As Splatoon 3 gets a Switch 2 upgrade, Switch 1 players see a visual downgrade to "reduce differences in game operation speed as much as possible"

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.