One early level taught me how to swim in the ink in order to climb up walls and sneak up on enemies. The first few waves of levels act as mini tutorials for specific weapons and mechanics. And instead of epic-length levels like you’ll find with most shooters, Nintendo has instead opted for a large variety of bitesize challenges that only last a couple of minutes each. Splatoon may be renowned for its multiplayer, but the latest entry also packs in a single-player campaign. It’s an incredibly clever twist on the third-person shooter genre, and still feels delightfully fresh despite the original game launching back in 2015. Splatoon 3 features the same core mechanics as its predecessors, with your paintball gun not only capable of dealing damage to enemies, but also creating puddles of ink that your character can swim through. Features fun platforming and puzzle segments.Act as tutorials for new weapons and mechanics.That said, Splatoon 3 is still a joy to play, and arguably offers the best competitive online multiplayer experience that the Nintendo Switch has to offer besides Fortnite. There are a couple of new weapons and maps, as well as some quality-of-life tweaks such as making the co-op mode Salmon Run playable 24/7, but it’s certainly questionable whether there’s enough content to justify an entirely new game rather than an update to Splatoon 2. Splatoon 3 does at least feature a new single-player campaign, with delightful bitesize levels that teach you the basics of ink-based combat and platforming.īut the new additions to multiplayer don’t feel quite as impactful for returning players. It’s as cutesy and goofball and clearly designed to fit within Nintendo’s family of future-looking franchises as you’d expect of a new IP as heavily marketed as this one’s been.In a time where multiplayer shooters are going ‘free to play’ with seasonal updates, Nintendo’s insistence on separate paid-for releases for Splatoon feels a tad old fashioned. And I’ve only dabbled with the offline story mode, though it’s so far classic Nintendo: platform through linear levels with ink-related conundrums, then battle cunningly designed bosses (think Shadow of the Colossus‘s enemy-climbing angle, only with ink). I wasn’t able to try the Battle Dojo, a 1-on-1 mode where you and another player in the same room compete by shooting ink at balloons. It’s there to help seed the game’s online pool, but having to flip the Wii U’s power switch to kill the process when real life intervenes is plain unfriendly. As it is, once you’ve agreed to join, Nintendo locks you to a timeout while searching for matches (the clever little Doodle Jump-inspired game you can play on the Wii U GamePad is amusing but poor compensation). And the game definitely needs an option to cancel while waiting for an online match to start. I do wish Splatoon had an offline bot mode so you could practice when the matchmaking service peters out (you can “recon” levels solo, but that’s it). I’m not talking about luck, or something like Mario Kart‘s blue shell, where there’s an ultimate rock that can crush someone else’s scissor, just that Nintendo’s designed the game so that how you play-your “play style,” as the company puts it in the manual-often trumps what you’re playing with. Low level players can routinely steamroll high level ones, because Splatoon‘s basic maneuvers work as a kind of competitive equalizer. It’s not how Splatoon feels in action, whether inking some quiet corner, or in a duel with a higher level opponent. And a helpful “super jump” does away with lonely re-spawns (at your base, after someone takes you out) by letting you touch a teammate’s icon on the Wii U GamePad’s screen and rocket across the map to wherever they’re currently battle-painting.ĭon’t let how insane any of that sounds put you off playing. But it’s also beginner-friendly: The game keeps special weapons in check by requiring you ink so much ground before they unlock, then limits how long they’re usable. The possibilities snowball when you factor all the gear abilities (dozens of speed, damage and stealth perks associated with headwear, shirts and shoes) and special weapons (bombs, mines, ink-tornado-flinging bazookas, mongo paint-rollers) that you can buy from shops with cash earned by leveling up in online matches.
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