Video Game Review: Splatoon 2

More kids, more squids, more Nintendo being Nintendo.

I fell instantly in love with Splatoon when it was first revealed back on the maligned Wii U, thanks to its bright colors, vivid music, and a slightly modified take on the competitive shooting game. Instead of raining efficient bullet death upon your opponents, your focus was more on squirting ink over as much flat space as possible to rack up a score. Bolstered by this shift in focus and some truly unforgettable visuals, Splatoon became as much of a smash hit as it could at the time. With the Nintendo Switch, Splatoon 2 has a second chance to become a proper establishment IP and prove that Nintendo can still play with the big boys, even if they have their own way of doing so. How did Nintendo decide to do it? By doing mostly the same thing as before, but on a more exciting console. Unsurprisingly, that mostly does the job.

Some people will take issue with the idea that Splatoon 2 isn’t that much of a leap forward from the first game, but this time it feels particularly appropriate. For many, this iteration will be the first introduction for many to the game, and that’s reason enough to lean more on what has already been done than to try to reinvent the wheel. On the other hand, Splatoon 2 is easily the most “Nintendo” game Nintendo’s put out in some time, in ways more so than the first, and it can be a lot to take in.

After making your particular squid kid and a brief tutorial that inexplicably makes you use motion controls, you are literally launched into Inkopolis; the bustling city that serves as Splatoon 2’s hub. Immediately, you’ll be blasted with the city’s news broadcast show, led by adorable hosts, that is used to let you know about all the things you’ll eventually do in the game, blasted at the same speed as a nightly local newscast. The sights, sounds, and options can all feel a bit overwhelming for a first time visitor to Inkopolis. Other squid kids walk around the hub as well, and they’re actually other players. You’ll see drawings they’ve created hovering over their heads, many of them brilliant, and you won’t know what to do yet. Thankfully, a couple of visual cues will eventually guide you to the two core components of Splatoon 2.

Located dead center in the hub is where all of the competitive modes live, and to look as cool as the other squid kids, it needs to be played. The core mode carried over from the first game is Turf War, and it’s exactly as previously indicated-all about making a mess of paint to take territory. Not much has changed conceptually, but the new stages are all very well built, encouraging players to become familiar with the elements added to increase your position and push back against the opponents. A couple of previous stages make a return, slightly modified but no worse for wear. After reaching a certain level, players are able to start buying more weapons and gear to further customize their squid kids. All the gear is rotating and bought with in-game currency earned by playing, and I am happy to report there are no loot boxes in sight.

Continuing to level up eventually opens up more playable modes. The first is Ranking Matches, which do not play by Turf War rules. Instead, you’ll either play a mode where you battle for control of a moving tower, a powerful bomb weapon, or specific part of the map. League matches take them even further, with more stakes on a player’s ranking. Because these all end up feeling more about combat than Turf War, I don’t enjoy them as much. A part of what makes Splatoon so appealing is that the crux of the game doesn’t hinge on your ability to get a high kill/death ratio, but these ranked modes tiptoe closer to that idea. It is not an issue of being bad at these modes (not that it matters, because no one cares how better you are at video games than they are), but because it made Splatoon feel unique while still being somewhat comparable. Just a little of that charm is lost in competitive modes.

Nothing is helped by the curious choices Nintendo made regarding how multiplayer actually works, both in Splatoon 2 and on the Switch itself. The news is already out there of course, but Nintendo’s Online service as it stands now leaves a lot to be desired. For one, matchmaking can be handled via the phone app or directly from the game, but that doesn’t mean you’ll ever be on the same team. Voice chat is handled explicitly from the phone app, and if you’ve seen that splitter getting passed around; that’s actually a third party option, there is no primary way to route game audio and chat audio through the same headset. You then also can’t actually use your smartphone for other functions, or you’ll get kicked from the audio until you return to the app. The whole thing feels like a mess, and it makes me question how Nintendo expects a competitive scene to build around connecting using these methods. The app isn’t entirely useless, there are game specific features such as the ability to view stats, current equipment and even purchase other gear directly there. All of this is great, and it actually will be nice to (presumably) have various game hubs within a single app. I somewhat get what Nintendo is going for here, given the nature of the Switch as a device, but it really makes me question where this all ends up, seeing as this all eventually won’t be free.

Splatoon 2’s other primary mode is its single player, which is a different beast from the rest of the game. From a design perspective, this has not changed much from the first game either, but that’s not a bad thing. Single player is a story campaign that is much more platformer than shooter, meaning the team has put together a pretty clever set of levels that often require completion using a specific weapon type. Levels are split up into blocks, with each ending with a octopus-flavored boss to take on that are just as fun as the individual levels. Another neat trick is that each level is hidden from view, players must uncover the kettles that lead to each by covering them with ink, giving even each block some extra charm. While the formula is the same, there are some genuinely clever bits added to levels that make you question for a second if this is supposed to be a shooter or not. A story does run through these levels, but it’s fairly basic and you’ll figure it out almost immediately, to the point where the game itself doesn’t take it seriously. That said, a little detail of the story is actually caused by actions players took in the last game, which is a nice touch.

Not everything is a carry over from the first game, however. Splatoon 2 also introduces Salmon Run, which is a horde mode with the weirdness of Splatoon cranked to the maximum. Pitting Inklings against new enemies called Salmonids, players are tasked with fighting off waves of these enemies and collecting their leftover eggs for a mysterious benefactor. Despite basically being a horde mode, Salmon Run bucks a couple of traditions seen in other games. For one, there are primary targets identified as bosses that drop the coveted eggs, meaning they’ll start showing up immediately instead of being built up to in several waves. Additionally, there are only 3 rounds per game, meaning there is always a genuine end in sight to make up for the massive build up of enemies. With weapons being assigned at the start of each round at random, Salmon Run becomes a rush to stay alive and work with your team the best you can, and it is one of the most fun horde modes I’ve played in a while. The atmosphere is very different from other features; carrying a down and dirty vibe. That carries to the Salmonids too, their designs feel very slimy and gross compared to the other creatures in Splatoon 2. Given all the specific things making it feel special, Salmon Run is easily the perfect addition for a sequel. So of course, there’s also a catch. Because this is a “part time job” for Inklings, Nintendo only opens up Salmon Run at specific times throughout the week, meaning you’ll be scheduling your play time around their schedule. Sure, the canon might explain it, but it is such a bizarre requirement, especially seeing other modes having stage rotation decreased from four hours in the original game to two hours in Splatoon 2. Thanks to the Switch’s design, players do have the option to play locally to get around all of this and play whatever modes and stages they want, including Salmon Run. Again, there are catches to this. Everyone will need their own Switch, and we’re not yet to the point where those are just on shelves yet.

Even with the various caveats, this game is extremely fun. Turf War by itself isn’t the kind of game that gets old, thanks to all the unlocks and weapons given to players as they progress. Customizing my squid kid for another hip look on nearly a daily basis is borderline obsessive, and knowing I can get just about anything anyone else is rocking is a huge boon to explore other player’s setups and postings.Taking advantage of the Switch’s unique design makes it incredibly tempting to bust out some Turf War wherever I’m at. Perhaps even more so than the mechanics is the aesthetic. The overwhelming feeling first experienced eventually melts away and one really starts to appreciate the bombast and quirk that makes up the world of Splatoon 2. It’s difficult not to stop and look at the sites and displays or go browsing for the next fresh look to unlock abilities for. Despite a lot of it feeling pretty much like it was before and the requisite Nintendo catch, I can’t help but fall in love with being a kid and a squid all over again.

Developer: Nintendo Entertainment Planning & Development

Publisher: Nintendo

Platform: Nintendo Switch

Released: July 21st, 2017

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