The Splatoon series is a benchmark and a subversive within Nintendo. A multiplayer shooter that would have been unthinkable for Mario’s house in other times, but has become one of Nintendo’s most important qualities thanks to the faith in a small group of promises. With a promising first part and a really stellar second, it didn’t seem like there was much more to offer, but Splatoon 3 is the loop of the tentacle, and it hit exactly what it took to justify a full release.
Before reading this analysis, proceed with a few clarifications. The first is that if you were expecting a revolutionary change in its structure or mechanics, you can forget about it. Splatoon 3 adds things, yes, especially in its beautiful graphics, but its multiplayer is very continuous with that of Splatoon 2 and I recommend going through our analysis of the second part before reading further, since almost everything is still valid here. The second is that given the server access caps in the days leading up to the game’s release, I’ll have to dig a lot more into multiplayer before I can give my final verdict on this part, and so on I will update properly after a few days of open online games. With that said, I’ll start by highlighting what has really changed the most about the game: the new story mode.
The single player mode of the Splatoon series used to be more of a fun add-on or proving ground to practice handling weapons and items when we’re not shooting (painting) in multiplayer, but here it needs more elements of the Octo extension of Splatoon 2 and the lore of the entire series to give us some answers as to what happened to humanity and why this war between hunches and Octarians. Now we have two new zones: the city of Tintelia and the region of Alterna. The first acts as the main hub where you can access online games and purchase weapons, outfits, accessories, and more. In Alterna, the single player mode takes place instead. In this region we will help an old man who is in trouble with the help of the Agents 1 and 2. Some familiar characters return and there are some new additions, but it seems like there will be more than one surprise twist for you to discover for yourself.
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What I can say is that this story mode has a measured and reasonable progression that, although serving as a prelude or moment of relief for online games, offers a good handful of hours in which we can enjoy dozens of stages, which we access via pulportals. The problem is accessing them first we must eliminate a mass of petrifying plasma which we can only eliminate with the help of our little salmonid helper: the centurion. This little companion feeds on the red caviar we collect around Alterna, which we use to charge it with energy to destroy the plasma cores (and open up new paths).
The Cenutrin also marks hidden objects on the map. So when an exclamation point appears over his head or he runs off your back to a random spot, shoot the ground next to it to reveal the surprise. Along the six zones We will complete different challenges ranging from reaching the objective, killing the Octarians along the way, collecting all the red caviar within the time limit, or moving along rails along the rails while shooting to open the path before we fall into the void
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Skimming through the ink has always been fun, but the truth is that the design of some of these levels made us rack our brains to get to the next checkpoint (there’s a hidden switch in particular, which kept me stuck longer than I care to admit). The new mechanics jump out of the ink it allows us to get a little higher and that reflects in the way the stages are built. It’s hard to believe that the game could be expanded with so many stages and only a few small additional features. Jumping and diving can save you some kills in territory, so make sure you get a good handle on them before jumping in.
These new abilities wouldn’t make sense if the controls in Splatoon 3 weren’t already awesome. Whether you’re playing in handheld mode or on the dock and TV, handling, aiming, and character movement are smooth, fluid, and precise. Although the gyroscope is much faster to rotate and aim, I quickly got used to playing with my device disabled. You can balance the sensitivity of the controls depending on how you use the Nintendo Switch or where you play it, so I only have good words here.
And when we talk about control, you also have to rebuild a bit the armory from Splatoon 3. While most of the weapons and gadgets for inking enemies and the environment were there before, there are a few that we mustn’t lose sight of, although mastering them is another matter is. The starting team is called “Elite”, but the truth is that the small pistol we started with has a very limited range but a good rate of fire. Splatoon 3’s new primary weapon is the Archchromatizer. It is a very powerful but slow-reloading triple-shot bow that can shoot horizontally while walking or vertically if we shoot while jumping. It does a lot of damage, but it’s hard to aim. Where’s the brush or dynamo roller that removes the rest. There is also a new special weapon similar to a bazooka that we can pick up, although it is a one-time use and it must be used at the right time to be effective.
Although not all multiplayer modes are available at the beginning (in fact you have to go through the tutorial at the beginning before moving on to the territorial modes), all are known. To access the multiplayer, from the lobby we enter a previous room where we can choose the type of game we want. That territorial (Turf Wars) are 4v4 sessions in which our team has to be the one that has spread the most ink before time runs out while at the same time we cover the ink staining the rivals and get them out of the arena bring by shooting paint at them. There were different maps throughout the game sessions, and the truth is that the variety and breadth are appreciated. Being able to deploy anywhere with the drone at the beginning can lead to strategies that will kick in once the game comes out. So it can be interesting to keep an eye on the competition part.
salmon run It’s the four-player cooperative mode in which we’ll have to destroy hordes of salmonids while taking as much red caviar as we can. Once again I’ve been missing a good communication system in the team, but hopefully SplatNet 3 will work here soon too. The way competing anarchy I can’t speak at the moment as it unlocks at level 10 and I haven’t had a chance to get it, but it still keeps the game modes with special rules like tower.
Both a sequel and a gateway to the series, Splatoon 3 has gameplay that you’ll quickly pick up and spend time on if you want to get the most out of the game. It’s a well-rounded multiplayer title that listened to a community that also demanded a greater individual experience and has more than fulfilled. There were few things that needed to be added to the system without throwing it off balance somewhere, but everything that has been added only creates new levels of gameplay and promises many hours of online fun. Is Splatoon 3 almost the same as before? You can, but “almost” is certainly better.
