid that could appear just before you complete the job. That job could potentially see you defending the city, with the Big Run an event that’s set to take place “every few months”.
Will that tie in with the Rise of the Mammalians story mode? Probably not. That’s going to be its own weird adventure with the Octarians returning… but this time they’ve got hair.
Further features include:
- The Splatsville mailbox with new vertical artwork
- Concession Stand to boost XP and cash earning.
- The Shoal enables local multiplayer
- Photo mode! You can take snaps and put them in your locker
- Recon Guide lets you check out and explore multiplayer stages
- SplatNet 3 is a slightly improved version of SplatNet 2
- Amiibo support lets you save gear combos, unlock special gear and snap photos.
- Splatoon 3 amiibo are coming this winter.
- Post-launch updates will come with a new in-game ‘catalogue’ released each month for 2 years. New weapons will also be added with these.
- X Battle and League Battle will be added after launch.
- “Large scale paid DLC” is also planned.
Phew! That’s a lot to take in!
