I think there are a few of us here planning to get this (whether for ourselves or our kids) so it probably deserves its own thread.
Just a quick reminder that the inaugural Splatoon 3 Splatfest is taking place as a timed demo this Satuday from 9AM to 9PM UK time. You'll need to download the demo from the store to participate.
As from today that demo is active, so you can log in, customise your character and explore the new hub, before picking a team. It's one of Splatoon 3's new 3-way Splatfests so the theme is "Rock, Paper, Scissors".
The Splatfests were always the absolute highlight of Splatoon 2 so I've got high hopes for this.
They really should get a bit more imaginative with the Splatfest titles though. Is the idea you pick one and fight for it?
Who has a favourite rock paper scissor? They should mix it up a little. Tory or Labour? Israel or Palestine?
Yeah, you pick one and then that becomes your team. At the end of the Splatfest the team that's won the most rounds gets some rewards.
They're always absolute nonsense - Ketchup v Mayo was particularly hard-fought in Splatoon 2, and of course there's always the returning Halloween classic Trick v Treat or the impossible-to-answer Chicken v Egg. The new 3-way Splatfests should allow for loads of new themes.
But they're always great fun. You get special maps to play on, the hub gets tarted up and the gibberish spouted by the players ramps up to new levels. They genuinely feel like a special event each time they happen.
Still waiting for codes to show up on the staff shop site. Should be any day now, wouldn't be surprised if they appear after the weekend.
Oh hell yeah. Looking forward to the open beta on tomorrow. Splatoon is one of my favorite Nintendo games to be honest. It will be my wife who'd be picking this up on release day, but I'll be popping on for sure. Everything they've shown looks great. Looks pretty much improved from every aspect for the online. Would like to see a better campaign from the last two tho. The first one had some legit Super Mario level boss fights, but underwhelming everywhere else. The second one was just disappointing altogether, but the DLC was good with the octo expansion.
So - thoughts on the Splatfest?
I remain a bit down on Splatoon 3. It really is just an incremental upgrade to Splatoon 2. Exactly the same aesthetic, the same menus, the same game modes (no new ranked gametypes really??), a similar-looking single-player mode, yes there are a few new maps and weapons but otherwise simply more of the same. That's fine I guess but coming off the back of the extremely generous Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak, this feels stingy in the extreme for a new title and I can't help see it as a cynical release. (And that's not taking into account all the F2P games like Fall Guys that get regular, game-chaning updates as free patches). Hey guys, let's have your additional £50 for more Splatoon, sure we could have done all this as a patch upgrade but gotta pay that Nintendo tax somehow.
That said: the Splatfest was fun in the way Splatfests always are, the three-way thing feels like it needs a little balancing but that was surely the point of the pre-release event anyway. I'm sure it'll sell gangbusters. We're going to buy it because the boy loves his Splatoon but I'll be doing it through gritted teeth.
I don't take teeth of any kind, only PayPal.
Ah man, I didn't get to play this being in work all day. My wife loved it tho. A lot of points Gar made she kinda agrees with, but she seemed happy with it. It's more of the same with newer content and that's what she kinda wanted really. So it'll be a day one for us. Going of the last two games I'm sure it'll keep giving more free updates with maps, weapons and stuff throughout the next year or so too.
How much are these codes? 
€41.13 (30% off the €59.99 RRP, standard staff discount). Pretty sure I've mentioned this, like, a million times.
Yeah but you have to remember that I'm thick. I can't remember where I parked the car, I'm never going to remember something like that.
Nothing wrong with being thicc.
No, wait
It's easier for me to buy a bunch of codes at once, rather than one at a time. So let's say this: if you're going to want one, please say so here by the end of tomorrow (Thurs 01/09)*. Then I can get the money off those folks by Friday noon (via PayPal) and have the codes by the time I get off lunch.
Gar wants one. So that's one. Who else?
(* This is a cutoff for this batch, not forever… but it makes it easier than piecemeal purchases)
I'm putting my name down for one of them codes. 😀 Thanks Mart!
I'd love to but I can't. I was already skint and now it turns out some fraudster stole £2000 off my credit card yesterday.
I'd love to but I can't. I was already skint and now it turns out some fraudster stole £2000 off my credit card yesterday.
Shit, sorry to hear that. I hope you get it back. Someone lifted £300 off mine at the weekend, but the bank were good about it when I contacted them.
I got the money back, thank Jebus!
Won my first 5 games, lost my next 10. I think I peaked 20 minutes into owning this.
My internet is out for a week. Guess I'll try the single player. 😅
And yet you posted that on an online forum, very sus.
My son's been playing this and yesterday evening all I heard was constant grumbling along the lines of "they've changed this and I don't like it". His favourite weapons had been nerfed, swim speed was slower, controls didn't feel the same and so on.
Today though he's back on it and having an absolute blast playing Salmon Run so I think it's all just a matter of getting used to it. I did tell him he probably shouldn't play Splatoon 2 right up to the release of the new game but kids never listen, do they?
Looks pretty fun to me although still basically the same as the last game. I do think it's a shame there isn't at least one new ranked game mode, for instance.
Stupid thing but those who are playing, you'd be wise to install the Nintendo Switch Online app on your phone. Previously, game specific features in it have been a bit shit (though NookLink for Animal Crossing is quite handy now, albeit too late in the game's lifespan to be worthwhile). SplatNet 3, however, is actually decent.
It does all the usual things you'd expect like tracking play records, history and letting you create Freshest Fit sets that can be quick equipped. But it also has its own gear store with exclusive stuff you can't get otherwise, a QR scanner for scanning freebie codes which give out more goodies (eg https://twitter.com/NintendoEurope/status/1568230243214807040) and a special adventure called Wandercrust where you can send that prawn thing off on missions to earn even more gear.
None of it is essential, of course, but it's good to see the NSO app actually having a benefit in a game for once, rather than being totally pointless.
My son is absolutely loving this game. I haven't had a look-in on it yet!
Finally got my internet back on. Loving it so far, it pretty similar to the other two but with more. Anyone got any good recommendations or tips for other weapons outside the standard guns. I've tried a few out and I can't seem to get them to work well like the bow, umbrella and the sword kinda weapon.
Apparently this has already sold like 3 million just in Japan
Finally got my internet back on. Loving it so far, it pretty similar to the other two but with more. Anyone got any good recommendations or tips for other weapons outside the standard guns. I've tried a few out and I can't seem to get them to work well like the bow, umbrella and the sword kinda weapon.
I'm loving the bow, it's got great wide spread if you tap the button or long distance accuracy. The one that comes with the curling bomb is awesome, as you can throw that and hide in the trail it leaves to cover long distance.
I’ve found my weapon, I’m definitely a roller guy. Ignoring the battle, going up and down in neat lines like a football groundsman. It’s almost a zen experience.
Also this looks delish on the Switch OLED.
Surprising no-one, I am horrendously bad at this. But I'm having fun, most of the time.
I've been killing it with the sploosh-o-matic. Really easy to pick up and use. It comes with the special with the hammer. It's good for kills, and even good just to rush in with a big trail of ink.
