Splatoon 3 is a 2022 third-person shooter video game developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Switch. It is the third game in the Splatoon series and follows Splatoon 2. Like earlier games in the series, Splatoon 3 includes online multiplayer (player versus player and player versus computer) and a single-player story campaign. Both modes feature combat using weapons that shoot ink. A downloadable content (DLC) expansion called Side Order was released on February 22, 2024, as the second part of the paid Splatoon 3 Expansion Pass.
The game was first shown in a teaser trailer on February 17, 2021, and later released on September 9, 2022. It received mostly positive reviews for its expanded single-player story, customization choices, and gameplay, but some people criticized the online matches, connection problems, and lack of new content. As of March 31, 2024, Splatoon 3 has sold 11.96 million copies worldwide, making it the fastest-selling game in the series and one of the best-selling Nintendo Switch games.
Gameplay
Splatoon 3 is a third-person shooter game where players choose to be an Inkling or Octoling as their character. Both characters use weapons that fire colored ink as ammunition. These weapons look like everyday items, such as paint rollers or sniper rifles. Rollers cover large areas with ink but work best at close range, while Chargers have long range but are less effective at painting the ground. Splatoon 3 adds new main, sub, and special weapons. Main weapons include a sub weapon and a special weapon. Sub weapons help with tactics and use more ink, like Splat Bombs or Splash Walls that block enemy ink. Special weapons require players to cover the ground with ink to charge their power. Inklings and Octolings can change into squid or octopus forms, called "swim forms," which allow them to climb ink-covered walls and move faster through ink. Weapons have limited ink ammunition that refills over time, but using the swim form refills it faster. Some weapons use more ink, like the Dynamo roller. Most weapons from Splatoon 2 return in Splatoon 3, with 15 new additions.
Regular Battle, also called Turf War, is a multiplayer mode where two teams of four players compete to cover the most area of the map with their team’s ink color for three minutes. Teams can replace opponent ink with their own. Opponent ink slows movement, deals damage, and stops players from using their swim form. Each player chooses a weapon set before each match, which includes a main weapon, sub weapon, and special weapon. Sub weapons, like Splat Bombs or Burst Bombs, help attack and cover the ground. Special weapons are used when enough ink is on the map. Weapons can damage opponents, and when enough damage is dealt, opponents are "splatted" and return to their starting spot. The team with the most ink-covered area at the end wins.
When players reach level 10, they can join Anarchy Battles, a ranked mode with different game types. Each game lasts up to five minutes or longer if certain conditions are met. In Clam Blitz, teams collect golden clams and deposit them in the opponent’s goal. A Power Clam, made by collecting eight regular clams, is needed to score. The team with the most clams or the team that depletes the opponent’s score first wins. In Splat Zones, teams compete to control one or two "splat zones" by covering them with their ink. A zone is controlled when 70% of it is covered. In Tower Control, teams must escort a moving tower to the opponent’s base. The team that reaches the goal or moves the farthest when time runs out wins. Rainmaker is similar to capture the flag, where players carry a weapon called the Rainmaker to the opponent’s side of the map.
Splatfests return, where players choose one of three teams based on a theme and compete over three days. Splatoon 3 adds a new "Tricolor Turf War" mode during the second half of Splatfests. In this mode, one team of four players defends an "Ultra Signal" at the map’s center from two teams of two players. If an attacking team controls the Ultra Signal, it summons a "Sprinkler of Doom" that automatically covers part of the map with their ink.
Salmon Run Next Wave returns as a co-op PvE mode where players fight waves of enemies called "Salmonids" to collect Golden Eggs. Players work with three others to defeat Salmonids and deposit Golden Eggs into an egg basket. Each match, called a "shift," lasts three waves, and sometimes a fourth "Xtrawave" occurs to defeat a King Salmonid. Players earn rank points by meeting egg quotas. Next Wave adds new enemies, boss types, and the ability to throw Golden Eggs. Salmon Run is now available anytime, even during Splatfests. A new event called "Big Run" lets players defend Splatsville from Salmonids on a competitive map. Another event, "Eggstra Work," challenges teams to collect the most Golden Eggs in a five-wave shift.
Tableturf Battle is a digital collectible card game based on Turf War. Players build decks of cards and use them to apply patterns on a grid. After charging a "special attack," players can place a pattern to overwrite the opponent’s patterns.
Setting
The Splatoon games take place on a version of Earth set far in the future after humans and most mammals have gone extinct, likely due to climate change. In this world, many ocean animals have adapted to live on land. Splatoon 3 happens five years after Splatoon 2 in the Splatlands, a desert that is very hot from the sun and home to strong, battle-hardened Inklings and Octolings. It also takes place in Splatsville, a city that became chaotic and grew quickly after the last Splatfest in Splatoon 2, called "Chaos vs. Order." The game's chaotic design was chosen because Team Chaos won that Splatfest.
The story mode of Splatoon 3, called Return of the Mammalians, is set in a new location called Alterna, a large, snowy area with unfinished buildings and dangerous Fuzzy Ooze, a sticky, ink-like substance covered in brown fur. A rocket is at the center of Alterna. The story focuses on the return of mammals, which have been extinct for a long time.
The single-player expansion of Splatoon 3, Side Order, follows Agent 8, the main character from Splatoon 2: Octo Expansion. Agent 8 wakes up in a virtual world called the Memverse, created by Marina of Off the Hook. This world has been taken over by a rogue artificial intelligence that tries to control people in the real world.
The player controls Craig Cuttlefish, an older former captain of the New Squidbeak Splatoon. He leads the player to a crater near Splatsville, which is covered in dangerous Fuzzy Ooze. Craig recruits the player as Agent 3 and their Salmonid companion, Smallfry. Smallfry can eat and clear Fuzzy Ooze, helping them move forward. They fight mutated Octarian enemies and believe DJ Octavio, the leader of the Octarians, stole the Great Zapfish, a power source for Splatsville.
At the crater’s bottom, Octavio appears in a robot and accuses the New Squidbeak Splatoon of kidnapping his Octarian soldiers. After a battle, Octavio denies stealing the Zapfish. The ground breaks open, and Craig is pulled away by Fuzzy Ooze. Agent 3 and Smallfry fall into the ruins of a former human settlement called Alterna.
Agent 3 meets Callie and Marie, who were Agents 1 and 2 of the New Squidbeak Splatoon, and the Captain, the main character from the first Splatoon game. They learn Craig has gone missing. The group is approached by Deep Cut, an idol trio from Splatsville, who are searching Alterna for treasure. Deep Cut attacks the Squidbeak Splatoon, thinking they are also after the treasure. With help from an artificial intelligence named O.R.C.A., the Squidbeak Splatoon searches Alterna for Craig.
They discover Mr. Grizz, the CEO of Grizzco Industries and organizer of Salmon Run, kidnapped Craig and took the Great Zapfish and Octarian army. This proves Octavio is innocent. At the top of a rocket in Alterna, Mr. Grizz explains he wants to bring back mammals by turning sea animals into fuzzy creatures using Fuzzy Ooze.
Using treasure to build a cutting tool, Deep Cut joins the Squidbeak Splatoon to fight Mr. Grizz. They reach the rocket and find Mr. Grizz has "dehydrated" Craig, seemingly killing him. The Captain rehydrates Craig with their tears as Mr. Grizz launches the rocket into space. Deep Cut helps Agent 3 board the rocket. Agent 3, with help from Octavio and Smallfry, defeats Mr. Grizz and destroys the rocket. Agent 3, Smallfry, and Octavio return to Earth with the Great Zapfish. Mr. Grizz is seen floating in space during the credits.
Development
Splatoon 3 was created by Nintendo EPD, with help from Monolith Soft, who also worked on earlier Splatoon games and other projects like SRD and Bandai Namco Studios Singapore & Malaysia. The game uses NLPN, Nintendo’s server system made by the company, which allows for more features in multiplayer games and improved ways to match players.
At E3 2019, after the final Splatfest in Splatoon 2, called "Chaos vs. Order," Splatoon producer Hisashi Nogami said a third game in the series was not being made. Later, in an "Ask the Developer" interview on Nintendo’s website, it was shared that the direction of Splatoon 3’s world was decided after Team Chaos won Splatoon 2’s final Splatfest. The developers had planned for both possible outcomes before the Splatfest ended. In a Splatoon 3 Direct event on August 10, 2022, Nintendo confirmed the game would get updates every three months for two years. These updates would include new stages, weapons, and large-scale paid downloadable content (DLC).
Marketing and release
Splatoon 3 was announced with a teaser trailer in a Nintendo Direct on 17 February 2021. The trailer showed items, weapons, abilities, and a design showing a big disaster. More details were shared later that year in September, including the name of Splatoon 3's single-player mode, Return of the Mammalians.
A trailer for Splatoon 3's co-op mode "Salmon Run" was shown in a Nintendo Direct on 9 February 2022. On 22 April, Nintendo posted a video on its YouTube channel that showed gameplay of the "Turf War" game mode and announced the release date of 9 September 2022. Also, Splatoon 2: Octo Expansion was announced to be included with the Expansion Pack tier of Nintendo Switch Online. In July, Nintendo announced a special edition Nintendo Switch OLED model themed on the game, with a release date of 26 August 2022. Additionally, the company announced a Splatoon 3-themed Pro Controller and carrying case, which released alongside the game.
On 10 August 2022, Nintendo broadcast a Splatoon 3-focused Nintendo Direct, revealing the date for the game's Splatfest World Premiere, a limited-time demo Splatfest. Nintendo announced that the game would have amiibo support, with several new figurines that can be used to take photos with characters in-game and receive special gear items, similar to past Splatoon titles. It introduced three new "idol" characters known as Shiver, Frye, and Big Man, collectively called "Deep Cut." Also announced in the Nintendo Direct, the game is set to receive both large-scale paid DLC and two years of support through free updates. On 25 August 2022, a Nintendo Treehouse Presentation was broadcast, showing the single-player story mode, the multiplayer lobby, alongside weapons and multiplayer maps.
The pre-launch Splatfest World Premiere event took place on 27 and 28 August 2022 with a rock-paper-scissors theme, which Team Rock won in all regions. The game was released worldwide on 9 September 2022. In a trailer on 11 October 2022, it was announced that the Splatoon 3 amiibo would launch on 11 November. During Nintendo Live 2022 on 9 October, a Splatoon 3 concert was held featuring Deep Cut.
In a Nintendo Direct released on 8 February 2023, two waves of DLC, collectively called the Splatoon 3 Expansion Pass, were announced. The first wave included Inkopolis (the main hub from the first game), and the second wave included a new single-player campaign called Side Order. This mode was later revealed to be a roguelite and featured a new story with Agent 8, the protagonist of Splatoon 2: Octo Expansion. Side Order was released on 22 February 2024.
On 16 September 2024, Nintendo announced that the game would no longer receive regular content updates, although patches and seasonal events would continue.
Nintendo released an update for the game on 12 June 2025, which includes improved visuals and performance on the Nintendo Switch 2 console. Alongside the enhanced visuals and performance for the next generation of the Nintendo Switch, thirty new weapons were added to the game, along with a teaser trailer for the first spin-off game of the Splatoon franchise, Splatoon Raiders, which would include Deep Cut as part of the new game's main story.
Reception
Splatoon 3 received "generally favorable" reviews according to the review aggregator website Metacritic.
The game's overall presentation was praised. Wired's Reid McCarter highlighted the game's original, cartoon-style characters, which differ from the realistic graphics often seen in modern shooters. Alex Olney of Nintendo Life described the world of Splatoon 3 as "immersive," calling Splatsville the most expansive and atmospheric hub world in the series so far. Ben Johnson of Pocket Tactics praised the game's soundtrack, noting that its songs were experimental, bold, and unique. IGN staff also praised the soundtrack's blend of different cultural styles, saying it "could easily be considered its own genre."
Reviewers appreciated the game's improvements on returning gameplay elements from its predecessor. Alex Donaldson of VG247 said that Splatoon 3's focus on small refinements made it the most polished game in the series. The revamped matchmaking lobby, which includes a physical practice range, was praised as an improvement over previous versions' static loading screens. Salmon Run's new version was well-received, with some critics noting that it is available indefinitely, unlike Splatoon 2's version, which was only accessible during specific time periods. The ability to manually throw Golden Eggs a distance was seen as a useful addition. Ozzie Mejia of Shacknews praised the game's new customization features, though he noted they were not particularly innovative compared to other shooters.
Critics described the game's movement controls as enjoyable. The newly added Squid Surge and Squid Roll moves were praised for adding fun and emphasizing the fast-paced nature of competitive matches. Hirun Cryer of GamesRadar+ especially praised the Squid Roll, which gives players brief invincibility if used while being hit by enemy ink. He said this mechanic helps create a more in-depth gameplay experience that rewards skill. Brian Shea of Game Informer also praised the game's movement as intuitive.
Some reviewers criticized the lack of major new content. Alex Olney noted that Splatoon 3 did not include a significant new feature like Splatoon 2's Salmon Run, which limited its ability to stand out from previous games. Sam Machkovech of Ars Technica called the game "disappointing" for not being as innovative as Splatoon 2. He pointed out that only five of the twelve maps available at launch were unique to Splatoon 3 and criticized the new maps' flat and uninteresting terrain. Martin Robinson of Eurogamer said even major additions, like the updated lobby, felt basic compared to what modern online multiplayer games offer. Brendan Graeber of IGN called the new Tableturf Battle mode "lackluster" and unexciting. Hirun Cryer said the mode relied too much on luck and did not live up to its name.
Many reviewers criticized frequent online connectivity issues. Steve Watts of GameSpot called in-game disconnections "frequent and unforgiving," while Patricia Hernandez of Kotaku called internet problems "inexcusable." Pramath of GamingBolt said matchmaking wait times were too long and criticized how connection errors could send players back to matchmaking. Some critics also disliked that non-multiplayer content, like in-game shops, was locked behind an internet connection.
The single-player campaign was generally praised. Ozzie Mejia said the expanded overworld of Return of the Mammalians was refreshing compared to the more linear hubs of earlier games. The story was described as simple but endearing by some critics. Many compared the levels to those in Splatoon 2: Octo Expansion, though some noted the story mode was slightly more challenging than previous entries. Several praised how the campaign's challenges prepared players for online modes. However, Chris Carter of Destructoid said the campaign felt too much like a basic tutorial, though he appreciated its design for speedrunning. Some reviewers compared the level design to games in the Mario franchise, particularly Super Mario Sunshine, while others criticized certain levels for being overly geometric and disconnected from the hub world.
On September 12, 2022, Nintendo reported that Splatoon 3 sold 3.45 million copies in Japan within the first three days of its release, making it the fastest-selling video game in Japan at the time and one of the best-selling games on the Nintendo Switch. Nintendo's stock prices increased by 5.5 percent the following Tuesday, the largest increase since December 2020. Splatoon 3 debuted at the top of the UK boxed charts and remained there for three weeks before being overtaken by FIFA 23. As of October 18, 2022, Splatoon 3 was reported to be the highest-selling video game in Japan for 2022, just over a month after its release.