#Splatoon 3 weapon analysis

[smuckers-n-jif]

WAKE UP BABES NEW SPLATOON 3 TRAILER JUST DROPPED

Here's a breakdown of everything I caught while scrubbing through the gameplay portion of the Splatoon 3 Chill Season 2022 Trailer! This post concerns ONLY the weapons revealed in the trailer, nothing else.

Here's the trailer if you missed it:

Weapons Returning for Chill Season:

Forge Splattershot Pro with Suction Bombs as its sub weapon and Booyah Bomb as its special weapon.

Tentatek Splattershot with Splat Bombs as its sub weapon but no confirmed special weapon

Dapple Dualies Nouveau with Torpedo as its sub weapon but no confirmed special weapon.

NEW WEAPONS Revealed for Chill Season:

Splattershot Pro Variant, I've been seeing people mix this up with the Forge Splattershot Pro, but as seen in the image below, the two are using different specials in the same shot. The new SP has Killer Wail 5.1 as its special and no sub weapon to be seen.

Note the distinctive orange cone shaped nozzle on the end of the Forge SP.

Luna Blaster Variant with Fizzy Bombs as its sub but yet again no confirmable special.

Mini Splatling Variant with Toxic Mist as its sub weapon and Big Bubbler as its special "weapon".

A new Roller with a very wide paint spread while rolling and a decently long vertical flick. It's unclear to me weather this is a variant of a roller type we already have or a new type of roller altogether. I also couldn't spot it using its sub or special weapons, so those will be a surprise to me.

Last but certainly not least is a new and very strange Charger. It appears to work entirely differently to the other weapons in its class, as it can fire multiple shots per charge. With a two shot kill time it is already being called a better Bamboozler. The charger cannot be seen using a sub weapon and has Tacticooler as a supportive special.

That's All!

This whole trailer has me extremely hype; I really can't wait to finally have a useable sub weapon on Splattershot Pro. I'm personally a little disappointed that Carbon Roller Deco won't be coming back yet, but this new roller will hopefully be a good supplement for my favorite damage combo in all of Splatoon. See you all December 1st, good luck finishing your catalogues!

[abibeur]

So. I played Side Order (or rather I finished Side Order, aside from a few completion marks that doesn't offer any spoiler stuff!).

I've been seeing stuff on Tumblr, on Discord servers, on YouTube comments by people who were… Not entirely happy with it. Or rather disappointed. "They could have done more…", "This character was underused…", "I preferred the Octo Expansion…", "Let's re-write it for something better…". And let me tell you, I was (and still am) infuriated when reading these. Not because those comments and posts and messages were unfair, unjust and idiotic or anything (well maybe the re-writing thing was uncalled for), but because I actually loved that DLC. I think that's pretty normal to be angry with seeing a thing you love being shit on, even if I get what all of you meant. But I still wanted to share my own thoughts (because why not, I like saying what I think).

First and foremost, let me just say that I have a pretty different relation with Splatoon than most people. I was in since the release of the first game. I didn't play it due to a lack of Wii U, but I watched a lot of videos. And I liked it! I even had Splatoon OCs, I could be considered a fandom veteran at this point! But after some years, I put it at the back of my head as something I loved. When the Switch came out, I didn't have the money for it and no one would buy me one, so I continued to be a PC gamer. And when I saw the news of a Splatoon 2, I dismissed it like it was something silly, "what can you say more about Splatoon!?" I knew there was some new idols, some stuff about a DLC, Callie being kidnapped, but that's all. I dismissed all of this, and as a result I don't have much of an attachment for it. But in 2021, when I saw the news about a third game, I was ecstatic again. And in 2022, when I finally could afford it, I bought a Switch. Not just any Switch, the Splatoon themed one, and I pre-ordered the game. And when it came out, I spent less than a day to finish the story mode, and it was one of the best day of my life, I played Splatoon for 16 entire hours. Splatoon 3 is now my most played game on the Switch, more than 300 hours (that can seem not that much for some of you, but I'm a casual gamer, I don't play every day, so that's still a lot!). I even bought Splatoon 2 and the Octo Expansion after that. Splatoon 2 story mode was incredible, because that's the game I never got to play but more mastered. Octo Expansion was incredible, because it was… incredible. But I still liked Splatoon 3 story mode better. Is it because I've played it before? Because I hadn't the one year of unskippable Off the Hook news to make me like them before the DLC (to be fair I didn't know much of Deep Cut too!)? Because it clicked more on me? Honestly I don't care. It's not important, because it's still my preferences. But let met tell you, when the news of Splatoon 3 DLC dropped, I was roaring. Every crumbs of news and trailers widened my life expectancy. I was finally sharing the hype that you felt for Octo Expansion. And…

Two days ago, I played it. And I loved it. Why? Why did I love it where so many people seem disappointed? This will not be an analysis, I'm not good at those, just… Here's how I see things. Also there will be huge spoilers so if you haven't censored the tags for whatever reason, I will hide it beneath a read more because I'm nice.

First, the gameplay. When I heard it was going to be a roguelite, I was intrigued, because it seemed interesting. I was wondering how it was going to play out, more like The Binding of Isaac, or like Hades… Okay I only played those two. And it was like Hades. But I think the best thing to come out of this gameplay is… Well, the fact is every mission from all other story modes (including octo expansion) are pretty much the same in that they have an intended way to be beaten. Sure, for OE and S3 you have a choice of weapons, and there's probably unorthodox ways to finish them (including speedruns), but it's still organised around a specific way to deal with the levels. You go at one point and there you're done. And that's why I will never re-play the story modes I already finished. I know the ropes, so… Why? But here… The gameplay itself doesn't change much. It's an amalgamation of most Splatoon gameplay since now, Salmon Run, Ranked Match, Octo Expansion levels… But the way you APPROACH this gameplay is different and that's why every thing changes. Because you are now free to choose. You don't want a stage? Choose another one, the cost of a good chip and membux not being that punishing, you want a specific type of chip? Go for it! There is so much fun combos to do, I have fun at every run! They told us it was going to be replayable. And they haven't failed to give. Because when I want to replay a game, then I know it's good. Aside of multiplayer games and games made to be replayable (TBOI, Dishonored…), some of favourite games are Half-Life 2 (my favourite game in general), Hollow Knight and Mario & Luigi Bowser's Inside Story. Once you've finished exploring it all, well there is nothing else. But I still want to experience it again. And again. I have tens and even hundreds of hours on each of them. So yeah. If a game makes me want to replay it, I like it! And also… The final fight. The "phase 2" of the final fight. It was probably the most satisfying gameplay in all of Splatoon. Every path you took? Every path you didn't take? It was there. And you could experience it all together and finally finish your first run, empowered by it, in-game and outside. This was so good. I really wish we will get updates like more stages, bosses or even chips, because wow.

Secondly, the atmosphere. This point will be much shorter, but holy shit this game was incredible to be immersed into. The cold and sanitised atmosphere of the Spire? Amazing. Obvious Portal and liminal spaces vibes, but hey. And the music… Really the music makes a lot of it. The final fight music is absolutely incredible, one more time, and the credits theme is probably my favourite credits theme of every Splatoon game and DLC (that VIOLIN, that heckin' VIOLIN). I wouldn't be able to say which one of Octo Expansion and Side Order's atmospheres was my favourite. I guess I'm less sensitive to childhood memories and such but hey. Both DLC's atmospheres were incredible good.

Finally… The sore point of everything I guess, the story. I guess we expected more. Even myself, I expected something darker, deeper, more mysterious and esoteric… Have I been disappointed. No. I understand that some people were, but I am not. And frankly, I feel like I don't have to be. Like what do we really wished for? More octoling lore? Marina's past uncovered? Mature themes and dark atmosphere? I am just describing Octo Expansion. We didn't need Octo Expansion 2.0. Every theme that I've seen wished for? Octo Expansion tackled them, greatly even. So did we really need to do the same thing again? I feel like Splatoon 3 was the great conclusion of the other games' story modes, where all marine life finally united against the common enemy: mammals, the past of Earth's life coming back for its great revival. And it was a spectacular conclusion. And Side Order was Octo Expansion's conclusion. But it wasn't that bombastic, it was more of a calm conclusion, an epilogue of some sort. Marina wasn't in great danger or anything (well she was but less than we expected), we didn't need to expand the damsel in distress role for confirming Marina and Pearl's relation (which was pretty much hinted on greatly without it lmao), we already knew that. We didn't need some dramatic story about Marina's departure's effect on the one she was close to, like some people predicted for Acht. I think some fan comics explored this way better and Nintendo telling their own version would have been disappointing either for it or for the fan comics' versions! We didn't need more insights on Eight, because once again Octo Expansion ALREADY did this. Eight seems happy with their new name and identity, so why should we uncover more? They already won a lot with Octo Expansion and their sacrifices would have been dull if there were reveals on "who they really are".

Nah. Side Order, how I see it, is a story about fixing the damage made in the Octo Expansion. It's a story about recovery. About finally confirming your place in the world and accepting that everything will not be like you think it will. Acht is not there to expose Marina's errors, Acht is there to show how this recovery can work. She symbolises every octoling Marina left when she quit the army and ESPECIALLY every octoling she swore to help. And she's also there because it would have been less interesting to see an octoling we've never seen before, especially since she is an octoling we knew got Kamabo Co.'d! Every palette is someone we already know, an anchor to the world of Splatoon, and for Eight, an anchor to their memories, as the locker was their palette. As they know more and more people, they know more and more where their place in the world is. And the end of your first run? The start of the final boss phase 2? Yeah the music is Pearl, Marina and Acht's. But it is Eight's pulse that got everything back together. Their heart beating made the world beating again. They found freedom, now they found their place in the world. They're finally complete. Like you complete your palette with every chips at once. Octo Expansion final fight was their last fight for freedom. But I think this was their last fight for identity.

But outside of that, I think Order/Smollusk is more than that. More and more we advance through completing the palettes, we learn that Smollusk is the result of Marina's wish for order in her life (and her fellow octolings') and especially the other octolings developers dreams. And I think that's really important, because after that, we learn that why Smollusk still fights us is because it's… alone. And Acht seemingly understands that. You know why this is? Why it doesn't understand Marina's intentions by "betraying" it? Because Marina, as opposed to the other developers and Acht, found someone. She found her partner for life, the love of her life you could say, she found someone else that could offer her something great. And I think the other developers didn't find that companionship, so they had other goals with the Memverse, and Acht, left behind by Marina, felt this loneliness too, taking refuge in music, so that's why she understood what Smollusk felt. I think Splatoon story is a lot about isolation, solitude and loneliness. The (Inkadian) octolings were chased from the surface, living in the underground, isolated and forced into military life. When they risked survival, they stole the great zapfish and we sent then back into the dark. So they retaliated by stealing it again and also kidnapping Callie, separating Marie from the person she holds dearest (while Callie thought she could offer them company and finally uniting back the two people). Octo Expansion was also about isolation from the surface, for everyone involved and Tartar… Well the mammal (and adjacent) survivors don't really have it well, huh? Judd was made immortal, a great lonely situation for one of the last mammals, even if the professor give him Lil Judd for that (isolating the latter from self expression, oops!), Tartar wanted finally someone who could understand the knowledge he was bearing, and in his final instants was longing to return to the professor and for Grizz… We saw what happened in the logs! But this is not where it ends. The first final Splatfest was literally choosing between the Squid Sister, separating one from the other. And when the Splatocalypse happened, we thought it would be the same, that both option were going to be negative. A endless world of anomy where nothing makes sense against a cold and dystopic dictatorship. But we saw Chaos rather meant a world of differences where anyone can be what they want to be and still be reunited with people. So now we see what Order meant: reuniting people by putting them on equal terms. And at the end, that's what you and Smollusk agreed on! He'd be a difficult final boss and you'd be a formidable opponent for him! Splatfests weren't meant to be divisive or anything, it's just a fun way to see what do people choose in their life. So to face loneliness and meet new and fun people, what will you choose? Chaos or Order?

I guess I understand if it wasn't the story you wanted to see. But I liked it either way, as I also struggle with loneliness and finding my place in the world. And as I also like roguelites!

[fisheraser]

SPLATOON 3 NINTENDO DIRECT SIDE ORDER ITS HAPPENING ITS HAPPENING OH MY GOD

okay. analysis time

MY GIRL AAHHH SHES BACK!! okay SO. inkopolis square. but dead. its a bleached coral forest basically. there seems to be this sorta of,, electricity thing going on throughout the trailer that we can see on the lobby tower. overall looks dope as hell

WE HAVE THE FULL FIT!! FOR BOTH GENDERS!! okay first of all what are those ink tanks? sorta looks like those IV bags. same with the outfit,, the shoes sorta look like casts and the clothes look like some sort of sensory deprivation tank suit. a lot of medical vibes going on from the white color and everything. i love it

PEARL BOT! no questions about it, marina definitely made this for her (the wives :D) its interesting that pearl isn't actually there (marina isn't either, ill talk more about my theory later) but she can still talk to us through this robot. also love how marina added the sliding eyebrows to make it more expressive LMAO

i love how we can ride pearl bot as well. i think this will be an important feature, wonder if we can control her when this happens :O

okay what are these? i think the first one on the left is a mem cake, not really sure what the others are though

okay im seeing a theme of electricity and we can see in the background it sort of glitching, so i think side order might a simulation or something. the huge orb in the middle is definitely some fucked up zapfish (where you end the level im assuming), but its glitching and then a ton of the skeleton creatures come out of it

it looks like a ton of dead fish (dedf1sh...?),, we havent seen any octolings that you need to fight yet so these seem like the new enemies replacing them for side order. though i do wonder if we'll ever encounter an evil octoling (or inkling or salmonid, who knows) also are these an entire new species? or just some simulation creature

i also love how instead of ink, its the same electricity we've been seeing used to summon the weapons. this whole realms creation definitely has something to do with marina since its side order and its super technologically advanced

okay WOA numbers. definitely something marina would implement. i don't have much to say about this but yea, im loving the tech-y themes going on. it also seems like pearlbot is helping you fight these guys since she is shooting lasers at them. if she's sorta like small fry, i wonder if we will ever get to use her as a bomb, or if she is automatic

also its confirmed that the octoling is indeed agent 8! i was like 90% sure but im glad its definite

okay the biggest thing about this trailer, DEDF1SH!!!!!!!!!

"just another bystander who got sucked in." what sucked them in? my theory is that marina somehow trapped them in a simulation she made of a world thats orderly- maybe she made it after the final fest?or is this an already existing place? maybe some whirlpool was created after octo expansion and this place exists under inkopolis square?

SHE HAS A NAME!!! ACHT!!!! also i am so glad all of the fan theories were correct and she isn't evil, just still partially sanitized. i wonder if that will be a factor in the story? more dedf1sh lore?

her glasses are different! since she doesn't have the hypno shades anymore she prolly has much more awareness now since she isnt being brainwashed, though she is still sanitized- but i think the music is counteracting the effects of that since shes a dj and shes always wearing headphones

also why is her arm bandaged? what happened to her? also all this time i thought she was wearing a tshirt LMAO

i am a huge dedf1sh fan and i have quite a few theories about her, so i hope she is an important character in the story of side order and we get some backstory

ESPECIALLY ABOUT HER HISTORY WITH MARINA!! they are both djs so that probably is important, but i am really excited to learn more about them. i think marina mightve gone missing and we are looking for her too?

the color chips seem to be like, stat boosts? and also 8 started to gain color once you add them! its sorta like deep cut's colored fingers. wonder if this will be a new feature after the dlc! i loveee customization options

this seems to be the respawn animation which !?!?!? IS SO COOL!?!?!

i have no idea what this is but. oh my god. i am so excited for this. its happening.

[splatsvilles-fashionista]

Splatoon 3 - Chill Season Trailer Analysis

So, we’re about half a month away from the end of Splatoon 3′s first season, and with that we get our first look at what’s to come in the future!

Before we begin digging into this trailer though, let’s start by taking a look at Nintendo’s official press statement about this update, as it gives us a more exact idea of what to expect. To wit, this update will include:

Two new stages, the brand-new Brinewater Springs, and the much-anticipated return of Splatoon 1′s Flounder Heights.

Three brand new weapons and ten alternate kits for existing weapons

A new catalog full of new rewards.

New gear and items for the shops

X Battles

Our first-ever Big Run

Balance changes (not mentioned in the press release, but confirmed in the patch notes from the last balance patch)

Keep in mind that everything I am about to say is speculation, and everything shown in the trailer could still be changed before the Season launches.

So let’s start by taking a look at the two new stages, beginning with Brinewater Springs. While the aesthetic here is really cool, the stage seems to be pretty straightforward, consisting of two large downward slopes that meet at opposite ends of the middle section.

(You can see the enemy team’s spawn in the upper left of this shot)

This makes it a bit similar in layout to Hammerhead Bridge, albeit it with a bit more cover in mid. This is a stage I could see being disliked in the long run, but you gotta admit, the vibes are immaculate.

I didn’t play Splatoon 1, so I can’t comment too well on how accurate this iteration of Flounder Heights is compared to the first game, but from what I’ve heard of other people’s analysis, it seems the only noteworthy change is that the stage’s titular heights were reduced by quite a bit. It’ll still be the game’s most vertically focused stage by a large margin either way, however.

That is about everything I have to say on the stages, so let’s move onto the new weapons, starting with the new Shooter.

It is hard to tell exactly how different this weapon is from the regular Splattershot, but it seems to shoot slower in exchange for more range, making it comparable to the Splattershot Pro (to the point where a lot of people thought it was that weapon’s alternate kit at first).

While it could be because of gear, it is worth mentioning that this weapon’s Sub Weapon cost is very low, less than 50%, which likely means that is has either Burst Bomb, Point Sensor or Angle Shooter. It is also possible that the gear they’re wearing reduce Sub costs, but I personally doubt that the gear shown in the trailers had any abilities at all, as they are only being worn for showcase, and not actual gameplay. This will be the assumption in all cases in which I mention Sub costs for the rest of the post.

What we don’t need to speculate on, however, is this weapon’s Special, as we see it using Killer Wail 5.1 later in the trailer.

While we’re here, we might as well mention this octoling’s gear. They are wearing the SV925 Circle Shades from Splatoon 2, the Squink Wingtips from Splatoon 1, and a brand new, sepia-toned variant of the Apex Sweater. Beiges can be stylish too!

After that, we have a new Roller-type weapon! Aesthetically, it’s based on a typical fast food beverage cup, complete with a lid and straw.

One of this weapon’s gimmicks seems to be that it leaves a massive, Dynamo-sized ink trail as it rolls, while retaining the Splat Roller’s movement speed.

We don’t see this player use their Sub or Special at any point in the trailer, but their Sub cost seems to be above 50%, which means it likely has a bomb of some kind. Fizzy Bomb would be appropriate, I think.

In terms of gear, this player is wearing nothing but brand new gear. A Forge-branded rugby helmet, an Orca Bolero with inverted colors, and pair of white-and-black shoes that I am fairly certain is a recolor of the Ink-Black Clam 600′s.

The last new weapon is a Charger, and while it’s clearly a pen, I’ve also heard it speculated that the contraption it’s set in is supposed to be a drawing compass.

This weapon’s draw (ba-dum tish!) is the ability to charge up and store up to five shots at once, which can be fired up in succession. They don’t one-shot like most Chargers, making it comparable to a Bamboozler with slower firing speed.

We never see it use its Sub weapon, but this cost makes me think it is a bomb or a Sprinkler. We do, however, see it throw out a Tacticooler later on.

This player wears the ever-so-popular Skull Bandana from the first game, and the second game’s Ink-Wash Shirt, and a new pair of blue boots.

With the new weapons discussed, let’s do a bit of a faster rundown of the new alternate kits, and the first thing I wanna point is what seems to have been a mistake on Nintendo’s part? Notice that the player in the above screen is using the regular Splattershot Pro, but whenever they reappear later on in the trailer, they’re using what is clearly meant to be the iconic Forge Splattershot Pro instead.

That’s just a little tangent, tho. Let’s talk details.

 We never see the Tentatek Splattershot use its Special, but it throws a Splatbomb very early on in the trailer in a hard-to-miss shot. They are wearing Splatoon 2′s Jellyvader Cap, a new, black-and-neon green variant of the Berry Ski Jacket, and the Splatoon 1′s Gold Hi-Horses

The Forge Splattershot Pro has Suction Bomb and Booyah Bomb, as is shown right before the Big Run segment. They wear nothing but new gear, a pair of simple glasses with black rims, A white variant of the Ink-Black Paddle jack, and a pair of brown, fuzzy boots,

Moments before, the all-black Luna Blaster (which I am pretty confident is a new design for the Kensa Luna Blaster) is shown shaking a Fizzy Bomb right before that. It is never shown using its Special. They wear a white version of the Ocho Octophones, a new black-sleeved shirt with a white design below the neck, and a new pair of white shoes with red triangles on the sides.

The new Mini Splatling (which based on its color and design is most likely the Zink Mini Splatling) is shown setting up a Big Bubbler and throwing a Toxic Mist, harkening back to the weapon’s Splatoon 1 incarnation. All their gear is returning from the second game, that being the Annaki Beret, Dark Bomber Jacket, and the Annaki Tigers.

The Dapple Dualies never use their Special, but are seen throwing Torpedos at several points in the trailer. They don’t seem to be wearing any headgear at all, which likely means they’ve got the Fake Contacts on, as well as simple white shirt with long sleeves and a pair of black shoes. I looked around meticulously, but I am fairly certain they do not match up to any pre-existing gear.

And with that, I’ve basically said everything I have to say about this trailer. While Big Run is very exciting, there’s not a lot to glean from that segment, other than “man I hope Big Run happens soon.”

I think my favourite part of this trailer, if I had to pick one, is that Nintendo is doing exactly what I was hoping they’d do with alternate kits, and gave the ones with much simpler design changes much more substantive difference so that they are easier to tell apart at a glance.

The Splattershot itself demonstrates this best, as its had very few changes compared to others, but still differentiates itself very well. The waving yellow line present in the original design has been covered up with the ink color to make room for the bold white Tentatek logo. It’s an elegant change, but it works wonderfully. And this is DESPITE being arguably the worst example shown in the trailer. Just look at that stark black Kensa Luna Blaster, or that downright gorgeous Zink Mini Splatling with its white and dark blue design. I am living for this artistic decision, and I cannot wait to see where it leads weapon designs in the future.

[thingsmysplattershotjrtoldme]

DRIZZLE SEASON 2023

I'm going to do a bit of analysis this time on things I found interesting!

First of all, we'll be getting an Anniversary Splatfest - Who would be the Best leader of Deep Cut? Shiver, Frye, or Big Man? (Team Frye rise up and get our girl her win!)

Then along with some badges and banners (as well as double chances of 10x battles), we'll be getting the Deep Cut Amiibos in November! Can't wait for my wallet to cry!

Last of the Twitter updates is that we're getting a Big Run literally the day the new season drops. No news on where or if there's a new King yet!

Now onto the trailer!

First off, more new music! From what we hear in the trailer I like it! Not nearly as much as Yoko and The Gold Bazookas, but it's definitely Splatoony!

Mixing up the order a bit, we have two NEW maps! Pretty sure everyone thought Crableg Capital was Saltspray on the first few seconds, but it appears to be a mid city construction site (perhaps it will come back completed in Splatoon 4 like Hammerhead?) And the other new map is Shipshape Cargo Co., which seems to be a cargo ship in the middle of the artic (how are these kids wearing tees and sandals here without freezing?) I'm no map expert, so I'll leave the good map/bad map debate to more experienced players, but I really like the look of these!

Next are the two new weapons - Dread Wringer and Heavy Edit Splatling! Dread Wringer seems to be a laundry or mop bucket with a wringer attachment that launches two shots per swing. And the Heavy Edit looks like it's a mix between a highlighter and a correction fluid bottle, but I could be mistaken. It seems to have nearly perfect accuracy.

The Gold Dynamo is finally here! And it got clowned on the entire trailer. So it's back but at what cost?

Next up is a cool new feature! The ability to adjust the position of your hat and the size of your shirt (possibly more?) This personally is my favorite feature shown so far, since I ADORE the fashion in this game (pwease give us more gear that just catalog based Nintendo I am BEGGING you)

Next up, Salmon Run! We get the returning stage Salmonid Smokeyard, which I have never played on, so hopefully it's not as horrible as Marooners! And new gloopsuits! With patterns! Fancy! And seeing as the last time we got new suits we got returning Splat 2 Salmon Run gear, that probably means we'll be getting more of those in the shop (I still have two peices I need to get 😭)

New Tableturf cards which reveals the new weapon kits we're getting - Bloblobber, Tristringer, Ballpoint, Brella, Gootuber, Sloshing Machine, Gold Dynamo and Octobrush(plus the two new weapons!) Also now have cards for the Salmon Kings in the illustrated style! I don't think any other salmon cards are illustrated except Lil' Buddy.

And lastly, new challenges! A previously leaked by Nintendo themselves mode with a modded Rainmaker that shoots 3 shots, a fast swimming mode and another special based one, this time with Inkjet!

Currently very excited for this season! Let me know what you all think!

[garrison-of-leaves]

Sad news, Splatoon fans.

The latest patch note from the version 9.1.0 update of Splatoon 3 says that the next update will focus on “changes to the balance of battles based on long-term analysis of battle data”.

This is the same wording that was used after Splatoon 2 dropped its final major update after the 5.0.0 patch, as Nintendo would focus on releasing patches that make balance changes within several month long gaps.

Which means they may actually be done with major content drops for Splatoon 3.

I think it’s actually over. RIP third weapon kits.

[inktheory3]

Me again!(I like your answers) splat 1 introduced 6 weapon classes. Splat '2' added '2' more. Splat 3 has added 2 more classes so far, but to reach the namesake '3' it requires 1 more weapon class. What would you make for the final Splat 3 weapon class.

<3 and I like your questions too!

~

I actually do think 2 new weapon classes are sufficient for Splatoon 3. After all, following this pattern, in the next 10 years we'd have ~20 weapon classes, which would frankly be far too much.

That being said, I have had a weapon class idea bubbling around in my head for a long time, so I'll dedicate a short post to it.

If we look at all the classes in Splatoon, they're mostly all based around combat and dealing damage. The only real exceptions are Brellas (and some individual weapons like the Explosher, Splattershot Nova, Aeropsray, Big Swig Roller, Rapid Blaster/ Pro etc). These weapons can still fight adequately, but they also do other things for their team.

I think there is room for another weapon class with deployables like the Brella shields, but I really haven't given that enough thought yet. Today we're talking about Steamers!

What is a steamer?

Like how Splatanas and Stringers are the Splatoon equivalent of swords and bows respectively, Steamers would be the equivalent of flamethrowers.

There would be a lot of possible inspirations for different main weapons in the Steamer class. Basically anything that heats water or sprays water vapor; a shower head, humidifier, clothing iron, kettle, spraypaint and so on.

Essentially, using a Steamer would cause mist to spew in front of you for as long as you hold ZR. I imagine this mist would cover everything it touches in your ink, which is why I'd compromise it with generally slow movement while holding ZR to manage their potential ink coverage.

When enemies are in your mist, they take chip damage every 0.5 seconds. It wouldn't be a lot of damage, just enough to splat after 2-4 seconds of exposure depending on the weapon you're using. In addition, there would be variable damage in the mist, the centre being a sweet spot dealing the most damage per second, and the edges being sour spots dealing less damage.

In all honesty, I've only really thought about this as 1 weapon so far. There is a lot of potential for 5-6 more unique Steamer weapons, different mist effects, different mist shapes and so on.

I've just named my 'standard' Steamer, called the Deep Steamer, a big blocky humidifier that sprays mist out of multiple vents. It'd be a middleweight weapon with range to spray mist and ink across a large area with decent damage and balanced by its lack of mobility.

~

This felt a lot different to type out than my other posts so far, not really any analysis in this one, just me talking about something that I'd think would be a cool addition to the game! I do think Splatoon is sorely missing an area of effect main weapon, and adding in Steamers would round the game out to include most of the weapon archetypes present in multiplayer games!

[m-a-dragon]

My "analysis" of some of the Splatoon 3 DLC Trailer's frames, ripped directly from discord

Some of these are just kinda spitballing ideas, so sorry if they sound a little out there

Formatting is a little wonky due to being copy-pasted

Spoilers below the (Deep) cut!

Side *Order*. This DLC is Team Order themed, makes sense because Chaos got the main game.

It looks like Pearl is either eating something or speaking into a device. Marina is holding what appears to be some sort of apparatus... possibly a weapon or megaphone. They have pale, round looking outfits, which tracks for Team Order's futuristic aesthetic This is likely the player character. They are holding what looks like 2 different weapons or devices, and I wanna say that's a PDA of some sort dangling from their hip. If you look at the bottom left, there's what looks like another weapon, possibly that of an opponent of sorts due to the difference in ink(?) color. Our player character (i think) is squatting in what appears to be a forest of veins or nerves. It could also be coral, or a combination of those things.

Marina(?) here looks like what I think is a hologram or apparition, due to the glitchy effects in her illustration. If you examine the image closely, you can see that the effects are part of the illustration. It looks like the player character is either looking at their reflection, or another test subject. Will we be able to play as multiple characters? Also who's boot is that, Pearl's? Who (or what) is in the background here? This entrance looks like it could be themed after a swanky hotel, or a temple. Which could also be said for a lot of the architecture in this trailer.

Looks like a sneak peak at the level design. But something tells me the gameplay style and progression is a bit different from the other games...

A clear look at Pearl. She's wearing glasses similar to Team Order gear, and the logo on her sweater resembles that of NASA. Could this be about a space exploration program? Or maybe an interdimensional exploration program... I wanna say it could also be about a VR-based training program. This is her Damp Socks outfit, which I noticed *after* typing that. An alien? Looks like a fossil tbh...

Interesting seeing darker ink colors in story mode Looks like the player character is next to an elevator Idk what this is, but it looks important. This one's juicy. It could be many things. Mass-produced octolings, lined-up test subjects, the player character projecting across multiple realities, the multiple characters you could possibly play as, who knows

Due to the more "hair-colored" ink colors, it's possible there could be some turning humans into octo/inklings here but that's pretty out there What's behind them? And finally, the only fully-rendered "gameplay" segment of the trailer. This could mean they're still developing the DLC but who knows. The geometric look and the monochrome environment make me wanna say it's a VR-type of environment, or another dimension. We also see what looks like the player character, who has brown/gray ink. Also, we have Splatsville and Inkopolis Plaza as hubs, but not Inkopolis Square. Could this DLC involve "freeing" the Square from some sort of rot? Or is it remade as a testing center of sorts?

[gloogapropaganda]

After some consideration, I have come up with a new Glooga kit that I think is pretty reasonable all things considered. Behold, the Glooga Dualies Deco! Analysis below the cut.

So far, it seems like Splatoon 3 likes to combine past weapon kits into one and also tends to use specials similar to ones no longer available. I noticed Kraken Royale fills a similar niche to Baller and Ink Armor of Splatoon 2, both of which were specials the almighty Gloogas had.

Additionally, the Gloogas as of right now have some serious hinderances due to new mechanics. Gloogas struggle to navigate around Killer Wails and Wave Breakers, frequently getting stuck in turret mode AND can’t protect from these with Splash Wall.

Fizzy bombs and Gloogas pair so well together as seen in Splat2 because they help with spacing out your opponents, disorienting them, doing moderate damage, as well as having a favorable ink cost and acting as a poor man’s curling bomb.

Kraken Royale gives Gloogas the edge it needs to overcome its current struggles with the massive onslaught of super nimble fast weapons that run circles around the Gloogas and help it survive obstacles!

If this kit seems too overpowered, just remember they let Neo Splash happen. I am begging Nintendo for this kit!!!

[zkitty8]

ok as someone who has gotten 5 stars with 3 of the 4 stringers available in splatoon and well on my way to 5-starring the 4th one here is my analysis

reef-lux: my first 5-star and oh baby it's fun. curling bomb works surprisingly well for it bc it allows you to shmoove and tenta missiles are nice for pesky long range weapons. tenta missiles were nerfed over a year ago and people need to get over it

reef-lux deco: the funny kit! it makes no sense on paper but when you actually play it somehow it kinda works. splash wall is a bit situational but nice. unlike tenta missiles which are useful almost all the time, with reefslider you have to be careful about how you use it so it's not spammable. the thinking squid's reef-lux.

tri-stringer: has a longer charge time than reef-lux to do less damage which is. weird. but the bombs are fun. you can try and predict where your opponent will go and use the bombs to cut them off. toxic mist is nice for blocking chokepoints and for tower control and killer wail 5.1 is good

inkline tri-stringer: like vanilla tri-stringer but like you've really gotta win at turf war. sprinkler is an odd choice but sometimes you can find a good spot to put one. super chump is alright. you will chip an enemy like 10 times and somehow not kill them because splatoon 3 hates stringers

thank you for coming to my ted talk

[dogtoling]

"Man, I miss Splatoon 1"

A little post on the difference in vibe between Splatoon 1 and 2. If you're one of the OGs like myself who for some reason feels more drawn to the first Splatoon even though Splatoon 2 is basically the same game but better (subjective), boy if this is the thread for you! Splatoon 2 plays better. So many quality of life-improvements. Better performance. More customization. Why does it feel like something is missing? Why do I want to go back to Splatoon 1? What does that game have that Splatoon 2 lacks? What did Splatoon 1 have that Splatoon 2 got rid of? (this is not a comprehensive analysis. i just briefly thought about this and felt like i nailed it a little bit, so read if you're interested.)

What is it in Splatoon 2 that feels incomplete? When you say something is "missing" from Splatoon 2, people who didn't play the first game are probably confused because objectively, Splatoon 2 is just Splatoon 1 but More. That is minus the old Special Weapons, but really, if you replaced the new specials with the old ones, I bet it wouldn't fix it. Now, if you said that around someone who played the first game, a lot of the times they'll agree, even if they didn't think about it too much initially. Something IS different. Weirdly enough, with the experience of playing Splatoon 1, even going back into the first game doesn't really fully satisfy the "Splatoon 1"-itch (for me, at least) even though that's what you're LOOKING FOR, RIGHT? Of course there's the obvious approach of nostalgia value (it has only been like six years, but years bring a LOT more change in setting for kids). There's also the magic of a new franchise and a new game, a new world. Of course things feel cooler when they're fresh and new. But aside from that, there is something that really DID CHANGE in-between games. Splatoon 1 has a magic that Splatoon 2 just straight-up LACKS. And Splatoon 3 looks to me like it might bring that magic back.

Is it the Specials? Partially. Some of the specials in Splatoon 1 were of course overpowered. But that's what made them fun! The "new" specials are very situational and all of them have some sort of learning curve to using them effectively. Which is a pretty good thing in terms of balance, but personally, I find pretty much none of them that exciting. Even then, as I said, if you brought back the old specials to Splatoon 2, that would not fix things. In the same sense that going BACK to play Splatoon 1 with the old specials just doesn't quite feel the same. Is it the stages? We're actually getting PRETTY CLOSE here. One of the things people bring up when talking about the stages is how much larger the stages in the first game were, whereas most of the new stages are very small and cramped. They're designed more for combat.

Okay, I've been taking long enough getting to the point, so let's just get to it. I propose the reason for why Splatoon 1 has such a majorly different vibe that is separate from just "that new IP feel" and "nostalgia". Splatoon 2 is just Splatoon 1: Capitalism Version. Turf Wars commercialized edition. I will elaborate. Splatoon 1 carries a really strong feeling of teenage rebellion. The squid kids come to the streets to fight each other for like no other reason than clout. This is reflected in a lot of ways. These dudes are firing like, ink tornadoes and bazookas at each other in a back alley. For fun!

There's a test range for this stuff... in a back alley.

Compare this to the shooting range in Splatoon 2, which is in some kind of building specifically made for it. Not something that was clearly put together out of necessity in the spare street space out the shop.

The difference in vibe comes off probably the strongest when you look at, yes, the Stages. It is NOT just the size and scale that changes between games. The first game's stages just help forward that idea of all the kids skipping school to come fight on whatever public space they can because... that's just what teens do. They have little groups and they want to be THE BEST and THE COOLEST groups around, so OF COURSE they're going to go take over the local skatepark in a territory squabble.

Let's look at some of the stages that specifically signal this...

Blackbelly Skatepark. It's a skatepark. Naturally teens will gather here, it's the perfect stage for an ink battle!

Bluefin Depot. An abandoned area just out of town that nobody else has business in. The PERFECT place to hang out and battle it out.

Flounder Heights. Literally on the tops of APARTMENT BUILDINGS. You KNOW the people who live here are probably really annoyed at kids going to actual war on their roof, but that's just what kids do. What are they going to do about it?

And my personal favorite for this argument...

Urchin Underpass. It's just a chunk of city underneath a highway. Again, the kind of public space that teens can easily take over and access. The key to most of these stages is that they're very makeshift. Is it a public space that maybe isn't super strictly regulated? Is it (relatively) easy to get to? Does it carry the feeling that you probably should not be launching nukes in it? Sure! Let's go! Moray Towers is a HUGE, towering parking garage that Inklings LITERALLY ARE NOT EVEN ALLOWED IN but they do it anyway. Port Mackerel is a labyrinth of cargo containers; it's perfect! Hammerhead Bridge is a construction site, and you'd be hard pressed to find a better place you totally shouldn't be fighting at than a construction site where everyone's already clocked off. The local teens need a place in the city to fight it out and that's what they do. Of course, some of these stages returned in Splatoon 2. But now that we get to Splatoon 2, we can tackle exactly what changed. Well, let's see what changed, straight up. From some of the new stages, we can immediately see it.

Musselforge Fitness is an indoor stage that is clearly built for Turf War. This is a PREMIUM GYM. There is an entire section clearly built for the purpose of hosting Turf Wars inside of this gym. This was planned from the start.

New Albacore Hotel. This is a high-end premium hotel with a huge, public pool on the rooftop. They also built a Turf War stage here. It's a win-win situation; the Inklings have a place to battle while the hotel no-doubt profits from having a stage on top, not only monetarily but also by gaining publicity.

MakoMart. It's a grocery store. But we know DAMN WELL it's not. It's a Turf War stage built INSIDE of a grocery store, but it is completely secluded from the ACTUAL store. Again, this was PLANNED and it gets the store money from the organization for sure, as well as publicity. Everyone who battles here will see that they sell huge tubs of ice cream for like five bucks.

And this is my personal favorite...

GOBY ARENA! A LITERAL SPORTS ARENA! I don't think you can find a place that was as obviously designed for Turf Wars as a SPORTS ARENA with a stage inside of it.

So what is the major difference in stage design? A lot of the stages in Splatoon 2 are clearly created for ink battling in mind. They're held in areas where Stages have specifically been built with this intention. Private companies and organizations are building stages to invite in players and tournaments. This is in stark contrast to Splatoon 1, in which most (keyword: most) stages carry the intent of teens just walking out in the street and looking for a random part of the city to go to war in.

Of course, this goes both ways: Splatoon 2 introduced Snapper Canal which is pretty much as far into this vibe as you can get, as well as Sturgeon Shipyard which is like half-way there if it wasn't so obviously designed. But it also introduced a lot of stages which clearly require contracts. You don't just go out with your guys and walk into a premium gym to go beat up other teens. The way you WOULD do it if you were instead walking into the abandoned coal mine out of town with nobody there to speak of. (I was going to put "a short post" at the top of this but I didn't because I knew this would happen. In fact, I was going to do a Twitter thread, but I was smart. And I knew this would happen.)

TL;DR They monetized Turf Wars BIG TIME in like the span of 2 years. It really seems like a situation where turf wars were just considered a chore and a thing that kids just do. It's whatever, they do it in the back alleys, go figure. Then somebody figured out the monetary potential of Turf Wars and suddenly they moved from the streets to the private companies and their very heavily-regulated Baby's First Jetpack special weapons and HAMPSTER BALL!!!!!

It's turned from a heavily cultural thing that people just do into a commercialized sport. This sort of carries over when you look at the music, of all things. Most of the music in the first game is chaotic. Weird punk rock and squid metal. In the second game, a lot of mainstream music takes its place. The kind that you'd hear in the radio that would be played to DEATH.

In Splatoon 1 Turf Wars, doing good makes you a local legend. The king among other squid. In Splatoon 2 Turf Wars, doing good probably means you've got 15 sponsors and you're on your way to the World Championships and have a long career of being a world-class athlete in front of you. Is this an improvement? Maybe. Not to me, though.

Anyway I don't have much else to add to this at the moment. But what do you think? Did this make any sense whatsoever or was it completely off the mark? Let me know... thx for reading yet another Essay

[splatoonneo]

Splatoon Neo: Bubble Bow | Art Process Video

Bubble Bow (D-koi)(Aluka Net)

- Hold the ZR trigger to charge a bubble shot of ink. The longer it’s charged will increase its distance, with a max distance matching the E-liter.

- After charging the shot to its max, the bubble you shoot will be able to bounce off surfaces before it pops.

- While charging, a laser will appear following the trajectory of the shot. It will also show how it will ricochet and be visible to all players.

- The combined damage from the impact from the bubble popping and the bubble colliding with an enemy at max velocity is greater than 100.

Design + Kit Analysis:

A dangerous tool used by humans to hunt sea life combined with a toy that brings the youth joy. The Bubble Bow is a fearsome weapon in the hands of a player that’s great at making 3D calculations. The projectile bubble will bounce off of surfaces at blazing speeds. Even if you’re around the corner, you’re still in kill range if the Bubble bounces it’s way to you. The rubber duck bubble solution changes the way the bubble interacts with surfaces. Keep in mind that it pops at the end for extra damage, but a critical is already enough for a splat.

Don’t fall for the trap that BB players usually use to trick enemies into their sights. The D-Koi sub weapon makes it look like a player is swimming around in their ink. It’s remote controllable and it can splat you as well. Try to spot the fin that hangs out of the surface, then splat it when you feel like it’s a safe time to.

The Aluka Net is a new special that’s thrown out into the stage as a huge net that can disrupt multiple players. If you’re caught you’ll be slowed down as of hit by a disruptor sub from Splatoon 1. The net is designed so that users can toss it in from afar and collect their catches for splats. Players affected by the net cannot escape by super jumping until the special wears off. Repeatedly turning from a kid to squid has been noted to let some players escape the net early by chance.

If you want to splat a BB player, you’ll most likely have to rush in and use their charge time against them. But be weary of the uncharged shots, they don’t travel very far and pop very quick. This is similar to how Luna Blasters will get splats but the bubble bow has to get 3 indirect uncharged hits to splat. 1 crit at low charge is equal to two indirect hits. (Only max charged direct hits splat in one hit)

Follow for future updates and more new weapons!

[queenkamui-kingcorrin]

Ninjala Analysis: FINALE

Well this is it. We are just a few hours away til the OFFICIAL official release of Ninjala. After many months of polish and delay,we will finally have it our hands(and by hands I mean our micro SD cards) and as such this will be the final part to this analysis. So sit back and enjoy the ride.

First things first before we get started,let’s take a look at this graph of the weapons that were used in last month’s beta from Dev Diary 5. In a surprising take,both the Katana and Drill were tied for using the most used weapon. I would’ve thought the drill would’ve been used a teensy bit more but since the katana is the beginner weapon and probably the more ‘easier’ weapon to use,it wouldn’t be that hard to imagine. Next in 3rd place is the SK8 Hammer(which I recently found out it reads as ‘skate’ and not ‘S-K-8′,which I kinda understand now cause there’s a skateboard attached to-anyway...)used by 20% of the players. The good things about hammer is that it has powerful damage,you live a bit longer and it has it’s own weapon breaking move. Downsides of course is that it’s very slow to control and if you don’t plan your moves beforehand,you’re going to get severely punished by a faster weapon like the drill. Additionally you move slower as well. And in last place is the Trick Ball with only 16% of the popularity. The reason why it wasn’t it used as much is because the devs said it’s more of a technique weapon so you would have to plan out your combos more with the ball than with the other weapons,plus you have great speed but significantly lower HP so you would probably focus more on surviving than getting ippons....if you’re even lower on HP. The rest of them just showed off the popularity of the gear items which I don’t think you need to see as it is based on personal preference although the Street Ninja Garb+Jane’s Sunglasses are the best combo don’t @ me

Now that we got that out of the way,it’s time for even more info!

In the beginning of Dev Diary 5,they show us the Scroll Blade,one of the new Katana-type weapons. In addition,the avatar is wearing what seems to be a penguin on their head,new glasses and the gothic dress that was shown in the season 1 pass.

As they mention,they have a more original Gum Shoot type which shoots out 3 kunai. When your S-Energy meter goes to the blue,it adds an extra kunai for a total of 4.

They also showcased one of the newer ninjutsus called ‘Piercing Mixer’,which gives them a bowl,mixer and they’re mixing...the gum...huh..

If you played a little game called Splatoon 2,you know that this special plays almost similar to,if not,EXACTLY like Sting Ray. For one,they’re both a long laser beam(or in this case for Ninjala a gum beam),both can shoot through walls,both have a effect where you can see your opponent on walls like Thermal Ink and if I’m not mistaken,you can control your character and aim with them as well. Unlike Sting Ray though,this was yet to be nerfed but I wouldn’t be surprised if they did it in the near future.

Here they showcase a new hammer weapon called Drum Beat. It’s ‘Y’ attack is a shock wave attack where if you get hit you will get stunned on contact. Think of it like Killer Wail...except it’s close range,has an electrical effect and it doesn’t kill you on contact..

Finally,they activate the special called ‘Dragon Lord’ which we saw in the announcement trailer. This may not be the ‘best’ way of showing this but it happened all so fast that I couldn’t get a proper screenshot but the way that it works is that the dragon hones in on you and you’ll get smacked by it. As dangerous as that may sound it only takes around half or more than half of your HP bar. If it was more lower than full then I would see it as a dangerous threat....considering how much chaos happens every 10 seconds in each match.

And yeah that’s pretty much it. Other than the anime short that’s coming tonight,the Ninja Re Bang Bang remix coming tomorrow and another livestream on the 25th,that’s pretty much it for the Ninjala Analysis. I’ve had a lot of fun with this series and just giving all sorts of info that I can give to you. Do not fret though as this is not the end of our journey. As I mentioned in the last part,this was made for all sorts of pre-release stuff and I’ll do more of these post release but more focusing on new story modes and future seasonal passes and those will be separate. Oh and just as a warning,Gungho has confirmed that the servers will be live starting tomorrow at 10 PM EST. If you’re unsure on when it happens for you if you live in a different time zone,check the Ninjala website or google your time zone+when the servers go live. If you still have not predownloaded Ninjala from the eShop,today’s your last chance to do so as it will end around 19:00 PDT. But yeah I’ve ranted long enough. Thank you all for sticking by me through all this time,I hope you all enjoyed and...well,NINJALA! See you next time!

Also if you’re wondering if I’m gonna review the previous dev diaries and older trailers and such. To that I say no because 1,there’s just way much more stuff to go through and B,I have very little time plus I would have to watch them all in a row...

[inktank-thinktank]

Splatocalypse Now

My friends, the final Splatfest is upon us. And you know what that means. Plot implications for Splatoon 3.

We have been looking over the material released for Splatocalypse, and have prepared some analysis and interpretation, to not only help you make what you deem is the correct choice for the Splatfest, but also to prepare you for what is to come.

I’m warning you now, if you click into the Read More, there will be major spoilers for nearly every aspect of the Final Fest: Splatocalypse event, INCLUDING datamined material. Enter at your own risk.

First, we should note the theming. 'Splatocalypse'. This theme of a Splatoon apocalypse pops up in many places in the material we are to observe, and seems an almost overbearing theme. Nintendo is being direct this time - what happens is going to deeply impact the world of Splatoon.

Indeed, the music that plays during the trailer, according to the Live in Makuhari album coming out three days after the Splatfest ends, is called 'Haikara (Inkopolis) Memorial Mixtape', by DJ Octavio.

EDIT: OatmealDome has informed me that Haikara Memorial Mixtape is likely a NEW song that we have not heard yet! The song in the trailer is most likely ‘SPLATOCALYPSE （ファイナルフェス 告知映像BGM）’ (SPLATOCALYPSE - Final Splatfest Announcement Video BGM), the immediately previous track on the album.

After a brief summary of Splatfests to-date, we open to Pearl and Marina. When Pearl is on-screen, we get a sound effect of rushing flames, while Marina is accompanied by sounds reminiscent of computers and technology. This is notable, especially when viewed in combination with other material, giving us an... 'inkling', of what is to come. The first thing that I think needs considering in combination with this is the Splatfest gear.

What we see is quite telling.

In English, the gear names are ‘Jetflame Crest’ (the motorbike helmet), ‘Fierce Fishskull’ (the fish skull, obviously), ‘Eye of Justice’ (the helmet with the screen on it), and ‘Hivemind Antenna’ (the shades).

As per this Reddit post, which we will be referencing a lot going forward, the names are ‘Burning Broiler’, ‘Giga Fishbone’, ‘Justice Brain’, and ‘Cosmic Antenna’.

Team Chaos’ gear puts off an air of being very ‘Mad Max’-inspired, very befitting of both ‘chaos’ and the apocalyptic themes. It is also worth noting that the helmet containing the word ‘broiler’ in the name is a connection to the Salmonids, who we know from the Splatoon 2 Ikasu Art Book use cooking implements as weaponry because they see life and death and consumption of other living things as all part of a cycle.

Similarly, we know that sunglasses of the shape the Hivemind Antenna / Cosmic Antenna take have historically been linked to Octarian mind control technology, such as the hypnoshades worn by Callie and the Octolings you fight in Hero Mode 2.

It is not difficult then to surmise that Team Chaos ties in to the concept of a Mad Max style apocalyptic wasteland, somehow related to the Salmonids, while Team Order ties in to the concept of a false utopian society controlled by mechanisms of technological oppression.

Now, moving back to the trailer...

Over the course of the trailer, we are shown who is on each side, out of the major characters. I will summarize our beliefs as to why each character is on each side, as this will influence later covered topics.

TEAM CHAOS

Starting with Team Chaos, we have the Salmonids. This is quite obvious. The Salmonids have always been agents of chaos, chiefly known for overrunning early Inkling settlements and even going as far as consuming the Inklings within.

There is also Iso Padre, which may come as a surprise to some. However, as a former test subject of TARTAR’s, it is clear he would want as little to do with ‘order’ as possible when presented the option. He seems okay with Kamabo Co. in Octo Expansion, but in a way that seems...detached, wistful, almost like he’s given up on a life free of oppression.

Spyke is another obvious one, being a gangster and someone who, y’know, steals stuff and runs an actual pyramid scheme.

Agent 4 is also fairly obvious; official art depicting Agent 4 has always shown her to be a trickster of sorts, and less serious than her predecessor, Agent 3.

Callie is also an obvious one, being the spontaneous, excitable, freedom-and-fun-loving one out of the Squid Sisters.

Flow, being a ‘hippie’ of sorts, likely is on chaos in terms of ‘personal freedom’. And, y’know. Being able to be high all the time most likely.

For Annie, the first game implies that out of her and Moe, Moe is the one really ‘in charge’ of things, and, well... Moe is hard chaos. Play Splatoon Wii U, guys.

Li’l Judd is Team Chaos because as we know, he has an inferiority complex and resentment for Judd, being his clone, and generally is more of a tricksterish character. Also, being a kitten, Li’l Judd would likely be more playful, again ‘chaos’ as in ‘freedom’.

Pearl lays out her motivation for being Team Chaos rather starkly in the Splatfest announcement (which we will get to later).

And, I saved this one for last, because it’s somewhat surprising... Despite the Octarians being Team Order, Octavio is Team Chaos. This could be due to a thinking that he must win at any cost, and a willingness to use manipulation tactics to move his people towards supporting his war on Inkopolis. It could also be due to a mental slippage from so many repeated losses.

“But wait!” I hear you say. “If Octavio is Team Chaos, why are the shades, ostensibly tied to hypnosis, a Team Order gear piece?”

I would argue there that the hypnoshades, while used by Octavio, fit more into the Octarians’ wheelhouse of order through technology and regimentation.

TEAM NEUTRAL

Judd being Team Neutral is obvious. He judges the Splatfests, and unlike Li’l Judd, is generally more ‘neutral’ in tone.

Sheldon is probably Team Neutral because, well, he sells you weapons no matter what side you’re on in Splatfest, so...

And Mr. Grizz is Team Neutral because he’s out for his own interests, which exist apart from all other teams (note he’s apart from the rest of Team Neutral, and upside-down).

TEAM ORDER

Cap’n Cuttlefish is Team Order for having been part of the military, as well as actively fighting for the safety and security of Inklings.

Marie is Team Order being the more relaxed yet traditional one of the Squid Sisters.

Agent 8 is Team Order being an Octarian, and thus a part of their regimented society.

This brings us to the Octarians in general, who are Team Order being a regimented technocracy where large focus is put on people serving a specific function (see Marina’s Chat Room), as well as again the technological oppression aspects. They may also be simply following Marina, as we know that Agent 8 idolizes her, and that the Octolings who escaped to Inkopolis did so because they were inspired by her.

C.Q. Cumber is Team Order because, as Nintendo has stated, he really wasn’t concerned with what TARTAR was up to, he was just doing his job. Order at its finest.

TARTAR is Team Order for obvious reasons. It desires ‘order’ in the sense of purging the capricious, impulsive Inklings and petty, warlike Octarians, instead replacing them with a new ‘superior’ race of beings, created from its successful test subjects.

Agent 3 is Order because, well, she made the idea of ‘being the hero’ a central part of her identity, see adopting the ‘3′ cape into her outfit (something she had no reason to do).

Jelfonzo being Team Order makes sense, given that Nogami has stated that the Jellyfishes are all actually a large hivemind organism, who may have a significant hand in sponsoring Turf War, suggesting since Turf War is according to the Splatoon Ikasu Art Book largely subsidized by the government, the Jellyfish hivemind has a significant hand in Inkopolis’ government as well.

As with Pearl, we will discuss Marina’s choice more in-depth later, as it is looked at rather deeply in the Splatfest dialogue.

The only ones who we cannot seem to figure out are Murch, Bisk, and Crusty Sean, however we know that Sean has some...strangeness to him, only accepting tickets and getting defensive when you point this out, and the ‘Crustwear XXL’ shirt, a shirt advertising his food truck, being Grizzco gear. Perhaps he supports Team Order because of an involvement with corporate bureaucracy?

Similarly, my best guess with Murch is that, since he only engaged in the gear scrubbing and ordering scheme because he idolized Spyke, he realized at some point that Spyke was a criminal, and wanted to distance himself.

Now on to the leading ladies themselves. Pearl’s reasons for being Team Chaos run VERY deep, and a larger overall analysis is necessary.

Pearl’s motivation for Team Chaos seems to be primarily rooted in wanting a world that is ever-changing and not static, finding a world that stays the same boring and uneappealing. She also seems to act somewhat as an agent of chaos, declaring in the Splatfest dialogue both in English and Japanese that whichever side wins the Splatfest will be the form the world takes going forward.

In the English dialogue, she invokes ‘Splatfest law’, which is something created wholesale by Nintendo of America, however the implication either way is that whoever wins will remake the world in their own team’s image.

Additionally, in the Japanese dialogue, Pearl states “all I know is I don't want a world that's always like this!“, spoken in the same sort of way as when someone says things like ‘I wish things would be like this forever’.

Marina’s reasons for being Team Order as well are somewhat complex. She is primarily worried about stability and control over her life and her situation.

In fact, Pearl’s statements about Team Chaos, in the Japanese dialogue, are replied to in ways that show that she’s worried that Pearl would eventually even grow bored with Off the Hook, and flippantly want that to be over and ‘change’ as well.

It’s worth noting that Marina’s theming shows an erring towards technology, and technological order as we’ve seen before usually is something dangerous in the Splatoon universe. This may hint at what direction ‘her world’ would go in if she wins the final Splatfest.

Marina does, however, express trepidation in the Japanese dialogue about reshaping the world in the winner’s image, only doing so because Pearl is pushing things in that direction.

Moving forward, we will be addressing the assets and imagery the game has been preparing for the Splatocalypse event, and how that ties into the theming of a Splatoon apocalypse.

First, and the elephant in the room... ‘Dear Senpai’, or as it’s being called by Nintendo of America, ‘MC.Princess Diaries’, the new Shifty Station stage.

The stage is quite obviously based on another brush Inkopolis has had with the apocalypse, that being the NILS Statue fight from the Octo Expansion, where Pearl and Marina, with the help of Agent 8, narrowly stopped TARTAR from destroying Inkopolis. The fight, and indeed all Turf Wars in the Final Fest event, come complete with the discordant Turf War intro sound from Octo Expansion, and Dear Senpai comes with Hyperbombs and the ‘Princess Cannon’ (the Killer Wail from the first game). Information from OatmealDome states that three sets of Hyperbombs each appear throughout the match, each time consisting of two per team, while the Princess Cannon is spawned once per match for one player to use in the form of Pearl coming down from the helicopter outside the stage.

We know that Team Chaos is strongly coded to involve Salmonids, and we know Team Order is strongly coded to involve technological oppression, but again per OatmealDome we have our first look at how this would play out.

The stage chronologically takes place after the NILS Statue fight, with the wreckage of the NILS Statue seen in the background, being tended to and examined by Jellyfish, who again are part of the Inkopolis government. And, if you recall during the final fight, the NILS Statue is utterly swimming in TARTAR’s corruptive ooze, as well as the remains of TARTAR itself. Could we perhaps see the return of TARTAR via the Jellyfish hivemind? This would explain also how it would be Team Order despite being ostensibly dead.

You may wonder why I haven’t discussed the actual terrain of Dear Senpai, or the post-Splatfest dialogue. In fact, Nintendo pushed invalid dummy data in its place to prevent data mining. In the case of Dear Senpai, they pushed the Shifty Station from Frostyfest, and in the case of the post-Splatfest dialogue, barebones dialogue with nothing beyond a winning team announcement.

As most should already know, the Final Splatfest will have all 23 previous Shifty Stations on a rotation, two every two hours like the other maps, before running Dear Senpai for the final 24 hours. Interestingly, while we know that Dear Senpai is to take up the full final 24 hours , the two hours immediately preceding it also have only a single Shifty Station stage: Tentacle Warning / Sweet Valley Tentacles, the Shifty Station from the Squid vs. Octopus Splatfest. As a brief aside, all of the Shifty Station names in Japanese are puns on manga titles, and all the ones in English are puns on novels.

This is what the Inkopolis Square skybox will look like during the Final Fest. A video showing the Square with this skybox and Splatfest mode on can be found here. We don’t know what the Square‘s event decorations will be, if any, but this immediately brings something to mind: Blade Runner 2049.

Screenshot from the relevant point in the movie for reference.

Furthermore, at this screen when you press ZL+ZR, this sound plays. Sound familiar? It sounds to me like the clock tower bell in Majora’s Mask. In fact, both are the same note, a C4.

Additionally, we know that the music for the Final Fest is a combination of Off the Hook and Squid Sisters music. Per OatmealDome:

New battle music for Final Fest!

Ink Me Up by Squid Sisters (Splatoon 1)

Shark Bytes

Calamari Inkantation

Fly Octo Fly

New 1 minute left music!

Now or Never! by Off the Hook, feat Squid Sisters

Now or Never! by Squid Sisters

This suggests that the Squid Sisters are to play a major role; however they do not appear in any of the Final Fest assets, meaning this likely is hinting at them playing some role in the Final Fest’s impact on Splatoon 3. This is corroborated by their appearance in the Splatocalypse trailer, wearing Pearl and Marina’s signature crown and headphones, respectively.

In closing, I think it can be easily surmised just what is going on. Team Chaos has strong ties to Salmonids and a theme of Inkopolis being overrun or falling to ruin. Team Order has strong ties to TARTAR and themes of technological oppression and control. The Splatfest announcement dialogue implicates Pearl or Marina respectively as bringing on a possibly related, possibly simply additional, chaotic or orderly world for each bad outcome to exist in. And the strong focus on the Squid Sisters implicates that, yet again, Callie and Marie will be pitted against each other.

It is truly a matter of ‘pick your villain’. Except unlike Splatoon 1, where the loser was the one who was turned against us, and instead of being against her will... This time the winner, or at least the winning side, is the one who will turn wicked.

Who and what form will this take? Only time will tell.

[splatsvilles-fashionista]

A quick little analysis of the Splatoon 3 Version 4.0 Balance Changes

Alright, so the 4.0 patch notes were released yesterday, and they're very interesting, so let's talk about them! It's a mixed bag and one of the few times where a lot of the changes feel very intently aimed at the competitive scene. Let's get into it!

Carbon Roller will now reach top speed faster when it's rolling. This is just a teeny little mobility buff, and it won't change much, but Carbon Roller was already a weapon with a decent spot in the meta (at least with its Deco variant), so it didn't need many changes either way.

Octobrush had its ink efficiency increased, which also means that its Zipcaster duration is increased as well, as the drain on the Special gauge is tied to your ink tank while Zip is active. This is another small tweak that likely won't have a massive impact on Octobrush's viability, but it's definitively positive.

Snipewriter gets some usability changes, with a buffed strafe speed and increased ink efficiency, notably meaning it can now get three full charges out of a full ink tank. This weapon is still largely held back by its kit, and it could still use some buffs to its object damage, but if you've been pushing this weapon either way then these are welcome changes!

This is the first of the nerfs to the big comp weapons, amounting to a 10% nerf to Splash's painting range. I've seen a lot of people wave this off as a slap on the wrist, but I think it matters a lot more than people give it credit for? A nerf to painting range means it will paint worse and get fewer specials, and the good paint and special output are some of the primary reasons these weapons get picked. Combined with the points for special nerf on the Neo Splash further down the patch notes and I have a feeling that in 4.0 Neo Splash is going to get pushed out of the meta, with Tentatek Splattershot taking its place.

Sloshing Machine gets it the worst out of all weapons this patch, as every slosh after the first comes out a twelfth of a second slower. This means the weapon fights worse, paints worse, moves slower, and is in general just worse in almost every single aspect. A very harsh nerf for what has been one of the most defining weapons in Splatoon 3's lifespan so far, but I think people are going to keep picking it anyway, as its kit remains one of the strongest in the game.

And the final Main Weapon changes in this patch are some big nerfs to Splatana Stamper, hitting the size of its horizontal slash projectiles by 14% and its ink efficiency by a whopping 30%. For the record, Stamper currently gets 25 regular slashes, or 11 charged slashes, on a full tank, and with the nerfs those numbers should be reduced to about 17-18 and 7, respectively.

The funny thing about these changes is that while they are some of the harshest nerfs numerically, they might not actually matter that much? Stamper is currently a largely gear-independent weapon that is pretty free to do whatever it wants with its abilities, so all this really means is that it now has to invest in some Ink Saver Main. This is actually a pretty familiar situation to me specifically because as an Explosher main I got hit with this exact same ink efficiency nerf in Splatoon 2, and if the slow, clunky, cumbersome Explosher can survive a nerf like this, the nimble, adaptable Stamper can too, no question asked.

With that said, let's go over the points for special changes, all of which are nerfs. Neo Splash went to 210 (as a reminder, Tentatek, arguably a better main weapon to begin with, has 190 for its Triple Inkstrike), while Rapid Blaster Deco and Ballpoint Splatling, two of the most prominent Inkjet weapons right now, are increased by 10 points each. I'd argue Rapid Blaster did not warrant the nerf, but Inkjet is one of the best specials right now, so it's fine.

Now for the last part of the patch, the Special changes:

Big Bubbler is getting some pretty big, albeit situational, buffs. An increase in size means that the bubble protects more space and is harder to hit on the weakspot on top, as it's further up and therefore more difficult to reach, but being bigger also means it's a bigger target.

While they aren't very specific about which Specials it'll take less damage from, datamining has shown that it now tanks four Inkjet shots to the weak point, protects from a full ten-missile barrage with very little effort, and can even survive one Triple Inkstrike hit, though just barely. By contrast, Crab Tank still tears through the weak point fairly easily, and Booyah Bomb, Ultra Stamp, and Reefslider all shred it instantly.

These are potentially very big changes, and Inkjet is very likely going to take a very dominant position in competitive play following this patch, which would be good for Big Bubbler, but the weakness to Crab Tank and Booyah Bomb will definitively keep it in check. It's hard to predict how good it'll be, so all we can do for now is wait.

The Tacticooler changes are super wordy, but simple in practice: The drink lasts for 2 seconds longer, and the Special Power Up will scale better with smaller amounts, though the maximum duration (with three pures of Special Power Up) remains the same. Before 4.0 Tacticooler lasted 15 seconds and a single sub of Special Power Up increased the duration by an entire second, so with 17 seconds base I have to imagine that getting it to 20 seconds will be pretty easy now. Tacticooler is likely to stay niche, but these are still some cool buffs!

Super Chump gets a slew of buffs. The chumps paint more upon landing, deal more damage with their outermost hitbox, and can be aimed closer to your own location.

These changes are unlikely to catapult Super Chump into the competitive meta, but the increase in damage and paint makes them bigger threats if you use them to push in and fight while they're up, and being able to aim them closer to you makes it easier to do that. A very appreciated set of buffs for sure.

And finally, what has been for many the most puzzling change in the entire patch, Ultra Stamp has its duration reduced by 1.5 seconds, with a buff to the Special Power Up scaling at lower ability amounts. I've thought a lot about this change, and I am pretty convinced now that it is aimed squarely at newer players.

Put yourself in the shoes of someone who picked up Splatoon 3, never having played any of the games prior to this, yesterday. You're still getting used to the motion controls, to moving, to managing your ink tank, and how to play with and against all of the various weapons and specials. To newer players like this Ultra Stamp, after all of its quality-of-life changes, must be fucking terrifying. Here's an enormous hammer that can hide in ink if it wants to, charging straight at you, blocking your shots, and even if you manage to avoid being run over you still have to account for the massive shockwaves it creates that'll also kill you if you're not careful.

And like, it's easy, maybe even a bit tempting, to just go "oh well we really shouldn't account for newbies when balancing a competitive game", but the lower skill brackets are the real lifeblood of the game, consisting of a much, much larger percent of the community, larger than the competitive scene ever can or will come close to. You have to account for these people's experiences too, and try your best to find ways to appease them as well.

Competitive game balance is perhaps one of the most thankless, Sisyphean tasks imaginable. It's like sitting in front of a table covered in tens of thousands of turn dials, and being tasked with ensuring that none of them are turned too far or not far enough while not actually knowing where those boundaries actually are. Additionally, those limits will sometimes change without you knowing, and sometimes turning a dial also turns another dial on the other end of the table.

Also if you leave a dial turned too far for too long people on twitter start sending you death threats.

I'm not envious of the Splatoon devs at all.

[smashmusicideas]

June 25: How the Ultimate Trailer Works So Well

Amongst all the thoughts and discussion regarding Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, I don’t think any individual element of the game - even more than the confirmation of Ridley - warranted the level of adoration and excitement as not just the inclusion of every Smash character ever, but the short “Challenger Approaching” trailer explaining that.

So I decided I’d take some time and analyze it for how it works. Hoo boy, did that take longer than I expected.

For ease (and because I’m, well, lazy), I’ll be splitting this up into bullet points. I should also note that I’m avoiding a lot of stage analysis except in certain cases, largely because the emphasis on fighters is the focus. Also, this is quite long, so a “read more” tag is needed for this one.

Before the video: Sakurai adds this whole “character numbering” element, which is odd. Most viewers less familiar with this scheme (which has mostly always existed within the series) assumed this indicated the total number of characters from the start, but more than that it inherently acknowledges cut characters, something Sakurai tries to avoid as to not make their fans feel worse. No matter who is watching, it’s odd, and sets up the actual video in a way that feels odd.

00:02 - 00:15: We see Battlefield, something which since Brawl has always functioned as a focal point for the series - kind of in the way Mario does, too, which is why he appears here. Traditionally, Mario is also the character who reflects the visual direction of each game the most, so his “Brawl meets Smash For“ art style confirms it as a new game, one that will marry multiple iterations of Smash.

0015 - 00:28: Kirby, Samus, and Bowser are all Smash staples (two from the first game, one from Melee). They’re also not in numerical order, telling us to not expect things in a “normal” way. They also more clearly show a few returning stages, Castle Siege and Green Greens in particular, and Giga Bowser seems to function in a far new way.

00:28 - 00:34: Link is also one of the central Smash characters, but his drastic redesign tells us further that this will be a new iteration - one that will look to more recent games, at least in part (we also see a new Breath of the Wild stage, alongside Temple). Keep in mind that he gets a huge amount of time to emphasize this.

00:34 - 0:44: We see a lot of Donkey Kong (including a change to his Giant Punch), but it’s Falco’s appearance in 00:42 that’s surprising. He’s typically and understandably a hidden character; showing him off is kind of bizarre. For most viewers, it’ll just seem nice for a beloved character to return, but for the more attentive first-time viewers it is somewhat odd and continues the off-kilter vibe of Sakurai’s introduction.

00:44 - 00:48: Marth casually shows off the new changes to Shield Breaker, just like with DK earlier. Further indication that old fighters will have, to quote Sakurai from a decade ago, a “slightly different flavor this time around,” and that it won’t simply be an expanded port of Smash for Wii U (this emphasis will continue throughout the video and into Nintendo’s continued promotion of the game.

00:48 - 00:52: New Zelda! Not really new Sheik! Their having their default costumes implies they will remain separate fighters, and Zelda’s in particular bucks a trend of Zelda and Link’s costumes coming from the same game.

00:52 - 00:54: Our first post-Melee fighter, Villager, shows a new ability. His appearance also begins to move us from the more classic Smash fighters into a wider variety of ones new and old.

00:55 - 00:58: Meta Knight and Mewtwo. Notable for the former being the first Brawl character in general and the first one shown, and for the latter being the first Pokémon representative - before Pikachu, even. Mewtwo also looks like it did in Smash For, an indication the DLC would not be ignored.

00:59 - 01:01: And here comes Sonic - with a new version of Super Sonic and a returning Green Hill Zone in tow - as the biggest guest fighter out there, though that doesn’t confirm whether less established third party content would be joining him.

1:02 - 1:08: Peach and Pikachu, each with slight new changes in how Toad and Volt Tackle work. It��s notable how long it took to get to either of them, though their being more famous leads nicely into...

1:09 - 1:15: the Ice Climbers! Their return is such a big moment it’s hard to notice we’ve also got a returning Summit (and Living Room), and they unsurprisingly get a whopping six seconds to show off how they look in HD.

1:16 - 1:21: And from a beloved, long lost fighter to a highly desired new one, Nana and Popo formally introduce Inkling, with both a male and female design in tow. We get a good look at how diverse their weapon selection is, alongside a new Splatoon stage.

1:22 - 1:27: Pretty much the only thing we need to see with Falcon is the Punch, while Zero Suit Samus and Wii Fit Trainer show that even the less “iconic” of the cast aren’t going to be ignored. Given Boxing Ring’s centrality to Smash For, its being so prominent here makes sense.

1:28 - 1:30: here’s where things get weirder. The Ice Climbers coming back makes sense, but the Pokémon Trainer? I don’t really think it’s vague on whether the switching mechanic will return (he’s in the back, so...), but it’s out of the blue in a way none of what we’ve seen here is. That it only lasts about two seconds makes it all the more shocking.

1:31 - 1:36: Ness and Lucas. A little surprising for the former, given his traditionally being a hidden fighter, and more so for the former, who was last in the series as DLC.

1:36 - 1:41: The DLC concern becomes even more noticeable now, with Ryu fighting yet another normally hidden fighter: Ganondorf, surprisingly sporting the classic Ocarina of Time design Melee used. It implies a far greater amount of changes than what we were initially expecting, and assures the less confident of us that even third party DLC will not be ignored.

1:41 - 1:44: And look who else is looking new, but Ike, who’s reverted to the design Brawl used...except he isn’t. While the Inklings were expected to have male and female versions, this is the first indication we’ll have more pronounced alternate costumes for specific characters.

1:45 - 1:51: Cloud’s inclusion is another important one at this point, because compared to other guest fighters, the possibility of his return seemed far more up in the air. He gets a lot of airtime, space that comfortably confirms his two outfits and Omnislash, a great flashy move to send us into the big moment.

1:52 - 1:55: If Cloud’s return wasn’t a sure thing, than Snake’s was a pipe dream for fans (myself included). Having one go to the other is smart, because after him, Ice Climbers, and Pokémon Trainer, Snake‘s chances feel so much more possible. And it works so well. We don’t see an attack, or anything, because we don’t need to. It’s Snake, on Shadow Moses Island. That’s enough for us, until...

1:56 - 2:01: “EVERYONE IS HERE!” really just speaks for itself, but I’d also like to note the small feature of Snake running right after the words appear. It’s subtle, but it’s a flash of energy leading to the rest of the video (an energy that is supported by the music, which becomes far more intense up until the end). And it’s important to him be behind the words, because by this point a viewer is processing them, recognizing the totality of what that means.

2:02 - 2:04: And to prove how serious that claim is, Jigglypuff - the last of the original cast (minus Luigi and Yoshi) - brings back Pichu, likely the very fighter most people would think of after hearing that “everyone is here”: “even Pichu?” That the joke character of Melee has returned is proof of the claim, an example of how insane and wild this project is planning to be. But despite how notable it is, the two Pokémon are onscreen for only two seconds.

2:15 - 2:18: Truthfully, the next few reveals are less exciting. Roy is the fifth DLC character revealed to return, but Olimar, Diddy, and Lucario are all fairly normal. But it’s with Lucina that we get yet another oddity. She’s 21ε - an indication that something different was being done with the then-called “clone characters.” It’s yet another indicator that Smash is going to be different, and in rather unexpected ways.

2:26: It’s not a big detail, but Dr. Mario lacks the Epsilon, indicating that he’s different from how he used to be (given that he, Lucina, and Dark Pit are associated as the Echoes of the previous iteration of Smash, it stands to reason people might look for that on him, too).

2:30 - 2:32: And there’s Dark Pit literally one shot after Doc, with the Epsilon. It’s important to keep it all in mind more easily. I also think it’s notable that Palutena’s moveset isn’t shown at all in here; it’s one more thing about which Sakurai’s been coy.

2:39 - 2:42: It’s important, I think, to have the two versions of Link show up together; it highlights how they’ve both functioned as spinoffs of one of Nintendo’s (and Smash‘s) most important heroes. By this point, Young Link is the final character (again, other than Luigi and Yoshi) who came from a game before Brawl; he’s important as one more reminder of this game’s scope.

2:46 - 2:49: And if there were any fighters whose fate would seem as up in the air as any third party character, it’d be the Mii Fighters. And yet, they’re all here, too. And like with Palutena, we see no customization or anything beyond some very basic attacks.

2:55 - 2:56: Despite not being a huge surprise, Pac-Man’s new Final Smash (or new version of Super Pac-Man, technically) is fast, really fast. And that’s good because it kicks up the pace right to the finish. Like, it’s weirdly intense to watch at that point.

3:00 - 3:03: Wolf! While calls for him were probably not as loud as those for Snake and the Ice Climbers, he has remained a beloved Smash character and a fighter people really wanted. Having him here is good for a bunch of reasons - he was the last newcomer in Brawl, his style works really well for this point in the video - but probably the most is that people really wanted him back especially. And holding off on that until now helps emphasize this game’s scope.

3:04 - 2:08: Mega Man needed to be the final main shot for a lot of reasons. He’s a beloved gaming and Smash character, he’s got name recognition, and especially because his Final Smash is the best way to send off us. It’s just this huge blast that keeps up the momentum right until the end.

3:11: And we have the title. “Ultimate” really is perfect word for this, a video that is pretty much just about the history and power of Super Smash Bros. 

3:16 - 3:20: ...But it also wouldn’t be Sakurai without some goofing around, so we let the air out of all this pomposity with some silliness from Luigi and Yoshi. I think it makes sense for more reason than Sakurai often using those two for mirth. The Brawl trailer had all this bombastic, dark energy...but then Wario showed up and farted. The first Smash For trailer seemed exciting and crazy...and then Wii Fit Trainer appeared; almost all the character trailers after it had stingers afterwards, mostly goofy ones. It’s a good and important statement that Smash will always be goofy and weird. And you got that in some individual shots (Dedede and Wario, for instance), but it’s a deliberate anticlimax that mocks you, but only slightly, for all the energy you’ve hopefully gotten from what is a very long trailer, all things considered.

So, what have we learned, aside from me realizing I need to come up with shorter topics for this blog? I think it’s that you could have made this announcement any way. Sakurai could’ve just shown the character selection screen, Nintendo could’ve put it out in a press release, or they could’ve just not mentioned it entirely (though that’d be insane given that “everyone is here!” is the game’s tagline). But a video was the best way to do it. And I think this way was the best video they could’ve realistically made. Every fighter gets to show off a ton of personality in a couple seconds, and by basing the whole video around being before or after Snake, it can position the ideal fighters in a way that lets viewers slowly realize how much grander this is going to be than they realized. It’s all just great design in general, and more than just a really cool trailer that showed things off.

(Link to my writings on Super Smash Bros. Ultimate)