Nintendo has released a new trailer for Splatoon Raiders, confirming the single-player spin-off game is launching on July 23, 2026.

Almost a year ago, in June 2025, Nintendo used its Nintendo Today app to announce a new game for the first time – a mysterious Splatoon deserted island game exclusive for Switch 2, titled Splatoon Raiders. And since then, Nintendo has dropped tons of info about the game, like… well, nothing actually. But despite missing the last Nintendo Direct and not even having an app update to go on, the game recently got a fresh age rating, suggesting something was on the horizon.

And today, Nintendo continued its trend of dropping random bits of news out of nowhere – like it did earlier this month by announcing Rhythm Heaven Groove's release date – and a new Splatoon Raiders trailer arrived, confirming the release date alongside a new gameplay trailer.

The trailer shows your created character hanging out on the mysterious Spirhalite Islands with Splatoon 3's Deep Cut – consisting of Shiver, Frye, and Big Man – as they try to survive and scour the island for treasure. The trailer description calls it a "single-player focused Splatoon game," while the trailer itself shows the character crafting weapons and items, seemingly implying that we're looking at some survival elements.

The trailer also shows your enemies on this adventure will be the Salmonoids from the series' Salmon Run mode, and that you'll be able to team up with the members of Deep Cut in battle as they pilot a mech tank.

Interestingly, however, that's a second game Nintendo has confirmed for July this month, and with Yoshi and the Mysterious Book releasing in May, it leaves the Switch 2's June line-up suspiciously empty. With rumors of a brand new Star Fox apparently being announced and released this summer, as well as Fire Emblem: Fortune's Weave set to release this year, maybe there's a chance we see one of those in June.

Maybe some N64 games are better left forgotten, but don't tell that to the reconstituted Star Fox studio seemingly teasing a Buck Bumble revival.

Splatoon Raiders was revealed in perhaps the most lowkey way imaginable almost a year ago and has been completely mum since then, but the mysteriously quiet upcoming Switch 2 game might be rearing its head soon. At least, if a new age rating is anything to go by.

As reported on by MyNintendoNews, Nintendo quietly updated Splatoon Raiders' EU eShop listing with a new age classification of PEGI 7. The storefront listing previously only had a TBD (to be determined) rating as recently as the start of the month, and the rating is fresh enough that Splatoon Raider's classification hasn't even been added to the PEGI website yet.

For those unaware, PEGI is essentially the European version of ESRB, a content rating system that slaps game boxes with an age - mostly to help parents figure out what's appropriate to buy children as a birthday gift and to give adult gamers an idea of how raunchy a new game might be.

A new rating for Splatoon Raiders is particularly notable because games don't usually get age classifications until they're somewhat near the finish line. PEGI or the ESRB can't recommend a game to children, or not, based on concept art and white boxed prototypes, after all.

Still, the fact that Splatoon Raiders doesn't appear on the classification board's own website probably means you should lay off on the hopium until we hear from Nintendo itself about its shadowy spin-off.

Splatoon Raiders' first trailer was heavy on cool vibes and story content, but light on actual, concrete looks at its gameplay. Whether its a crafty-survive 'em up, an extraction painter, or a co-op exploration game is anyone's guess. But since this is a spin-off, I wouldn't expect it to be too focused on the main series' uproarious competitive multiplayer.

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake could be launching this year on Switch 2, prominent Nintendo leaker claims, but don't expect a new 3D Mario until 2027

Splatoon 3 fans got a meaty update earlier this year, which introduced new Flow Aura and HP health bar mechanics to the game but no new merch. As someone who has a shelf full of squids and octolings, I was patiently awaiting the day that Nintendo would also fill up its online shelves with ink-loads of goodies, and that day arrived on February 18, 2026.

Since then, the Nintendo UK store has played host to new contenders for the best Nintendo gifts with its series of pieces inspired by Salmon Run, my favorite mode in the entire series. There's everything from a cushion that's a perfect replica of the orange lifesavers I've spent plenty of time in after getting chomped by a massive Maws, to a half-zip Anorak jacket that would be ideal for a Salmon Run-themed cosplay. Just like the latest Animal Crossing merch, these goodies are part of the brand's "Pop-up Shop" line, which is typically only found at the physical store in Shibuya, Japan. Yet now, those in the UK (sorry US fans) have a chance to make it theirs.

I've only been able to grab the Salmon Run keychain so far, which is actually an older pre-order item. Yet, you can bet I'll be back to lay down the cash for the rest, which I've gathered down below for all my fellow kids and squids. I've even included some other recent Splatoon merch bits, in case you're fishing for some new collectibles.

Check out our guide to the best Pokemon merch if you're looking for the perfect Nintendo collectible to add to your growing collection.

A new trademark for Splatoon Raiders has sparked hopes that the series spinoff will re-emerge soon, perhaps even as part of a Nintendo Direct.

Splatoon Raiders was announced on a random day last June via the Nintendo Today app – marking the first time Nintendo used it to confirm the existence of a brand new game. And despite a massive September 2025 Nintendo Direct taking place in the time since, we actually haven't heard anything about the first Nintendo Switch 2-exclusive Splatoon game since it was announced.

A Nintendo Direct Partner Showcase is already pegged to be coming this week if the rumor mill is to be believed, and there has been talk of Nintendo following it up with a proper Nintendo Direct soon after – albeit, from less reliable sources – possibly as soon as the third week of February. However, a recent Splatoon Raiders trademark listing has given some hope that this may actually happen.

As spotted by MikeOdysseyYT on Twitter, the US Patent and Trademark Office has released updated trademark information for Splatoon Raiders with a publication date of February 17, 2026 – the third week of February. They note that trademarks have previously heralded this sort of thing, specifically noting the Virtual Boy trademark being updated last March.

However, trademarks also get routinely updated by companies, and this happening doesn't necessarily mean news about Splatoon Raiders – or a Nintendo Direct – is on the way, but it's a nice bit of copium that we can either celebrate or get bummed out about in a few weeks time.

Nintendo president reportedly teases new games for popular series are in development, which I hope means we're getting a 3D Mario title for Switch 2 sooner rather than later

While we're still reeling from the random Nintendo Today app announcement of a Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive Splatoon game, Nintendo has also released a brand new patch for Splatoon 3 to introduce some new upgrades for players on Switch 2. However, to maintain consistency across consoles, Nintendo has had to downgrade the original Switch version of Splatoon 3.

Alongside the new Splatoon 3 update 10.0.0, Nintendo released a batch of patch notes on its website and while the Nintendo Switch 2 notes are all very nice and pleasant, featuring the likes of "smoothed animations for certain characters", "made it so the screen displays in more detail", and making the movement smoother in a number of areas, Switch 1 didn't get an upgrade.

Nintendo's notes say, "Made it so that certain elements outside the stage and unrelated to battle do not display when battling in Splat Zones/Tower Control/Rainmaker/Clam Blitz modes." Due to the Switch 2 being a far more powerful system, this has been done to "reduce differences in game operation speed as much as possible when compared with Nintendo Switch 2," as it would risk giving players on the new console an advantage otherwise.

Outside of that, the patch notes are pretty standard, new weapons, balance changes to existing weapons, and the return of the beloved Urchin Underpass map from the original Splatoon game. And that should tide us over until we get some more details about Splatoon Raiders.

If Splatoon Raiders (or even the better visuals of Splatoon 3) have you interested in a Switch 2, you should really check out our Nintendo Switch 2 review.

Nintendo has announced Splatoon Raiders – the series' first spin-off game and a Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive.

For those of you who actually check the Nintendo Today app for your daily Pikmin comic or piece of old Mario concept art to pop up will be surprised to see that Nintendo has actually used the app for its intended use by randomly announcing a brand new Splatoon game exclusively for Nintendo Switch 2, titled Splatoon Raiders. Nintendo has also posted the video on YouTube for those without the app to enjoy.

We got a tiny trailer showing the storyline, which involves your player-made Inkling mechanic as you go on an adventure on the "Spiralite Islands" alongside the Splatoon 3 hosts Deep Cut (including the legend, Big Man). We only got a very brief glimpse of gameplay, but it almost looks like a survival and base-building game set on a deserted island.

Nintendo didn't give a release date or even a release window, but we'll presumably find out more about it in the next Nintendo Direct. Considering a Direct event has happened in June almost every year since 2012, I'd say that's probably pretty soon.

Nintendo also confirmed Splatoon 3 update V.10.0.0 is coming on June 12. This update introduces 30 new weapon kits in the Splatlands collection, which won't introduce any new weapons but remixed versions of previous ones, including ones that hold different subweapons. The max Freshness cap for each weapon has been raised too. Not only that, but the fan-favorite Urchin Underpass stage from the original Splatoon is returning with the new update.

But perhaps more importantly, Splatoon 3 update V.10.0.0 introduces performance and visual improvements for the Nintendo Switch 2. Nintendo reaffirms that despite these upgrades, Nintendo Switch players will still be able to battle Switch 2 players without any issue (presumably that bug that gives Switch 2 players an advantage is gone too, in that case).

Mario Kart World players have found the optimal way to unlock every vehicle, and it involves driving slowly behind a pedestrian car for 25 minutes.

Colorful third-person shooter Splatoon 3 wasn't one of the OG Switch games to receive a Switch 2 update like Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, and although players have identified many games running better on the new console without a patch, squid fans have found a bizarre Switch 2-exclusive bug that's giving them an advantage.

As discovered by Bluesky user Dio and further highlighted by OatmealDome on Twitter, Switch 2 Splatoon 3 players can currently take advantage of a "GAME-BREAKING BUG" that lets them "SQUID ROLL ANYWHERE LOL."

"Game breaking" is a bit of an exaggeration, but this is still a pretty big deal. Squid Rolling is a movement mechanic introduced in the third Splatoon game, which allows you to quickly twirl out of your ink to change direction. It briefly reduces damage taken, and can be used to dodge certain attacks, retreat from danger, or otherwise reposition yourself.

But, again, the idea is that you're only meant to be able to do this if the surface you're on is covered in your own ink. If you're in the middle of enemy territory and are getting shot with their ink, chances are you won't be able to roll out of danger quite so effectively. Or at least, you can't on the Switch 1 version – on Switch 2, players have now reported being able to Squid Roll on un-inked surfaces, as well as on enemy ink. Needless to say, this could give Switch 2 players a huge advantage if used well.

How does something like this happen when the game hasn't been updated, though? That's still not known for sure, but OatmealDome has shared some speculation. "This might be an issue with Switch 1 GPU emulation/translation, since Splatoon games have had issues with ink detection in unofficial emulators due to bugs in their GPU emulation," they suggest.

It seems unlikely that Nintendo is going to let this one stand, though, so I wouldn't be surprised if we see a patch soon to correct this. In the meantime, though, one fan jokes that the shooter is currently "pay to win."

Step aside, Super Horn: Mario Kart World's "exploitable" new Rewind feature is the best way to dodge blue shells in single-player or bring the CPU racers down with you.

Splatoon 3 might look like a cute and colorful party game, until you play through the story and realize it’s a post-apocalyptic world where humans are dead and you have to take down a mutated bear in a massive space battle.

The Splatoon series, which debuted on Wii U in 2015, was always Nintendo’s answer to the meteoric rise of the shooter genre – and the record-breaking popularity of games like Call of Duty and Halo. But Splatoon has never been just your typical shooter.It had to have that Nintendo twist, which in this case is the turf war format of covering the ground in your teams’ color of ink. The concept of Splatoon has been strong since the beginning, but Splatoon 3 is where the series’ bizarre style really came to life, and where the whole package truly felt cohesive.

Paint by numbers

From the second you boot up Splatoon 3, you know you’re in for something wholly unique, as your little inkling sets foot into the Splatlands, which feels like a neon-drenched alternate universe take on Mad Max’s wasteland. That comparison actually goes even further, as the campaign is filled with secret bits of lore to uncover – weaving a cryptic tale about the fall of humanity and the rise of sentient cephalopods.

Every aspect of the game is tinged with a surrealist sense of dark humor, from shady backstreet merchants to the way the co-op mode is themed as an exploitative minimum wage job. There’s even a huge singing manta ray simply called Big Man. But all of the humor and set dressing only works so well because of how interconnected Splatoon 3’s systems and modes are, how everything fits together in concert to provide one of the most robust shooter experiences ever seen — whether from Nintendo or not.

Splatoon 3 may not have been a giant leap over Splatoon 2, but it's an example of pure refinement bolstered by a bit of experimentation. The three modes feel more intrinsically linked here, with the campaign serving as a gateway to the rest of the modes – the game’s main villain, Mr. Grizz, only hatches his plan because of the money players have made him in the horde-like Salmon Run mode.

The campaign is where Splatoon 3 really shines, which is especially nice to see considering the shooter genre at large has drastically veered toward multiplayer and often feels like it's lost the art of a good single-player experience. The brilliance is that Nintendo sneakily combined a shooter with a platformer, one filled with the colorful and distinct boss battles you’d expect from any Mario game. The single player levels are built on the same movesets as multiplayer, but require you to think about the way your characters interact with the world differently.

There’s so much variety crammed into the 70-plus bite-sized missions. In one, you need to time your jumps to avoid shockwaves on the floor, like a deadly ballet. Another has enemies that are upside-down on platforms, surprising you by flipping over to attack whenever you get near. A third one puts you in the cockpit of the deadly Crab Tank, playing out like a blitzkrieg where you blast through enemies to get to the end. Each and every level feels markedly different, and it’s all woven into an overworld packed with secrets, and those aforementioned bits of cryptic lore. Splatoon 3’s campaign feels vibrant and experimental, and that’s before you even talk about the brilliant roguelike twist the Side Order expansion brings.

And while Splatoon 3’s other modes may not be as big of a change from the previous game, there’s still a permeating sense of inventive experimentation. The hub world feels more like a living city, with player characters milling around everywhere, and a new Tetris-like card game to serve as a distraction. That lived-in feeling then gets boosted even more during Big Runs, when Salmonids invade the actual streets of the city and seriously up the ante for the survival mode.

Multiplayer also introduced the idea of Challenge Modes, giving players matches that have specific parameters that feel incredibly chaotic, in a fun way. In one, everyone is given a different random weapon at the start of the match – in another player’s jump height is significantly increased, making it feel like you’re playing in the moon’s gravity. These Challenge offerings were on top of a more refined control scheme and selection of multiplayer offerings.

Any single mode in Splatoon 3 is enough to justify spending time with the game, but all three combined create a stellar package that just about no other shooter on the market can match. With Splatoon 3, Nintendo proved that shooters can be so much more than a multiplayer experience, and an imaginative campaign can not only serve as a vital piece of the game, but also a way to lift up the other modes. The campaign’s story lays out legitimate reasons these adorable Inklings feel the need to engage in brutal Turf Wars, and while that’s not something we ever needed, it’s a hilarious piece of context.

Splatoon 3 proved that even after all these decades, one of Nintendo’s key defining traits is still imagination. This is the only shooter where you can watch an anthropomorphic manta ray put on a concert, steal some Salmon eggs with your friends, and then duke it out in white-knuckle multiplayer matches. The absurdist visual style and story themes give Splatoon an edge that you can’t find anywhere else, and it’s driven home by three experiences that all feel different but still intrinsically part of one big package.

We've rounded up a list of the best FPS games for you to play next, along with everything you need to know about the Nintendo Switch 2 before it arrives

We finally have some clue as to what Splatoon's creative leads are working on behind Nintendo's well-secured doors.

Last year, the company recruited fans themselves to test a "mystery" Nintendo Switch Online feature with a Playtest Program that filled up within seven minutes. The publisher was then quickly reminded of why it doesn't usually let anyone peek behind the curtain as leaks started flooding the internet almost immediately, describing what sounds like a playtest for a Minecraft-esque game about building entire planets with a much heavier emphasis on social elements.

Posted on Reddit, a new Nintendo patent now seems to be related to the sandbox-building game. Players who allege they've seen and entered the Playtest Program project say the patent, "specifically the process of setting an area to restrict player actions" to stop griefers, is "pretty much exactly" describing mechanics from Nintendo's mystery game.

What's more interesting is that the patent lists some Splatoon veterans as the creators. Splatoon 1 directors Yusuke Amano and Tsubasa Sakaguchi are both named, which would make sense as Amano hasn't been credited since 2020's Animal Crossing: New Horizons and Sakaguchi's last project was Labo. Masaki Wada and Shinya Yano, two other names attached to the patent, were also programmers on fitness RPG Ring Fit Adventure.

With so much veteran talent who seem like they've been attached to the game for years, this galactic-building game might be further along than anyone expects. The Nintendo Switch 2 is also right around the corner, and there's a Nintendo Direct incoming next month, so we might even find out about the project then. Since the playtest announcement first referred to the game as a Nintendo Online "feature," I'm most curious to find out how Nintendo's going to price this damn thing or whether it'll be a subscription add-on.

See what else is officially coming down the pipeline with our new games of 2025 guide.

Splatoon 3's biggest event is over, and so are the colorful third-person shooter's regular updates. However, squid kids everywhere are now fully focused on the series' future, which they think they've already worked out.

Over the weekend, Splatoon 3's Grand Festival took place - its most important Splatfest, which is essentially a popularity contest in which players fight for their chosen teams by winning points in Turf War battles. While the third game is by no means shutting down for good, this event still marks the end of an era for the game.

"After two INK-credible years of Splatoon 3, regular updates will come to a close," the developer writes on Twitter. "Don't worry! Splatoween, Frosty Fest, Spring Fest, and Summer Nights will continue with some returning themes! Updates for weapon adjustments will be released as needed. Big Run, Eggstra Work, and Monthly Challenges will continue for the time being."

The Grand Festival wasn't just significant for this reason, though, because fans are currently hard at work predicting the plot of Splatoon 4 based on its results. At the time of writing, Nintendo hasn't even confirmed that Splatoon 4 exists, but that's not stopping anyone. For context, the Grand Festival had players fight to answer whether the past, present, or future was "most important" to them, and in the end, Team Past – led by Splatoon 1's Squid Sister idols, Callie and Marie – won, leading many to believe the next hypothetical shooter's story could be focused on the past in some capacity. 

One of the prevailing theories is that the plot could be focused on the Great Turf War – a war between the Inklings and Octarians that took place around a century before the events of the first game. "Happy Past won 'cause this could mean we get a game inspired by the Great Turf War," one fan writes. 

On the other hand, some (jokingly or not) have suggested that the past in question might not be quite so distant. "And this is how we'll be getting a Splatoon 1 port for Switch 2," one player tweets.

It might sound like a stretch, but both Splatoon 1 and 2's Final Fests influenced their successors in this way. Splatoon 1's had squids and octos choose between idols Callie and Marie, and the winner – Marie – accompanied players through the sequel's story mode. Meanwhile, Splatoon 2's Chaos vs Order Splatfest influenced Splatoon 3's setting, with the main new location – Splatsville – being the "city of chaos" (no prizes for guessing which team won in the sequel). 

For now, the fourth game is all speculation, and it may or may not happen, but it'll definitely be interesting to see if any theories turn out to be true. 

For more games like Splatoon, be sure to check out our roundup of the best shooter games.

Nintendo has revoked the recent Splatoon 3 World Championship win following the discovery of racist remarks made by members of the winning team.

The USA team Jackpot won Nintendo's Splatoon 3 World Championship back in April and thus were commemorated with an in-game Splashtag banner. In the months since, racist messages sent by some members of Jackpot have surfaced online, and it seems Nintendo has taken notice.

"It has come to our attention that certain members of team Jackpot, the team that recently won the Splatoon 3 World Championship, acted in a manner that is not in line with our Community Guidelines while playing the Splatoon 3 game," reads a statement from Nintendo, shared to Twitter. "As a result, team Jackpot’s win will be considered vacated, and the team will not receive trophies associated with the event."

It's worth pointing out that Nintendo didn't delineate what behavior led to its decision, but it's pretty easy to connect the dots. We also won't be getting into specifics here, but there's plenty of information online that doesn't require a whole lot of digging to unearth.

Regardless, Nintendo said it's nullifying Jackpot's win and removing the associated in-game banner in an upcoming update. "Nintendo cares deeply about our players and our community, and we take our responsibility to uphold our Community Guidelines seriously," the company said.

Nintendo has yet to announce a retroactive winner of the championship, and it's possible the event will remain winner-less. Phantom Thief of the Heart is the Japanese team that made it to the final and lost to Jackpot, but it's as of yet unclear whether it'll receive the win.

Recovering from the first game's shutdown, Splatoon 3 fans wonder how the latest and "biggest" Splatfest will shape an inevitable Splatoon 4.

Nintendo just announced that the "biggest Splatfest" yet is coming to Splatoon 3, an event that has squid kids everywhere simultaneously excited for the future of the series and worried that the beloved threequel might be reaching end of life status.

Nintendo announced the Grand Festival theme earlier this week, which asks players to pick what's most important to them: Past, Present, or Future? "Shall we look back on the good ol' days, stay in the moment, or think of all the possibilities?" the company tweeted, alongside a September 12 kick off date that runs for four whole days.

As if squid kids aren't still mourning the original game, many fans are convinced this Grand Festival could be Splatoon 3's Final Fest since it's getting accompanying merch and is being marketed as a pretty big deal right now, Should September's festival serve as the game's last big event, it's entirely likely that it'll also shape the future of the series, just as the previous two Final Fests did. 

Gamesradar's resident inkling correspondent Catherine Lewis tells me that the first Splatoon's Final Fest (RIP) made players pick their favourite of the two Squid Sisters, Callie or Marie. Fans chose Marie, and the pop idol subsequently joined us for almost the entirety of the sequel's story mode, while her sister was then kidnapped by the Octarian army. Splatoon 2's Final Fest also impacted future canon, as a vote between Chaos and Order had the former win out, leading to Splatoon 3's hub world taking place in the city of Chaos.  

If September's Grand Festival is indeed the Final Fest, then there's all sorts of questions about how "Past, Present or Future" might impact an inevitable Splatoon 4. Elements of all three could definitely show up - maybe the fourth game is a time-travel romp? - but whichever theme wins will probably be at the forefront of whatever happens next. 

While we wait for a probable Splatoon 4, check out everything we know about the Nintendo Switch 2.

Splatoon The First was supposed to have fizzled out when Nintendo shut down online servers for both the 3DS and Wii U over two months ago. Things didn't shake out so simply, though, as one dedicated player defied the Big N and managed to keep paintballing. Until now, that is. 

Captain Lcd101 was and forever will be the "final Splatoon player" as they managed to keep both their console and the game connected online for a whopping 68 days after shutdown. That phase has sadly come to an end, however. 

"My connection to Splatoon has been terminated," the Splatooner tweeted. "In my move, I accidentally lost connection to my router. I'd like to thank everyone for this inkredible support... Words cannot express how amazing it's been to wake up every day and see you cheering me on. You've made me the luckiest squid (or octo) online and I'm just so thankful for all of your love."

Captain Lcd101 can still keep their head held high, though. Along with seven other dedicated players, Splatoon's last inkling managed to beat a record long held by Halo 2 superfans who clutched onto their dying game for 25 days after the original Xbox Live servers were sunsetted. Some things are worth the map purgatory, right?

According to community member GaffsNotLaffs, who has been tracking the end of the Nintendo Network, only two known players remain connected to 3DS and Wii U servers. One player is still cruising around in Mario Kart 7, while another gets to enjoy the delightfully absurd player-made creations of Super Mario Maker.

Check out everything we know about the Nintendo Switch 2 for a look into the future.

It's now been over three weeks since the official Nintendo 3DS and Wii U online servers were meant to shut down, and believe it or not, some dedicated (and extremely lucky) individuals who've refused to turn off their consoles are somehow still connected. One of these is Splatoon player Lcd101, who's survived for so long that they've now hit a map rotation that won't change for another ten years. 

Before this, Splatoon's maps changed every four hours, with the Ranked Battle mode on offer swapping between Tower Control, Splat Zones, and Rainmaker at the same time. However, after the servers were supposed to shut down, dataminer OatmealDome, who runs a website which displays future map and mode rotations for all the Splatoon games, noted that from April 30 at 2PM ET / 11AM PT / 7PM BST, the map rotation was set to last for an entire decade. 

If it was actually possible to play, you'd be stuck with Turf War on Blackbelly Skatepark and Port Mackerel, and Rainmaker on Bluefin Depot and Moray Towers. This selection is rather amusing, with Moray Towers being one of the most divisive maps in the game, largely thanks to how much it favors charger (sniper) weapons – one fan describes the ten-year rotation of it as "a fate worse than death."

With no one else to play with, Lcd101 hasn't been able to access the actual multiplayer modes since April 9, but they've finally reached this fabled rotation. It's been a long time coming –  for quite some time, they were able to remain waiting in the empty lobbies, but last week, they announced that matchmaking had finally gone offline, putting a stop to their endless search for other players from beyond the void. However, this didn't mean that they'd gone offline, as they were still able to see gear in the shops change, and get those all-important stage rotation updates from Squid Sisters Callie and Marie, which bizarrely, all became delayed by half an hour from when they were actually supposed to happen. No one was supposed to see it get to that point, I suppose.

At the time of writing, it's believed that Callie and Marie have made their final news broadcast, meaning they've told us to "stay fresh" for the last time. Lcd101 reports that no further newsflashes have occurred since the ten-year rotation began, but even so, it doesn't sound like the player is done trying to survive yet.

"So what does this mean for me? I’m still going to stay in the game for as long as there’s something new to document," Lcd101 writes. "Currently, I don’t have any plans to disconnect from the Nintendo Network. I still want to see if the shops update tonight. For now, I’ll just keep swimming."

As of their final update eight hours ago, the gear in the shop did indeed change, despite the lack of map rotation. It's not clear how long Lcd101 plans to hold on for – it seems rather unlikely that they'd be able to stay connected for an entire decade just to see what happens at the end, after all. For now though, they remain one of nine people still known to be connected to the Nintendo Network servers. 

Be sure to check out our list of the best Nintendo Switch games for some newer games to dive into.

An expansion pass for Splatoon 3 has been announced, and it sees you return to the original Inkopolis.

This year is set to be a big one for Switch. Not only are we now mere months away from the launch of the next entry in The Legend of Zelda series, but there’s so much more to enjoy besides. Nintendo gave us a closer look at some of the virtual adventures we’ll be embarking on in the weeks and months ahead in its first Nintendo Direct presentation of 2023.

Among the slew of announcements and trailers was the news that Splatoon 3 is getting an expansion pass. This paid DLC will offer content in two waves. The first of these lets you return to Inkopolis from the original Splatoon. You'll be able to catch up with familiar characters and indulge in a bit of shopping at Booyah Base. What's more, if you stop by during Splatfests, you'll also be able to catch a show by the Squid Sisters.

Perhaps even more intriguing is the second wave of content, Side Order, which will offer an all-new single-player campaign. The brief trailer, which you can check out below, was certainly atmospheric and had more than a hint of Nier Automata to it. But Nintendo is choosing to keep the specific details of this new content under wraps for now.

Just yesterday, Nintendo revealed that the Switch has now reached 122.55 million lifetime sales. This means it’s surpassed the PS4 to become the third best-selling console of all time. And if that weren’t impressive enough, it’s also on the verge of becoming the second console ever to sell a billion games. Current lifetime software sales for Switch stand at 994.3 million, and when it reaches the milestone, it’ll be the only console other than the PS2 to do so.

See what else is in store for Nintendo’s latest console with our guide to upcoming Nintendo Switch Games. 

Good news, Splatoon 3 fans: the first Splatfest of 2023 is officially underway.

The new competition is now live and will run until 4pm PT January 8, 2023 (that's midnight on January 9 for UK players) and sees you putting your favorite "taste sensation" - spicy, sweet, or sour - to the test.

"SRL flavorologist here," tweeted the official North American Splatoon Twitter account yesterday.

"We've identified the benefits of all options in the next Splatfest. Spicy food wallops your tongue and floods you with endorphins. Sweets stimulate dopamine production. And sour flavors pucker your lips and enrich your soul. But which will YOU choose?"

Splatoon 3 has been doing extremely well since its launch on September 9, especially in Japan. The game managed to surpass 3.45 million sales in the country in its first three days.

"Splatoon 3's campaign feels like it's stuck between being a brilliant puzzle shooter and standard action fluff, rather than blending the two together for a seamless and enjoyable experience," we wrote in GamesRadar+'s Splatoon 3 review, which awarded the family-friendly shooter 4 stars out of 5.

"Multiplayer and the supporting Salmon Run are as great as they've always been though, now with added bonuses that make them easier to access and enjoy than ever before. Movement additions are a big win for Splatoon 3, and really succeed in adding extra depth to Splatoon's already fabulous traversal systems. There's excellence in Splatoon 3 – it just doesn't quite hold for the campaign."

See what else Nintendo's console has to offer in our guide to the best Switch games.

Splatoon 3’s Big Man won his first Splatfest, and his fans are extremely pleased.

Over the past weekend, Splatoon 3’s latest Splatfest debuted worldwide, pitting the classic Pokemon starter types against one another. Shiver headed up team Grass, while Frye led team Fire, and the ever-popular Big Man led the Water-type team, with the latter taking the final victory at the end of the day.

For those unaware, this is the first time a team led by Big Man has won a Splatfest. As you can see by checking the responses to the tweet just above, Big Man fans are absolutely ecstatic at the news the big stingray has finally won a Splatfest, and are all celebrating with fan art and, erm, colorful statements.

Until now, Big Man has unfortunately taken the L in both Splatoon 3’s Splatfests. In fact, Shiver has actually won both the Splatfest held so far, winning the first pre-launch Splatfest back in August, and then taking victory in the Desert Island-themed Splatfest, which ran just the next month in September.

This latest competition was all to promote Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, both of which are launching just later this week on November 18. We’ve already seen the Pokemon Scarlet and Violet starters - which Splatoon 3 players were basically battling it out over - but you can head over to our Pokemon Scarlet and Violet PokeDex guide for a full list of all the new Gen 9 creatures.

Be warned though: Pokemon Scarlet and Violet leaks have been doing the rounds since last week, after retail copies accidentally shipped to players early. 

A new update is launching for Splatoon 3, which should nerf those pesky performance issues.

Nintendo has announced Version 1.2.0 of Splatoon 3 will be available to download today, October 25. The list of changes and fixes it offers is pretty substantial, with the most noteworthy being improvements to the speed at which data is sent between players. According to the company, data will now be transferred around .05 seconds faster than before.

In addition, "Users can expect to see a reduction in the time it takes from a player being dealt damage to them being defeated, the time it takes from touching a Golden Egg to actually picking it up, and other similar actions," says Nintendo.

In terms of changes to gameplay, the time it takes for ink to start recovering after using a Fizzy Bomb has ever so slightly increased, as have the points requirement for some weapon specials, including the Flingza Roller and the Sloshing Machine. The patch also adds support for the game's three new amiibo figures, Inkling (yellow), Octoling (blue), and Smallfry, which will be hitting store shelves next month.

Elsewhere, there are some minor tweaks to Splatfest, and a ton of additional adjustments and bug fixes that should make those colourful ink battles more enjoyable for all. You can see all the changes coming to Splatoon 3 in the patch notes on Nintendo's website.

Splatoon 3 has been doing extremely well since its launch on September 9, especially in Japan. The game managed to surpass 3.45 million sales in the country in its first three days. We were rather taken by Splatoon 3 too. In our review, we said, "Nintendo's threequel has flashes of brilliance everywhere".

See what else Nintendo's console has to offer in our guide to the best Switch games.

Splatoon 3 has become the most popular game in Japan this year, with new sales numbers showing that the title has dominated since its release.

In a tweet by Japanese sales data account, Game Data Library (via GoNintendo), it was reported that Splatoon 3 sold over 4 million copies in Japan alone, making it the biggest game launch this year. This tracks across both physical and digital sales, giving a pretty full picture of just how well the game has done.

For those tracking the launch of the game in the region, this shouldn't be an enormous surprise as it has been dominating the charts since last month’s release.

The only title that’s come close to this success this year is Pokemon Arceus which came out back in January. The only game with a real shot of displacing Splatoon 3 in 2022 is Pokemon Scarlett/Violet, which is set to release on November 18. However, it’ll be a tall order, as Splatoon 3 has seemingly swept the country.

Interestingly, Splatoon 3 will be getting a little bit of that Pokemon rub in November too, as the title will make use of the Nintendo umbrella in its latest Splatfest. In a special Splatoon x Pokemon event, the Splatfest will have players choosing their side on the debate, are grass, fire, or water-type the best starting Pokemon. However, instead of running polls and raging in Twitter threads, players will be able to fight for their favorite starter type by jumping into the game and winning matches.

Splatoon 3 has clearly been a success for Nintendo, especially in Japan. That's great news for players too, as it should ensure support for the squid-filled shooter continues for years to come.

Further down the line, Splatoon 3 amiibo are launching over the Holiday period later this year. 

The Splatoon 3 community has rallied around a VTuber who spent nearly two weeks grinding to get out of their rank.

The feat began late last month in September, when VTuber streamer Akirose fell into a crippling deficit of -2313 points in Splatoon 3's ranked system. The VTuber was forced to don a smile on their virtual face and battle it out in Splatoon 3's Ranked Battles to painstakingly claw back all the points they'd lost.

The grind was tough, with the VTuber diligently undertaking Ranked Battle day in and day out. After nearly two weeks, as the post below reports, Akirose finally managed to overcome the burdening debt of points and rise to positive points in the S rank of Splatoon 3's competitive scene. 

Now, Akirose's Twitter account is overflowing with fans celebrating the streamer's victory over Splatoon 3's points system. Posts just like the one below, of fan art celebrating the VTuber is rife, and considering Akirose has nearly 700,000 Twitter followers, they've definitely had an audience for their feat. 

The entire debacle has also kicked off a small debate in the Splatoon 3 community about the way ranks work. In the replies to both the subreddit posts above, you'll find people arguing that rank losses should stop at zero so as to prevent people from falling into debt like Akirose. 

Others point out that players will periodically decrease ranks in Splatoon 3 no matter their performance, but others argue this puts players off the game in the meantime. Akirose might be the catalyst of some strong fan feedback bubbling to the surface of Splatoon 3's community. 

Splatoon 3's next Splatfest is reviving the age-old Pokemon debate in November. 

A group of vtubers recently used Splatoon 3 as a vehicle for playing porn videos, prompting a wave of criticism and a vague response from Nintendo.

In a set of Splatoon 3 streams broadcast through YouTube on October 8, members of vtuber group Sinsogumi competed to get each others' streams banned from the platform. Using their streaming software, each team keyed out the other's ink color greenscreen-style, replacing enemy ink with a porn movie for the broadcast. The group whose stream was banned first would be declared the loser.

Of course, everyone ended up being a loser here. As Automaton Media reports, the stunt got 'AVスプラ' - which translates to 'adult video Splatoon' - trending on Twitter. Most clips of the original incident have been taken down, and the hashtag is now mostly filled with less salacious types of videos being played through Splatoon ink.

Members of Sinsogumi have spent the last several days posting apologies to social media. Of particular note is Tomeru Ikinone's video, in which they made their apology wearing a dinosaur costume.

In the wake of the incident, Nintendo of Japan published a vague notice on Twitter about the use of its copyrighted works on platforms like YouTube. A machine-translated version of the message warns that "use that violates public order and morals, acts that intentionally mislead the rules of the game, acts that significantly damage the value of the game or characters and the world, and acts that encourage or take advantage of them will be deleted or legally enforced."

So yes, if you needed the reminder, Nintendo would prefer it if you did not use its games as a way of broadcasting pornographic films to the public.

Less salaciously, Splatoon 3 fans have been recreating Mario Kart, and Nintendo has confirmed the next Splatfest will feature a Pokemon type matchup.

Splatoon 3's next Splatfest turns the all-time Pokemon debate into a massive battle.

Earlier today on October 7, Nintendo announced Splatoon 3 would be holding a special Splatfest dedicated to Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, which launch next month. The new contest is divided up into teams of Grass-type, Fire-type, and Water-type, for the ultimate Pokemon-themed showdown.

Finally, the raging debate surrounding which starting Pokemon type is the best will be put to the test. Rather than just endlessly debating the whole thing on social media and internet forums though, Pokemon players finally have a chance to duke it out in a game to prove which type is the best.

The new Splatfest will begin next month on November 11, so there's a fair wait before things kick off. Beginning at 4 p.m. PT/7 p.m. ET in the U.S. on the Friday, and at 1 a.m. BST the following day in the U.K., the Splatfest will be sticking around until the same time on November 14.

With Pokemon Scarlet and Violet debuting just a few days later on November 18 for the Nintendo Switch, it's a brilliant bit of timing from Nintendo. What better way to rile the Pokemon fans up before a new game is out, than to have them literally battling it out to settle things in Splatoon 3?

This will be the third official Splatfest for Splatoon 3, after an event late in August kicked things off before the shooter was even out, and the most recent Splatfest last month in September asked us what we'd take to a desert island. Here's hoping Big Man's team finally comes out on top, no matter which group he's taking charge of.

Further down the line, Splatoon 3 amiibo are launching over the Holiday period later this year. 

A recently-discovered exploit is allowing Splatoon 3 players to get kills through walls with the Sloshing Machine and some other weapons.

You can pretty easily see how it works in a pair of videos from Blossom_Spl and just_phoeniiix on Twitter (via Nintendo Life). One player fires the Sloshing Machine up into the underside of a bridge, and a player walking across that bridge will take damage from the attack, even though there's a solid wall between the two.

The damage of the blast from the impact is somehow carrying through the floor, leading to a pretty unfair advantage for whoever's on the lower level. It seems to work on any level with where you can get underneath a surface somebody else is standing on.

The Sloshing Machine had already begun to develop a reputation as being one of Splatoon 3's best weapons, and now it's moving well beyond simply being overpowered.

While the Sloshing Machine is the biggest culprit, it seems the exploit is also working in certain circumstances for other Splatoon 3 weapons with big splash effects, like the Roller. Everything is currently limited to examples from players on social media, though they're getting pretty numerous at this point. Nintendo has yet to acknowledge the exploit.

Recent Splatoon 3 patches have taken aim at issues like connectivity problems and Splatfest balance. Dataminers have uncovered hints in the game files that more modes may be in the works for Salmon Run, too.

If you're looking for something to play at home or on the go, check out our guide to the best Nintendo Switch games.

Splatoon 3 might be getting a host of new modes within Salmon Run for the very first time.

Unveiled last week by Nintendo Switch dataminer OatmealDome on Twitter, various Splatoon 3 files reference new Salmon Run modes not yet in the game itself. These new modes are called "Pair," "Underground," and "Contest," each expanding on the horde mode in new ways.

From the wording of the tweet above, it sounds like the Underground mode is designed to be harder than your average Salmon Run experience. Players will have to obtain a bigger haul of Salmonid Eggs than usual - apparently needing three, five, and seven more eggs in each respective wave.

As for the Pair and Contest modes, there's much less information to go on right now from the in-game Splatoon 3 files. However, it's worth noting that both modes apparently make reference to their own exclusive pay grades and titles, meaning they should both come with new unlockable extras.

You'd be forgiven for assuming these are the first new modes to come to Salmon Run since it first debuted back in Splatoon 2. However, as Nintendo announced last month in a special Splatoon 3-dedicated Nintendo Direct, we've also got the new Big Run mode still to come at some point in the future.

All we know about this mode is that the Salmonids will invade Splatsville, and it'll occur every few months. Combining this with the three supposed new modes for Salmon Run, and it looks like the excellent PvE mode is bulking up in the near future.

In other recent news, Splatoon 3's online connections should have stabilized after a new patch was deployed last week. 

Splatoon 3's new patch takes aim at connectivity issues, and rebalances Splatfest battles.

Earlier today on September 16, a new update for Splatoon 3 went live, as relayed by Nintendo's support website. The new patch, which reduces the number of Tricolor Battles for the defending team during a Splatfest, was actually prioritized for this very issue.

As such, defending teams during Splatfests should see a lot less three-way battles, something that defending players during the initial Splatfest first month definitely felt at a disadvantage in. A new Splatfest themed around a deserted island is beginning just next week, hence the release of the new Splatoon 3 patch.

Elsewhere in the new update, there's a big focus on connectivity issues. Splatoon 3 players far and wide have reported being continually disconnected from lobbies and ongoing matches, and you should now see a lot less connection errors once you've finished a battle in particular.

There's also some fixes for bugged player movement. It turns out players were able to move through - and stand on - water while using the Splat Dualies, and were also able to jump further than they should've been able to with a Squid Roll by performing a button combo while charging a Squid Surge.

Splatoon 3 currently holds the record for the fastest-selling Nintendo Switch game in Japan at launch, if you're curious to know how well the new game has been faring. Head over to our full Splatoon 3 review to see what we made of the latest offering from Nintendo's colorful shooter.

Further down the line, Splatoon 3 amiibo are launching over the Holiday period later this year. 

Splatoon 3 fans are making their own minigames to play when the queue times start getting too long, and it turns out there's a lot you can do when you're stuck in the lobby for minutes at a time.

The very best of these was recorded by YouTuber Failboat, who managed to play Pong alongside fellow content creators Fyrus and hackerling. All you need is to paint a wall, hold down the super jump button, and slowly slide your way up and down in the style of the paddles in the Atari classic. Just make sure whoever's playing the ball can hit the angles convincingly.

This is, of course, all fake - there's no actual collision between squids, so it's just players convincingly recreating the shots to pass the time. If the thought of a small object slowly bouncing around a flat surface has you thinking about the heady days of DVD menu screensavers, you're not the only one, as YouTuber Motovation can attest.

While your typical Turf War lobbies don't take to fill up in Splatoon 3, matchmaking for ranked Anarchy Battles is another story, and those waits have been the primary motivator for these artisanal minigames.

While fans are making their own fun in Splatoon 3 libraries, Nintendo already had this all figured out back in the original Splatoon. The Wii U game had an array of minigames in classic arcade style you could play while waiting for a match to start. While those diversions are gone in modern Splatoon, their spirit clearly lives on.

Splatoon 3 players are also finding wonderful and occasionally upsetting things to do with their customized lockers.

Splatoon 3 players are already having a lot of fun with the customizable lockers.

If you weren't already aware, Splatoon 3 lets players take collectibles earned throughout the game - particularly in the campaign - and use them to kit out your own locker. As the evidence just below shows, some players have been pretty creative with their personal spaces.

You might notice a running theme here. Moai, the iconic head statues located in Polynesia, is unfortunately largely the butt of the joke throughout these customized lockers in Splatoon 3. Here, for example, we can see Moai kicking back after a particularly taxing day.

That's not all the Splatoon 3 player base has in store for poor old Moai. The third example just below has Moai forced into a staring competition, doomed to stay there forever. Or until the player in question gets bored and wants a redesign of their locker, we guess.

You can collect all sorts of items to kit out your locker with in Splatoon 3. If you are interested in finding items sooner than later though, we'd definitely recommend hitting up the campaign section of Nintendo's new shooter, where you can use your Lil Buddy to hunt out collectible items for you.

Simply chuck your Smallfry onto any part of the campaign's overworld, and if there's a hidden collectible nearby, they'll start doing a weird little dance. Use your Heroshot to shoot the ground immediately in front of Smallfry, and you'll dig up the collectible buried there. Happy hunting!

Read our full Splatoon 3 review to see what we made of the offerings from the latest in Nintendo's saga.

Splatoon 3's Japanese sales after three days are outpacing Animal Crossing: New Horizons, Pokemon Legends: Arceus, and more.

Earlier today on September 12, Nintendo announced Splatoon 3 had surpassed 3.45 million sales throughout Japan after just three days on the domestic market. For comparison in the series, the sequel has already outsold Splatoon 2's sales in the first three months of launch in Japan.

Looking elsewhere at Nintendo's other big launches in Japan, Splatoon 3 is well ahead of the pack. Animal Crossing: New Horizons, an absolute blockbuster release for Nintendo and one of the best-selling Switch to date games ever, only managed to sell 1.88 million copies over three days in Japan, for comparison.

At the time of New Horizons' launch in 2020, it was the single biggest launch for a Switch game ever in Japan, beating out Pokemon Sword and Shield's combined figures of 1.3 million after three days in Japan. Now, Splatoon 3 has easily outstripped both those launches by quite some stretch, actually outselling all three games combined in the first three days in Japan.

This means Splatoon 3 is ultimately the Nintendo Switch's biggest-ever game launch in Japan since the console first launched over five years ago in March 2017. We're yet to hear any launch figures from Nintendo for other regions throughout the world, but it's clear that after just a few days on the market, Splatoon 3 is a certified hit for Nintendo. 

Check out our full Splatoon 3 review to see what we made of the latest offerings from Nintendo's colorful shooter saga. 

Splatoon 3 is a precarious balancing act. It's in the enviable position of trying to retain the approachable nature of Nintendo's typical family-friendly vibe, while punching up the skill ceiling for players that have been with the series for the better part of a decade. 

The third entry in Nintendo's zany shooter series retains the core aesthetic of splatting colorful ink over a drab arena, backed with a wicked fashion sense. The same wonderful fast-paced shooting meshed with switching between a kid and squid is alive and well in Splatoon 3, but the wider game struggles between appealing to newcomers and veterans alike.

Tug of war

Splatoon 3's campaign is emblematic of the struggle between appealing to as wide a player base as possible, and challenging upper-skill level players. The Splatoon campaigns of yesteryear have typically had us going full hero mode – gunning down hordes of foes with reckless abandon. Splatoon campaigns have always been fun, but they haven't typically been all that challenging. 

Enter Splatoon 2: Octo Expansion. The major post-launch DLC bolted on an entire puzzle-based campaign to the core game, challenging skilled players in a variety of incredibly creative arenas and gauntlets. You might have to get from point A to B with limited ink supplies, or bounce around moving platforms with a troupe of enemies gunning for you. The Octo Expansion felt like Nintendo flexing its puzzler muscles in a shooter setting, and the result was something that rivaled Titanfall 2 for sheer creativity. 

Splatoon 3's campaign feels like it's caught between the more simplistic offerings of a hero shooter and the genius of Octo Expansion, but doesn't want to settle for either one. With each separate arena comes a toss up of whether you'll be tasked with gunning down waves of brainless enemies, or a dense puzzler requiring quick thinking on the fly. Levels alternate between being brutally difficult and a breeze, and there isn't any overall difficulty curve since the more challenging levels are peppered in amongst the easier counterparts, and nearly any level can be skipped for later. 

The Splatoon 3 campaign feels like it's only partly learned the right lessons from Octo Expansion. There's an overriding sense of Splatoon 3 knowing how to create levels requiring careful planning and deft execution that feel satisfying to beat, but this hasn't been applied evenly across the entire experience. The result is a campaign with significant difficulty spikes, and while that definitely feels satisfying and exhilarating at times, it's only ever in small bursts.

Motion in the ocean

Splatoon 3's campaign doesn't succeed at pushing its skill ceiling up, but the multiplayer offerings give players the chance to really bask in the new aspects of play. Slathering ink around a map and diving headlong into it in squid form has always been a thrill, but now there's the added dimension of various flashy movements to pull off while in squid form, layered on top of a moveset the Splatoon series has already established as being perfectly smooth. 

For example, there's an intricate little move that you can pull off while in squid form, where with a flick of the analog stick in a direction combined with the jump button, you'll surge out of the ink in a dazzling flash. This isn't just for show – there's actually periods of brief invulnerability granted in this dash, meaning you can potentially hop out of the ink completely impervious to enemy fire, and return fire with their own ink in the blink of an eye. It's actually fun to sit there and learn button combinations for a new move – one which builds on top of other movement skills without canceling out anything that came before.

Subtle additions like this don't shake up Splatoon 3's core foundation, but instead offer dedicated and skilled players a higher ground to aim for. It's Splatoon 3's way of telling players there's something deeper and more complex going on beneath its shiny surface, and time spent mastering these more advanced movesets will take your game to a whole new level. This all succeeds in adding even more depth to an already-unparalleled movement system, brilliantly building on strong foundations in a way that makes Splatoon 3 feel genuinely fresh and exciting. 

Quality of life additions are a surprisingly big focus for Splatoon 3. The threequel has finally introduced a multiplayer lobby area where we can familiarize ourselves with weapons, gadgets, and movement tricks. Another fantastic decision sees the excellent Salmon Run – a PvE horde mode where up to four players fend off waves of small monsters and formidable bosses – become a constant feature, rather than being stuck on a timed rotation. For newcomers, these changes no doubt make Splatoon 3 all the more appealing, and for veterans, it's just a matter of making a great series that much easier to play. 

Mixed results

One new venture that doesn't quite work as intended is the card battler, Tableturf Battler. From the outlook, it sounds great. You take turns placing cards on a vertical board to conquer territory, sort of like competitive Tetris in reverse, in an effort to dominate the board like you would in a Turf War match – a competitive mode where teams vie to splay the most turf possible with their colored ink. Tableturf matches more come down to chance rather than strategy though: the one undeniable tactic is to march up the board as quickly as possible and cut your opponent off, so if vertical playing pieces just happen to come up in your hand, you're more or less guaranteed a win. 

Outside of movement and quality of life additions, Splatoon 3's got a neat little rotation of maps. Old favorites, like the ever-changing Mahi-Mahi Resort and the vertical Inkblot Art Academy, have thankfully returned from prior Splatoon games, while imaginative new stages like Hagglefish Market and Scorch Gorge keep things fresh. It's a great balance, with existing maps giving a strong backbone to Splatoon 3's multiplayer, while new maps offer even veterans wildly imaginative new areas to explore and master. 

Splatoon 3's campaign feels like it's stuck between being a brilliant puzzle shooter and standard action fluff, rather than blending the two together for a seamless and enjoyable experience. Multiplayer and the supporting Salmon Run are as great as they've always been though, now with added bonuses that make them easier to access and enjoy than ever before. Movement additions are a big win for Splatoon 3, and really succeed in adding extra depth to Splatoon's already fabulous traversal systems. There's excellence in Splatoon 3 – it just doesn't quite hold for the campaign.

Splatoon 3 was reviewed on Nintendo Switch, with a code provided by the publisher.

Splatoon 3 spoilers have leaked online following players getting their hands on retail copies ahead of launch.

The new Nintendo shooter isn't meant to launch until later this week on September 9, but that hasn't stopped Splatoon 3 from accidentally shipping to customers early. it appears a slate of users have somehow managed to get their hands on the new game over the past weekend.

As such, story spoilers and other details are now doing the rounds on Twitter, YouTube, and other forums. We won't be posting any spoilers here, but it's worth noting that at least three boss battles, several lore logs, and an assortment of cutscenes from the campaign have all made their way online.

In fact, it looks like Nintendo is actually taking action against some of those responsible for the leaks. A small-time YouTube channel called EnigmaDev has been uploading cutscene snippets over the past weekend from Splatoon 3, but all the videos now bear a notice that Nintendo has blocked them on copyright grounds.

The reason we're seeing purely campaign-orientated gameplay leaks for Splatoon 3 is that multiplayer servers won't be online yet for the new shooter. As such, anyone with an early copy of the game can't play modes like Turf War or Salmon Run, and are purely restricted to playing through the single-player campaign.

If you're itching to get stuck into the new shooter, then you can rest easy knowing there's only a few days to go before Splatoon 3 launches this coming Friday around the world. For what we made of a few hours with the new game's campaign and multiplayer offerings, you can read over our full Splatoon 3 preview for more. 

You can also check out our Splatoon 3 weapons guide for familiarize yourself with all the new gadgets before the game launches. 

Splatoon 3's debut Splatfest is over, and Big Man fans are in mourning for their idol.

Over the past weekend, the World Premiere Splatfest ran for Splatoon 3 players, pitting rock, paper, and scissors against one another. Sadly, it wasn't meant to be for Big Man, as scissors ended up unfortunately coming in third place behind the other two teams in North America.

This means Big Man fans and stans are understandably in tears. The big sea pancake's team actually held pole position halfway through the Splatfest throughout Europe, but they unfortunately ended up coming in second place behind team rock, commandeered by Shiver.

It wasn't Big Man's day, but we're sure he's still happy with his team's efforts, no matter the results. Splatoon 3 fans have been utterly in love with Big Man since he was first revealed for the shooter sequel earlier this month, and there's no doubt players that will fight the good fight for him again in future Splatfest battles.

That's right - just because Big Man lost on this occasion, doesn't mean he's done. Nintendo has always held Splatfest battles for the Splatoon series so far, periodically introducing new teams for players to declare their allegiance to and battle it out for. We can expect a fair few more showdowns between Frye, Shiver, and the Big Man himself.

Here's hoping whatever team Big Man commands in the future end up pulling out a better performance in the future to topple Frye and Shiver. The opening Splatfest may be over, but there's not long to wait until Splatoon 3 launches in full next week on September 9. 

Head over to our Splatoon 3 preview for what we made when we played the campaign, multiplayer and Salmon Runs stages of the new game. 

It looks like Nintendo is already cracking down on Splatoon 3 cheaters.

Although we're still weeks away from the formal release, Nintendo dataminer OatmealDome says the developer is already taking action against anyone who tries to play a modified version of Splatoon 3, including "total bans" from its Nintendo Switch Online service, which you need to access Splatoon 3 multiplayer.

"Splatoon 3 has anti-cheat in place," OatmealDome tweeted over the weekend (thanks, Nintendo Life). "Nintendo is beginning to issue console bans (possibly total ban from [Nintendo Switch Online]?) to players who modified the game.

"I won’t be going into much detail about how it works, since anti-cheat relies on security through obscurity."

"One particular patch that was being shared around lets you enter the testing range early," they added. "It appears to be the most popular ban reason. 

"Given how Splatoon 2 was also able to detect these patches, this is completely unsurprising. Not sure why people thought this was OK to try."

Did you see the news that Splatoon 3 fans think they've uncovered a full (and puzzling) map of its in-game world?

We've all seen the tiny, tiny texture that resembles a map in the Ammo Knights store in Splatsville in the new Splatfest demo, but dataminers combing through the minutiae of Splatoon 3's upcoming Splatfest have managed to locate a high-resolution file of the same map.

As Hirun suggested at the time, the strange geography - which sees large parts of Canada, Asia, and Australasia missing - may tie in with some of the promotional material we saw back in February 2021, where we saw a topped Eiffel Tower amidst a ruined Earth, hinting that Splatoon 3's world may be a bit different to the one we all know. 

Have you tried Splatoon 3 out yet?

"It's early hours for what Splatoon 3's promising, but the signs are great so far. Small, subtle changes to Salmon Run, the multiplayer test area, and gear loadouts will go a long way to making the final experience easier to play – and for longer," Hirun wrote in the GamesRadar+ Splatoon 3 preview.

"It's impossible to tell whether Splatoon 3 has learned the right lessons from Octo Expansion right now, but the foundations are laid for the campaign to move seamlessly onto bigger and better things."

Splatoon 3 is set to launch on September 9, and it's one of our most anticipated upcoming Switch games for 2022.  

Splatoon 3 fans think they've uncovered a full map of its in-game world, and it's a puzzling map to say the least.

As first reported earlier today by Nintendo Life, Splatoon 3 dataminers have managed to get their hands on something pretty special. It turns out there's a tiny texture resembling a map in the new Splatfest demo, which can be found by heading into the Ammo Knights store in Splatsville.

Although the texture is minute, and pretty hard to see from a distance, dataminers combing the files of Splatoon 3's upcoming Splatfest have apparently pulled out a high resolution file of the map in full, which is apparently what we're seeing in the image just below.

Glancing over the map in full, it's fair to say that it looks quite a bit different from our own planet Earth. Large parts of Canada appear to be missing, either taken out or sunk beneath the surrounding waters, and it also looks like Australia and some of China has also been wiped clean off the map.

This could potentially tie into Splatoon 3's ruined Earth vibe. Back when the sequel was first announced in February 2021's Nintendo Direct, we saw a topped Eiffel Tower amidst a ruined Earth, seemingly pointing to large-scale destruction having taken place on this version of planet Earth.

In fact, when we played the new game for our Splatoon 3 preview this past week, we noted that the sequel had new in-game lore logs. One of these new lore logs specifically mentioned that humanity was nearly wiped out by some apocalyptic event, and this could tie into why we're seeing a reduction of land mass on Splatoon 3's world map. 

Either way, there's not long to find out what the deal really is with Splatoon 3's ruined world, because it's launching for Nintendo Switch on September 9.

Check out our Splatoon 3 maps guide for a full look at all the current multiplayer stages included with the game at launch. 

If you're jonesing to get a brief early taste of Splatoon 3, the Splatfest World Premiere demo is playable right now, ahead of the online event set to run this weekend.

The Splatfest World Premiere event is set to kick off on Saturday, August 27, offering a taste of the game's three-way Splatfests ahead of the full launch in September. That's when you'll actually be able to play online and enjoy the bulk of the demo's features, but you can download it right now for a quick early look at what's coming.

The demo opens in the desert, as you determine the look of your character and pick a style for your Smallfry companion, known simply as Little Buddy. From there, a brief tutorial mission runs you through the basic controls, including the new Squid Surge, before you hop on the train to Splatsville.

You can freely explore Splatsville and all its shops, though since you're unable to participate in online battles, you can't actually level up to unlock access to purchase things in those stores. You can, however, choose your side in the rock, paper, scissors Splatfest, choose your clothing, and adjust your player banner.

Most importantly, you can draw and make posts that'll show up in everyone's Splatsvilles. Right now, it's a lot of crude Among Us fanart and anime fans declaring their love of yaoi, so yes, this is definitely a series of Splatoon-level memes.

Sadly, there's no access to the test range in the demo right now, so you'll have to wait for Saturday to practice with all the Splatoon 3 weapons.

Check out our Splatoon 3 hands-on preview for insight into what to expect from the single-player campaign. 

Here's how to watch today's Nintendo Treehouse Live presentation for Splatoon 3 and Harvestella.

As Nintendo announced just earlier this week, a brand new Nintendo Treehouse presentation will be taking place later today on August 25, kicking off at approximately 9:30 a.m. PT/12:30 p.m. ET/5:30 p.m. BST. The showcase will be focusing exclusively on two forthcoming games: Splatoon 3 and Harvestella.

As for what the new showcase will be delving into surrounding both these new games for the Nintendo Switch, we already have a good idea. For Splatoon 3, Nintendo will be showing off the single-player campaign mode in a brand new deep dive, so expect to see the likes of Callie, Marie, and other characters make a splashy entrance. 

Additionally, Nintendo will also be talking about "strategies for the Splatfest World Premiere demo," which is due to launch this coming Saturday on August 27. Splatfests are different in Splatoon 3, and instead of having two teams battling it out, there's now three teams representing rock, paper, and scissors, each.

Finally, we'll be seeing world-first gameplay for Harvestella. If you aren't familiar with this new farming sim already, it's basically a fantastic mash-up of Final Fantasy and Stardew Valley, melding the former's combat into the latter's laidback lifestyle, complete with farming activities and turn-based combat. 

Splatoon 3 launches next month on September 9, and Harvestella releases later in the year on November 4, both exclusive to the Nintendo Switch.

Head over to our new Splatoon 3 preview to see what we made of our time with the opening few hours of Nintendo's new shooter. 

I really like games like Splatoon 3, where you can switch at will between a kid and a squid. No extra tiers of nonsense. No microtransactions to wade through. No endless list of perks to mix together. No DLC splitting the player base. Just squids, kids, and downright impeccable vibes. 

That's basically been the elevator pitch for all three Splatoon games. The zany third-person shooter from Nintendo, where you splat opponents and your surroundings with colorful ink, is returning for a third round September 9, and I recently had the chance to try out a sampling of the threequel's many offerings.

Kid, Squid, Salmonid 

Splatoon 3 is expanding its single-player campaign offerings, pitting a brand new protagonist against a series of increasingly difficult levels, aided by the return of icon duo Callie and Marie. Splatoon campaigns of yesteryear have typically been suped-up 'Hero Modes,' basically handing the player unlimited power and weaponry and tasking them with gunning down as many enemies as possible. 

In the opening few levels, Splatoon 3's campaign feels a little bit more Octo Expansion. The superb 2018 add-on for Splatoon 2 deserves to be mentioned alongside the likes of Titanfall 2 for sheer creativity – molding Splatoon into more of a puzzle-platformer instead of a corridor shooter. Players had their unlimited ink cut off, and were forced to get creative to make it from point A to B without their ink tanks running dry. 

There's no ink drought as such in Splatoon 3's first three levels, but the DNA of Octo Expansion is there. A common theme in the opening three missions was searching the map for keys to advance, forcing me to explore every avenue in a mission level, riding along jets of ink and up time-sensitive walls that periodically retract to uncover the elusive items. No, it's not quite Octo Expansion, but the will to get us exploring – and not just blasting their way from point A to B – is already evident. 

You're not alone in single-player levels this time. Accompanying you is a questionably adorable Salmonid called Little Buddy, who you can send to various locations within the campaign's overworld to scout out areas. Every level cleared in the campaign opens up more of the overworld to explore, and thus more ground for Little Buddy to dig into. The accomplice can actually dig up a fair few objects for you, including currency to spend and actual collectibles. These range from bouncy background music tracks you can stick on while perusing the hub area, or even lore logs. Yes, the game where you change between a kid and a squid has lore logs now, and they're surprisingly dark – one I stumbled upon highlighted how the human race was nearly obliterated in years past, hence why the Eiffel Tower is now upside down, I suppose.

Bigger and better 

From what I have played of it so far, the Splatoon 3 campaign looks to be more of what came before, but better, and the same can largely be said for its multiplayer component. There's a bunch of quality of life improvements for the threequel now – there's a test range area where you can try out weapons while a match loads up, and loadouts let you pair weapons with clothing accessories for the perfect fit. 

The result is a shooter that's just as fun as it's always been to play, but now easier than ever before to play. Loadouts let you seamlessly switch up your gear for whatever game mode is on rotation: grab your Splat Dualies for a Turf War mode for example, or boot up your Slosher-centric loadout for a Splat Zones mode. Splatoon 3 looks like it's simplified the entry process for multiplayer, while maintaining the same splaterrific fun in-game.

On the PvE side, Splatoon 2's brilliant Salmon Run makes a triumphant return. Just like the multiplayer component, there aren't heaps of changes here, but what is different really counts. Employees under the uber-capitalistic Mr Grizz can now lob their collected Salmonid Eggs into the basket – or just nearer to it – using their ink supply. The small change has a big impact on Salmon Run's pacing, basically speeding up the entire mode as players turn and fire off Salmonid Eggs before immediately resetting for the next inevitable boss showdown. It's not an Earth-shattering adjustment, but it should make Salmon Run even more enjoyable and easier to play.

Fashion wars  

There's also a brand new hub area in Splatoon 3, and it's pretty bloody huge. A stroll around Splatsville has you dwarfed by imposing highrises, and new characters to meet and greet every which way you turn. The whole thing feels not just bigger than Inkopolis in square meters, but also more densely populated, as though its developers are cramming in stores to explore and characters new and old to interact with wherever you are in the city, making the entire thing feel more active and lifelike as a result. 

Splatsville almost feels like a safe haven from the outer world of Splatoon 3, acting as downtime from splatting other players when you just want to chill out and take an unimpeded stroll for a while. The outer world in the Splatlands might be in dire straits, but there's no sense of that foreboding ruin here in a city where a crab called Crusty Sean happily offers you food to chow down on. 

Oh, and you can even steal drip. Walk up to a player or character, and you can bring up the gear they've got equipped, complete with item names and the individual added bonuses the person is getting from their hat, glasses, and t-shirt. Drip envy is a very real thing in Splatoon, but at least now there's actually a way of noting down what a style icon is wearing so you can head to the nearest store and nick their fit. 

It's early hours for what Splatoon 3's promising, but the signs are great so far. Small, subtle changes to Salmon Run, the multiplayer test area, and gear loadouts will go a long way to making the final experience easier to play – and for longer. It's impossible to tell whether Splatoon 3 has learned the right lessons from Octo Expansion right now, but the foundations are laid for the campaign to move seamlessly onto bigger and better things. 

Splatoon 3 is set to launch on September 9, and it's one of our most anticipated upcoming Switch games for 2022.  

A Nintendo Treehouse August 2022 showcase has been announced, promising new gameplay for September headliner Splatoon 3 as well as Square Enix's bizarre farming RPG Harvestella. 

The August 25 stream was announced earlier today and already has a placeholder over on Nintendo's YouTube channel. The show kicks off at 9:30am PT / 12:30pm ET / 5:30pm BT. The video description confirms "a deep-dive into the all-new Splatoon 3 single-player mode, and an overview of stages and strategies for the upcoming Splatfest World Premiere demo." 

This Treehouse segment should give us a more in-depth breakdown of some of the features and maps teased at the recent Splatoon 3 Nintendo Direct, most importantly the Splatfest beta kicking off August 27. Players will be fighting on behalf of the new characters Frye, Shiver, and Big Man, and based on the community's response so far, our money's on Big Man. 

Thursday's Nintendo Treehouse will also feature "the world premier of live gameplay for Harvestella," a mash-up of Stardew Valley and Final Fantasy which is totally real and not a figment of your imagination. 

Harvestella, out this November, was one of the strangest titles at June's Nintendo Direct Mini. It's effectively combined comfy farming sim gameplay with an apocalyptic fantasy setting barreling headlong toward certain doom. It's got some Atelier blood in it, but the art and world could pass for a Final Fantasy game circa 2010. The whole thing is bewildering at first glance, and indeed second glance. We've seen gameplay before but frankly we still have questions, so hopefully this "live" showing can help make sense of the game's wildly different themes. 

Splatoon 3 will get "large-scale paid DLC" alongside two years of free updates. 

To date, the roster of Splatoon 3 maps caps out at 12, but that's only the maps that have been confirmed for the shooter sequel so far. There's both returning maps from the series' past, as well as brand new maps exclusive to the latest game in the shooter series, promising both known hallmarks and fantastic new battlefields. Between that and the growing list of Splatoon 3 weapons, we're starting to get a good picture of what to expect. Here's a full list of all the Splatoon 3 maps we know of so far.

Splatoon 3 maps

Scorch Gorge

The first stage confirmed to be set in the Splatlands (which is where Splatoon 3 partially takes place), Scorch Gorge looks like your typical Splatoon map. There's lots of high points rising above the map, where attackers can rain down ink on their foes, as well as plenty of alleyways and back routes where attackers can get around those defending a given point.

Eeltail Alley

Now here's a map that definitely looks reminiscent of a few from Splatoon 2, even though it isn't actually from the previous game in Nintendo's series. Eeltail Alley has a variety of criss-crossing walkways and pathways, going above and under each other, which should make for a lot of vertical warfare on this brand new map for Splatoon 3.

Hagglefish Market

Hagglefish Market looks like one of the more colorful maps for Splatoon 3, and we can even see creatures still using it for their everyday uses while us Inklings battle it out, just like how Inklings and Octolings would hang out in Inkopolis. Just take care not to step into the water running through and to the sides of this stage though, unless you want a quick trip back to the respawn area.

Undertow Spillway

Undertow Spillway definitely looks like one of the more industrial areas in Splatoon 3. With all the bright colors of Nintendo's shooter series, it's pretty easy to forget there's an industrial undertone to Splatoon, and nowhere is it more prevalent than in this new stage, complete with gated walls through which to shoot ink and dive through.

Mincemeat Metalworks

Yep, you guessed it - this map is based around a scrapyard. When we saw screenshots of Mincemeat Metalworks earlier this year in 2022, Nintendo revealed it was a stage built from scrap, and designed to produce more scrap, for some reason. Anyway, this map features cranes, scrap metal cubes, discarded vehicles, and even a massive rusting ship in the background. 

Hammerhead Bridge

The first of the returning maps in Splatoon 3, Hammerhead Bridge actually originated from all the way back in the original Splatoon on the Wii U. If this new iteration of the map is like its original counterpart, we can expect tight fights along walkways and in between cars, but be careful not to fall through any of the grated pathways while you're in ink form.

Museum D'Alfonsino

Another of the returning maps from the original Splatoon, Museum D'Alfonsino probably looks like one of the fancier maps in Splatoon 3 that we've seen so far. In the original iteration of the map at least, we fought in the courtyard of the museum itself around five rotating platforms, and from the pre-launch footage so far, it looks like we'll be up to the same tricks this time around.

Mahi-Mahi Resort

The third map from the original Splatoon, Mahi-Mahi Resort has the added challenge of pathways and areas of the map which change on a set timer. After roughly 90 seconds, parts of the map will move up and down, meaning you can suddenly get the drop on foes beneath you, or become at risk of getting splatted yourself. This map should provide excellent replay value based on these ever-changing parts.

Inkblot Art Academy

A map coming to us from Splatoon 2 this time, Inkblot Art Academy doesn't take place within an actual academy building itself, but rather the area between two towering campus buildings. There's all the urban environments you'd expect from this level in the academy, including tarmac-covered pathways, plenty of cars, and even a campus pond.

Sturgeon Shipyard

Another map hailing from Splatoon 2, Sturgeon Shipyard sort of takes after Mahi-Mahi Resort, utilizing changing pathways to catch players off guard and switch up the dynamic rapidly. This time though, players work their way up a ship under construction, but cranes above can change the layout of the level by moving pathways upwards and downwards whenever they please.

Makomart

Another map coming into Splatoon 3 from its direct predecessor, Makomart is basically styled around your average superstore. No, you probably can't do your weekly shop in here, but you will be able to battle it out among the aisles of cans and other Inkling goodies to claim victory over your opponent.

Wahoo World

Another stage with changing areas, and one that hails from Splatoon 2, is Wahoo World. No, this doesn't have anything in common with the activity from The Sims, but instead takes place in the middle of a huge theme park. Kids do love theme parks after all, and in this one there's a central rotating platform, while the rest the map is decked out with extending and retracting bridges that change up whenever they want.

It's worth mentioning that the maps carrying over to Splatoon 3 from previous games could well change from when we last saw them. In fact, a previous job listing shared in February 2021 by Nintendo sought out workers to renovate existing stages for Splatoon 3. Therefore, don't be surprised if any of the levels we've highlighted here from Splatoon and Splatoon 2 look and feel very different in Splatoon 3.

Splatoon 3 DLC maps

Yes, Splatoon 3 will DLC support after launch from Nintendo. While the developer has stated there'll be over two years worth of free cosmetics and weapons to fight over, they haven't actually commented on how many post-launch maps Splatoon 3 will see, or how long players can expect new maps to arrive in the shooter. Keep an eye on this guide for any new developments on this front!

You'll be able to transfer your save data from Splatoon 2 into Splatoon 3 for a variety of in-game rewards, including an early boost to your ranking.

If you transfer your save data from Splatoon 2, you will get three Gold Sheldon Licenses which can be exchanged for Splatoon 3 weapons , "regardless of player level." Also, if you start Splatoon 3 fresh, you'll have to reach level 10 before jumping into the ranked Anarchy Battle mode. With a Splatoon 2 transfer, you'll immediately get access to Anarchy Battles.

You'll also come into Splatoon 3 "with a higher rank, depending on your rank in Splatoon 2." Nintendo doesn't fully explain how directly that rank will transfer - we don't know if, say, S+5 players will still be S+5 coming into the new game - but it does mean experienced players won't have to start from the very bottom all over again. Your matchmaking stats outside of the ranked mode will also carry over.

All this info comes from a new blog post on the official site, which provides a selection of additional information that didn't make it into today's 30-minute gameplay presentation. It's been a blowout of Splatoon 3 info today, as we learned of "large-scale paid DLC", a new 1v1 card game, and a selection of new amiibo. But most importantly of all, we've now met Big Man.

Splatoon 3 is set to launch on September 9, but you'll be able to get in early with a special Splatfest set to run on August 27.

There are plenty more upcoming Switch games to look forward to this year.

Splatoon 3 fans are already loving the new manta ray character Big Man following today’s game-specific Nintendo Direct. 

In case you missed it, Nintendo hosted another Direct today, this time focusing on the upcoming Splatoon sequel. During the 30-minute presentation, we got plenty of takeaways from new gameplay elements, a better look at the Splatoon 3 weapons , and the first look at a number of new and returning characters. One new face that has charmed fans in particular though is Big Man the Manta Ray. 

Big Man is just one of the three members of the Splatfest group Deep Cut which is also made up of Frye the eel master and Shiver the shark tamer. Understandably, with a great name like Big Man, and a lovably dorky appearance, this manta ray was always going to be a fan favorite. Below, we’ve included just some examples of the internet reacting to Big Man in a big way. 

Giant sea pancake aside here’s what else that was revealed during today’s Splatoon 3 Direct. During the showcase, it was revealed that Splatoon 3 will be getting a beta in the form of Splatfest in just a few weeks' time on August 27. We also got our first look at the Splatoon 3 in-game card game which sees players take part in a Turf Wars spin-off game called Tableturf Battle. It’s also been revealed that Splatoon 3 is getting "large-scale paid DLC" alongside two years of free updates.

Want to know even more about the upcoming Nintendo game? Find out everything you need to know about the Splatoon 3 amiibos that are coming over the holidays.  

Splatoon 3 will receive three brand new amiibo figures later this year.

As announced by Nintendo during a recent Splatoon 3-dedicated Nintendo Direct, the new shooter is getting a slate of new amiibo figures. The three-pack of new amiibo figures boasts an Octoling, an Inkling, and a tiny Salmonid, as shown in the tweet from Nintendo just below.

We don't know when the amiibo pack will launch or how much they'll retail for when they're eventually released. We also don't know if any of the three amiibo will be available to purchase separately, so it's worth keeping an eye out for further information from Nintendo on this front.

However, it's worth mentioning that other amiibo bundled together like this from Nintendo hasn't seen a standalone launch. Nintendo previously launched an amiibo collection featuring several of the Champions from The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, but hasn't released any of the group as a standalone figure since.

As for Splatoon 3, there's now less than a month until the new shooter launches on Nintendo Switch on September 9. However, if you can't wait until then to get in on the action, the Nintendo Direct earlier today revealed there'll be a special Splatfest acting as a beta later this month in August, where players can pick between team rock, paper, or scissors. Yes, there are three sides to every Splatfest this time around.

There's even a Splatoon 3-themed Nintendo Switch OLED console launching later this month in August. 

Splatoon 3 weapons are going to be massive in number, with both new weapons and returning guns from the previous two games for players to deal with, including some very weird special weapons - such as a a Crab Tank, a windscreen wiper katana, and a... fridge? Either way, we've listed the full list of known Splatoon 3 weapons below, the details we have on them, and what you can expect to see, drawn from all the available material from the recent Nintendo Direct announcements and more. We've also got a look at all the Splatoon 3 maps announced so far is you want to those. 

All Weapons in Splatoon 3 listed

The full weapon list for Splatoon 3 at time of writing is as follows (more weapons besides these have been suggested by promotional material, but not confirmed).

• Tri-Stringer/Stringers (new)
• Splatanas/Splatana Wiper (new)
• Ink Vac (new)
• Crab Tank (new)
• Triple Inkstrike (new)
• Big Bubbler (new)
• Trizooka (new)
• Wave Breaker (new)
• Reefslider (new)
• Killer Wail 5.1 (new)
• Zipcaster (new)
• Tacticooler (new)
• Angle Shooter (new)
• Shooter
• Blaster
• Charger
• Roller
• Brush
• Slosher
• Splatling
• Brella
• Dualies
• Tenta Missiles
• Ink Jet
• Ink Storm
• Ultra Stamp
• Booyah Bombs
• Splat Bombs
• Curling Bombs
• Burst Bombs
• Suction Bombs
• Splash Walls

Obviously a lot of these weapons can be broken up into sub-categories and variations - there's over a dozen types of Shooter, for example - but it'll help to explain that all basic weapons from Splatoon 1 and 2 will be in Splatoon 3, as confirmed by this official Tweet. So if you're wondering if a certain type of Roller you remember from Splatoon 2 will make the transition - yes, it will! That being said, it's been made clear that balances and modifications to much of the existing arsenal will be implemented, so expect small-to-moderate changes on a lot of the recognisable gear. 

All new weapons in Splatoon 3

Nintendo has revealed a fair amount of details about the new weapons, sub-weapons, and special weapons players can expect from them, information on which we've collated for you below

• Tri-Stringer (main weapon)
  • A special variant of the Stringer weapon type that'll be debuting in the game, the Tri-Stringer is a bow that fires three shots that trail ink behind them before exploding. 
• Splatana wiper (main weapon)
  • The second confirmed weapon type in Splatoon is the Splatana, and the version we've seen given attention is the Splatana Wiper. This sword is more than a melee weapon - when you swing it, the momentum creates horizontal arcs of paint that fly forward as projectiles. Charging it creates a larger, vertical projectile.
• Ink Vac (special weapon)
  • A weaponised vacuum, this serves as a strange form of defense - it sucks up the ink from enemy attacks before they land, then fires back all that ink - the more you've sucked up, the better it'll be. Early indications make it seem like it'll be the special for the Charger, but that's not been confirmed.
• Crab Tank (special weapon)
  • A full-on vehicle, this is a crab-shaped tank that players can drive around, shooting explosives, projectiles, and rolling into a ball for improved movement.
• Triple Inkstrike (special weapon)
  • A new variation of the Inkstrike, this allows you to fire missiles and throw out beacons that mark where they land, creating vast ink explosions. Footage suggests that the Triple Inkstrike appears to be the special for the Slosher.
• Big Bubbler (special weapon)
  • This is an improved version of the original Bubbler from Splatoon 1, a dome shield with an exposed generator on top. The shield can be used to protect teammates, while enemies can shoot the generator to compromise the shield and make it shrink.
• Trizooka (special weapon)
  • An altered Inkzooka from the first game, the Trizooka basically fires three shots instead - a simple, effective upgrade that's more focused on damage than ink distribution.
• Wave Breaker (special weapon)
  • A deployable object that creates pulses around it. Enemies hit by the pulse are marked to the player who deployed it, and take some damage too. The pulses can be dodged by jumping over them, as they run through the ground.
• Reefslider (special weapon)
  • Though it looks like a vehicle, the shark-shaped Reefslider appears to be more like a rideable missile - point it at an opponent and the Reefslider zooms along the ground before exploding, with the player sitting on it the whole time.
• Killer Wail 5.1 (special weapon)
  • Another variation of older gear, this upgrade to S1's Killer Wail creates sixx floating megaphones that follow the user and fire lasers at nearby targets.
• Zipcaster (special weapon)
  • Every game is better with a grapple hook, and clearly Splatoon 3 agrees, as the Zipcaster is a special grapple hook that allows you to stick and swing on surfaces, then automatically returns you to the trigger point when it runs out, allowing you to do quick strikes in enemy terrain.
• Tacticooler (special weapon)
  • This special creates a small fridge that deposits four beverages. Players who pick them up get a random, temporary buff, such as a speed boost. With four to go around, it means you can share them among your team.
• Angle Shooter (sub weapon)
  • This strange device fires a long-range beam that bounces and reflects off surfaces in perfect angles, allowing you to ricochet the beam and hit targets around corners, or bounce off multiple walls to hit unseen foes.

Nintendo has revealed a Turf Wars spin-off card game for Splatoon 3 during the game's dedicated Direct. 

Suitably named 'Tableturf Battle', the 1v1 competitive game mode within Splatoon 3 was inspired by the classic Turf Wars game mode and will see players face off in what looks like some kind of Tetris-inspired battle. There will be over 150 cards for players to collect and use in the game, each representing a different in-game weapon. Like in Turf Wars, players will have to build their deck and use their various cards to ink as much of the grid with their colour paint as possible. 

As revealed during the presentation, each player will be gifted an in-game starter deck to help get their card collection started. If you want to put your skills to the test against the likes of Splatville residents such as Sheldon, you can do so in the Tableturf battle dojo and, as you progress, earn in-game rewards. Not much else was revealed about this mysterious new mode, but we were promised more information about it soon. 

We got an awful lot of exciting information about Splatoon 3 during the almost half an hour long showcase. Some essential titbits include the announcement of a Splatoon 3 beta, which will debut later this month in the form of Splatfest. We also found out that Nintendo plans to keep Splatoon 3 relevant for as long as possible with "large-scale paid DLC" and two years of free updates, including new Splatoon 3 maps.

Just can't wait to play the colourful shooter following the direct? The good news is that we really don't have to wait long at all as Splatoon 3 is due to release on September 9, 2022. Can't wait even that long? Even better news, Nintendo is releasing a special edition of the Nintendo Switch OLED console on August 26. 

Want to know what else you can look forward to playing in the near future? Take a look at our upcoming Switch games list. 

Splatoon 3 is getting "large-scale paid DLC" at some point after launch alongside a helping of free updates every three months for two years at least. 

Revealed in a special Nintendo Direct earlier today, the "large-scale paid DLC" for Splatoon 3 will be arriving at some point after the game launches on September 9. Right now, details regarding what it entails are thin on the ground, so aside from new Splatoon 3 weapons and Splatoon 3 maps being likely, we don't know when exactly it'll be arriving or what it'll even boast for players.

However, this big paid DLC expansion for a Splatoon game is nothing new. Splatoon 2 received the Octo Expansion DLC well after launch in 2017, and that DLC pack offered a brand new playable campaign for Inklings to tackle, with various puzzle elements to wrap their heads around.

From the looks of things during today's Nintendo Direct presentation, it seems as though the Octo Expansion DLC has had a big impact on Splatoon 3. Namely, we saw various instances of Inklings puzzling their way around courses at various points during the campaign footage, which smacks of Octo Expansion's level design.

That's not all Splatoon 3 will be seeing post-launch, though. As Nintendo revealed elsewhere in the new presentation, there'll be a brand new clothing catalogue for players to peruse and unlock items every three months. There'll also be brand new weapons arriving in the game around the same time.

Right now, Nintendo hasn't shown us anything contained within the planned post-launch content for Splatoon 3. Additionally, the wording is a little vague on when the post-launch weapons could be arriving in the game, so don't always expect them around the same time as the new clothing catalogues arrive. 

Head over to our Splatoon 3 weapons guide for a full look at every new and returning weapon revealed for the sequel so far. 

Splatoon 3 is getting a special Splatfest that'll act as a beta later this month.

Earlier today, Nintendo pulled back the curtain on the latest details for Splatoon 3 at a special Nintendo Direct presentation dedicated to the new shooter, sporting 30 minutes of brand new reveals and gameplay. It's here that Nintendo revealed a special Splatfest before Splatoon 3's launch, debuting later this month on August 27.

This Splatfest, which is basically a public beta for anyone with a Nintendo Switch, will take place between 9 a.m. and 9 p.m. PT on August 27. There'll be three teams to choose between for the forthcoming battle: rock, paper, and scissors, each governed by Frye, Shiver, and Big Man, the trio of new hosts for this sequel.

The promise of a new beta for Splatoon 3 shouldn't come as a massive surprise for fans. After all, Nintendo held multiple "global testfire" sessions for Splatoon 2 before the sequel shooter originally launched in 2017, so there were plenty of opportunities for players worldwide to get their hands on the game before launch.

As for Splatoon 3, there's now less than a month before the latest in the zany series launches on the Nintendo Switch. Splatoon 3 launches on September 9, and you can head to our full Splatoon 3 weapons guide to see a complete catalogue of all the brand new and returning weapons revealed for the new game. 

There's also a dazzling Splatoon 3 edition of the Nintendo Switch OLED console launching later this month on August 26.

Wondering how to watch today’s Splatoon 3 direct showcase? We’ve got you covered. 

Earlier this week, Nintendo announced that it will be hosting a Splatoon 3-specific direct in just two days' time on August 10. It’s not entirely clear what’s left to see of the game - considering it’s due to release as soon as next month - but hey, we’re not complaining. 

According to the tweet that Nintendo put out announcing the event, fans excited for Splatoon 3 should tune into the official Nintendo YouTube channel - or watch the video embedded below - on Wednesday 10 (today) at 6AM PT / 9AM ET/ 2PM BST. The showcase is expected to last a whole 30-minutes, which all things considered, is a long time to focus on just one game. 

In terms of what to expect, Nintendo could have anything up its sleeve, but it would be safe to assume that we may see some more gameplay, perhaps with a more indepth analysis around Splatoon 3 weapons. We may also see more of the previously announced multiplayer stage Mincemeat Metalworks along with a few other yet to be officially revealed maps in the upcoming game. 

Nintendo hasn’t been stingy with Spaltoon 3 news as of late. In fact, just a couple of months ago, the company revealed a Splatoon 3-themed Nintendo Switch OLED console - which is sure to get a mention during today’s presentation as well. The console is actually due to release a couple of weeks ahead of the game on August 26, you can pre-order it from right now though. 

It’s been a long wait for fans, but Splatoon 3 is officially due to release on Nintendo Switch on September 9, 2022. 

Find out what other games you can look forward to playing soon with our upcoming Switch games list. 

Splatoon 3 is getting its very own Nintendo Switch OLED model just in time for the sequel’s launch. 

Earlier today, Nintendo announced that it is launching a Splatoon 3-themed Nintendo Switch OLED console. The special edition console features a set of green and purple Joy-Cons, both of which are decorated with Splatoon artwork, and a paint-splatter-stained dock to go with it. The console is set to release on August 26, 2022, just two weeks before Splatoon 3’s release date.

To match the Switch, Nintendo is also releasing a Splatoon 3-themed Nintendo Switch Pro controller which sports a slightly different, but still recognizable, yellow and blue color scheme and the same Inkling-themed artwork as well. To top it all off, you will also soon be able to get your hands on a matching Switch OLED case to store your themed console in too. 

This is just one of many insights we’ve had into Splatoon 3 over the last few weeks. In fact, earlier this week we also got a brief look at one of Splatoon 3’s upcoming multiplayer maps, Mincemeat Metalworks, which will see players battle it out around an abandoned scrapyard. We’ve also seen a number of screenshots of the upcoming third-person shooter, some of which make Splatoon 3 look so much bigger than the previous games in the series. 

There have also been several patents filed by Nintendo as of late which could eventually end up being used with Splatoon 3. Although not officially announced by Nintendo, fans are theorizing that a recent anti-cheat and mini-map patent could eventually end up being used with Splatoon 3. 

Want to be ready for battle when Splatoon 3 launches in a few months' time? Take a look at our Splatoon 3 weapons guide to get ahead of the game. 

Nintendo is continuing to give us small glimpses into Splatoon 3 ahead of its release this September. 

The latest preview of Splatoon 3 comes courtesy of both the US and Japanese Splatoon Twitter accounts. Both accounts shared the same video of what looks like a scrap yard-themed location from the roster of Splatoon 3 maps, with all the usual staples, including a crane, scrap metal cubes, and discarded vehicles. What gives away that this is a Splatoon stage, though, is the instantly recognizable yellow and blue paint splatters which decorate the area. 

Along with the video, the US account shared: "This is rare imagery of a new multiplayer stage: Mincemeat Metalworks! The facility was made FROM scrap metal in order to make MORE scrap metal. Also, there was a sea here that evaporated." That explains the rusted ships in the background. You can see the video for yourself below.

Nintendo hasn’t been shy with its Splatoon 3 news as of late, we’ve also seen some of the customization options available to our future Inklings, everything from new hairstyles, eye colors, and even eyebrow styles being added to the family-friendly shooter. The official Splatoon account has also debuted some new weapons coming to Splatoon 3 and some of the upcoming music tracks we can expect to hear whilst navigating around the new stages. 

We still have a few months to wait until Splatoon 3 releases on September 9, 2022, but it looks like it will be worth the wait as other screenshots show just how big Splatsville is. There have also been several theories lately that Nintendo has been cooking up some new behind-the-scenes mechanics to make Splatoon 3 the best game in the series yet. According to several recent patents filed by Nintendo, Splatoon 3 could feature better maps and maybe even some anti-cheat software. 

Want to be ahead of the game before Splatoon 3 releases? Take a look at our Splatoon 3 weapons guide. 

Nintendo has released a series of new Splatoon 3 screenshots as we get closer to that highly anticipated September release date. 

Shared via the Japanese Splatoon Twitter account, Nintendo shared three new screenshots from the upcoming game along with the caption: (Translated via DeepL translator) "A number of mysterious structures have been identified in the space called Alterna. They are shaped like something, but they all look as if they have been broken off in the middle. What do these things mean?"

The screenshots are just as vague as the tweet that accompanied them but all feature an Inkling looking out onto an intricate post-apocalyptic-inspired location. Each area has a number of floating platforms which looks as if it requires the little squid kids to be more agile than ever as they splat their way through each course.

There’s also been some chatter in the replies of the tweet with fans questioning what some of the new items in the screenshots mean. Some new Splatoon 3 weapons could be on the cards with one fan asking why one Inkling has a large water bottle attached to their back - before coming to the conclusion that it must be an ink tank - another wondering what one of the floating platforms is, and another pointing out that the second screenshot features famous statues such as Michelangelo’s David and others scattered around the Splatoon 3 maps. 

Thankfully, we really don’t have to wait too much longer before getting to try out these new courses for ourselves. As announced last month, Splatoon 3 is due to release on September 9, 2022 - with pre-orders for the sequel already live. 

Can’t get enough of Nintendo’s family-friendly shooter? Find out why Splatoon 3 needs to learn the right lessons from Splatoon 2’s Octo Expansion. 

Nintendo has filed a new patent that appears to be some kind of anti-cheat software, and it's planned to be implemented with its online games. 

As spotted by OpAttack (via Nintendo Life), Nintendo has filed for a new patent with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. The patent, which is described as a "systems and method for identifying modified program data", will seemingly work as a kind of anti-cheat software and will be able to detect when a user is attempting to modify any of its software. Most likely that effect will be felt most keenly in online games such as Super Smash Bros. Ultimate or the upcoming Splatoon 3.

The official description of the patent reads: "The technology described implements attestation programs that employ 'code reuse' techniques. In particular, the technology relates to auto-generating attestation programs for, among other aspects, detecting whether a program has been modified.” Put in simple terms, the patented software would flag any users that are attempting to modify the game’s code and therefore cheat the system. 

A few pages into the patent, we can also see more of Nintendo’s intentions with the new technology. As explained in the document: "Cheating in video games has been prevalent since almost the dawn of gaming," the description reads, "video game cheating has evolved greatly over the years, to a point where users can modify the software and/or metadata to gain an unfair advantage." 

"In particular, users are able to modify software in a way that enables them to have advantages over other players on different systems across a multiplayer game." The document continues, "these unfair advantages result in the game being much less satisfying to the user thereby affecting the overall human-user experience and interaction in the game."

It looks like Nintendo has decided to take cheating in its multiplayer games more seriously as of late. Perhaps, due in part to the upcoming release of Splatoon 3, which will let players battle it out with paint guns via multiplayer online co-op. This also wouldn’t be the first time Nintendo has seemingly patented something for its squid game, in fact, just last month, Nintendo also filed a patent that could give Splatoon 3 better maps. 

Just can’t wait to explore Splatsville? Find out why Splatoon 3 needs to learn the right lessons from Splatoon 2's Octo Expansion.