Splatoon - Wii U exclusive - May 2015

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Platform: Wii U
Release Date: May 2015
Genre: TPS/Platformer

Splatoon is an upcoming third-person shooter video game developed and published by Nintendo for Wii U, which is scheduled for release in May 2015. In Splatoon, the player shoots colorful ink at opponents as well as surfaces, which the player character can swim through to hide from enemies, increase movement speed, or climb up walls. In the online multiplayer mode, two teams vie to cover more of the map in their color of ink, while in the single-player campaign, the player infiltrates an enemy octopus army that uses its own arsenal of ink weapons.

As far as games in 2015 go, Splatoon is right up there as my most anticipated game of the year. Announced at E3 2014 it has won tens of awards and captured the imagination of journalists and gamers alike. As far as new IPs go, Splatoon looks to have a fantastic start. Originally it seemed to be online only but since it's first appearance Nintendo have announced there will be a fully fledged single player story to go alongside the core part of the game. This will take place in more a 3D platformer environment.

Features:
-5v5 Online
-Private Lobbies
-Full Character Customization
-15 weapons confirmed so far, 4 main weapon types
(More TBC)

Gameplay:
 
Nintendo has released some info about the game this week. Here's an excerpt from a press release, outlining new details about online multiplayer:
http://nintendoenthusiast.com/news/nintendo-publishes-new-press-release-about-splatoon/
...Nintendo also revealed a new multiplayer mode called Ranked Battle, which keeps track of each player’s online ranking. Splat Zones is one of the additional ways to play online in this mode. As opposed to Turf War, which will be available to all players as soon as they begin playing Splatoon, Splat Zones lets players try to control the territory of specific areas of the map with their ink blasts. As they play these ranked modes online, they will have the opportunity to increase their rating from “C-” to “A+,” which will be dynamically updated based on their performance. Players will need to achieve an in-game online Level of 10 by leveling up their Inkling in Turf War online matches before gaining access to these additional modes. As a result, once the game launches in May, Nintendo will track the global progress of players as they gain levels, and once a critical mass of players has achieved Level 10, this additional mode will be unlocked for players who meet the ranking criteria.
Splat Zones has been described as a sort of "king of the hill" mode, where you have to hold out until a timer counts down to zero.

I also found this quote lulz-worthy:
GameSpot
The ink swimming mechanic is the most unique and interesting element in Splatoon, whether you're using it to cross the map or to pop in and out of cover. It provides depth and strategy beyond what many shooters offer, which rarely extends beyond weapon choice and positioning.
Oh, but of course, Splatoon is a "casual" shooter because of its colorful and goofy theme/aesthetic. ;)
 
Nintendo has released some info about the game this week. Here's an excerpt from a press release, outlining new details about online multiplayer:

Splat Zones has been described as a sort of "king of the hill" mode, where you have to hold out until a timer counts down to zero.

I also found this quote lulz-worthy:

Oh, but of course, Splatoon is a "casual" shooter because of its colorful and goofy theme/aesthetic. ;)
You might like this @Wolfe , some single-player footage

 
That gives a pretty clear impression of the contrast in jumping ability between the two forms. 👍
 
I really like the look of the single player having watched even more of the last trailer. The amiibo functionality looks great too, custom equipment unlock and 20 'challenge' missions to unlock credits. They also look fantastic:

Splatoon-amiibo.jpg
 
^ It is indeed funky in a good way. It seems this game will be steeped in the "weird" side of Nintendo audio design.

By the way, having read the official statement on voice chat, I couldn't be any less surprised by the reason given for omitting it:
Yusuke Amano
This is coming from personal experience. When I played online games, I didn’t like the negativity I got and people telling me, 'You’re crap. Go away.' So we wanted to focus on the positive aspects of online gaming.

I don’t want you to misunderstand—I’m not denying having chat in an online game does contribute to fun. But, as we’ve said, we want to grab new people.
A shame for the people who will miss it, but I won't. Often enough, it's a toss-up whether I want to play with strangers over the internet in the first place, much less listen to their chatter. I had kinda expected the functionality for playing with friends, though.

It could be that Nintendo would also like to maximize bandwidth for gameplay purposes; I think I recall a quote to that effect regarding chat in SSB4 (which still suffers from laggy input anyway).
 
The soundtrack reminds me heavily of Jet Set Radio which is a great thing.

Reg. Voice Chat, it is a shame that it will be left out for those who use it but I really could care less. I would still choose Skype 100% over in-built chat functions in consoles, although the PS4's works well albeit with a few hitches every now and then as expected. I would be chatting with friends anyway, most random people in voice chat rooms tend to be ignorant and arrogant. Oddly. text chat rooms and message boards encourage the opposite behavior with people being far more understanding before talking to them over actual VOIP calls.

I suppose it is just human nature for people to get irrationally annoyed in the heat of intense moments - which I am sure Splatoon will have an abundance of.
 
There's a "Global Testfire" demo available for download that grants access to three multiplayer stress test sessions (one hour each) this weekend:
  1. Friday -- 8:00pm Pacific Time
  2. Saturday -- 4:00am PT
  3. Saturday -- 12:00pm PT
That's pretty cool; I don't think I'll be available for the two later sessions, but I intend to check it out tonight.
 
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@AOS- -- I was talking about the built-in lag from the gameplay synchronization in the netcode. Rather than occuring in real time, your actions are synchronized with all other players before they appear on screen, to prevent lag from causing something that happens on your screen to not actually register with the other players (which happens with items in Mario Kart 8). I haven't spent very much time playing SSB4 online, but I never had an online match in Brawl that didn't delay your actions by a fraction of a second, either.

This test for Splatoon indicates Nintendo is taking the online multiplayer focus of the game seriously, which is kind of interesting.
 
to prevent lag from causing something that happens on your screen to not actually register with the other players (which happens with items in Mario Kart 8).

Stuff like that is why I gave up on battle racing games.

I haven't spent very much time playing SSB4 online, but I never had an online match in Brawl that didn't delay your actions by a fraction of a second, either.

This test for Splatoon indicates Nintendo is taking the online multiplayer focus of the game seriously, which is kind of interesting.

Smash4 is a huge improvement over Brawl as the latter's netcode was fairly unplayable even with a LAN adapter. I too look forward to see how well of an online experience Splatoon can offer.



Also, sorry for AFKing on you earlier. I thought I would get a message notification of some sort.
 
On the demo: I'm impressed. I was having enough fun that I didn't even notice the time, so I thought something went wrong when the hour ended. :D I underestimated the value behind the focus on territory as opposed to kills. I've played a handful of FPS/TPS games in my time, but I've never ever been a part of the multiplayer scene because twitch shooting is not a skill I possess. However, with the Splat Roller I was the MVP of multiple matches within the span of an hour.

Your results vary based on your team, naturally, but it seems like one player who's good at their role can help carry the team. As long as everyone was covering territory or keeping enemy shooters busy, matches were pretty even. I didn't feel like the Splat Roller was overpowered, because you're very vulnerable to shooters. Having a friend tag along to provide support might be effective. :)

I'm generally not a big fan of online-multiplayer-centric games, but this was a pretty painless experience -- there's even a minigame on the GamePad screen to occupy yourself during matchmaking -- and I enjoyed it more than I thought I would. 👍


@AOS- -- I've read the LAN adapter doesn't actually allow for faster data transfer than the Wii U's wifi chip (it mostly provides extra stability), so I wonder if I would benefit from one or not.

As for SSB4 earlier, I could have sent you a message, but the notification is weak (I only incidentally noticed the message you sent), so instead I hopped in to see if you were in an online room. You weren't, and then I found out that my game is throwing a disc read error code, even though the disc is clean. Based on some googling, the most recent update may be the problem, because I never downloaded it until today. I'll have to look into it.
 
I was thinking Project CARS would be my most played game this year, then I tried the Splatoon demo and WOW. What a home-run. Roll on May 29th!
 
Just a reminder for everyone interested, the Global Testfire resumes this weekend on Saturday for one final time. Unfortunately its only for an hour again but it should be a nice taste before the big release. :D
 
FYI, @Classic and @Benny44 (and anyone else?), I intend to snag a copy in a couple hours, but I might not really have time to play tomorrow. I could potentially catch you guys over the weekend. :)
 
FYI, @Classic and @Benny44 (and anyone else?), I intend to snag a copy in a couple hours, but I might not really have time to play tomorrow. I could potentially catch you guys over the weekend. :)
11390158_10205804047933105_6731133441407787125_n.jpg


Well I'll be on quite a lot this weekend most likely. :D


SO HYPE.
 
I'm gonna get a late start on this game :crazy:. At my new job I get paid monthly, on the 5th at the latest. I'll be getting shot by you two....a lot. At least at first :D
 
I'll preface by reiterating that I wasn't super excited about a multiplayer shooter. Going back to the original Unreal Tournament and Half Life mods, I've never enjoyed playing them online, because I'm not l337 enough to accomplish much. Going into Splatoon, I expected to enjoy the singleplayer quest most of all.

Well...I ended up playing Turf Wars until 4am and only tried the first singleplayer level before going to bed. :lol: Matchmaking was quick and smooth, the matches are tight and fun as long as no one drops out, and there's always something to do to help your team at every moment. Could this be a game I'll actually appreciate playing online?

I played with Japanese players a lot of the time and only encountered two or three hiccups, so things are pretty solid. We'll see how it goes in the coming week.

P.S. -- This game oozes style and personality. :)
 
Guys who already have this game, just so I know once and for all, may I ask if there is offline split screen, and what controllers this game supports?
 
Ninty does it again. ;) @AOS- Only gamepad for single player, only 1vs1 offline multiplayer.
I'll preface by reiterating that I wasn't super excited about a multiplayer shooter. Going back to the original Unreal Tournament and Half Life mods, I've never enjoyed playing them online, because I'm not l337 enough to accomplish much. Going into Splatoon, I expected to enjoy the singleplayer quest most of all.

Well...I ended up playing Turf Wars until 4am and only tried the first singleplayer level before going to bed. :lol: Matchmaking was quick and smooth, the matches are tight and fun as long as no one drops out, and there's always something to do to help your team at every moment. Could this be a game I'll actually appreciate playing online?

I played with Japanese players a lot of the time and only encountered two or three hiccups, so things are pretty solid. We'll see how it goes in the coming week.

P.S. -- This game oozes style and personality. :)
 
Then I'll pass on this game unless my friend gets a Wii U Splatoon bundle.

I'm sure it's a great game, but I'm trying to avoid immersing myself in solo online games simply because there are plenty of other wonderful things I could be doing.
 
I really don't understand why people are saying the roller is OP, as long as you know how to tackle them they aren't too powerful at all. Shoot at their feet, then finish the job. :D
 
Holy crap.

That final boss battle is absolutely incredible. One of my favorite all-time bosses in video games for sure.
 
@Classic -- You've already vanquished the Octarians, and I haven't stopped playing online. :lol:

I think I've learned how to be pretty effective with the roller. I hadn't really spent much time with it since the Global Testfire, but I kept ending up on teams with weak defense, and my Splattershot Pro was an ill choice to mop up the turf they were neglecting. It occurred to me that I was trying to do a roller's job. On the plus side, I think playing as a shooter gave me some insight into what a roller needs to do, lessons you might miss if you spend all your time rollin'.

I joined up with nintendwan today, too. I wasn't sure which one of you was at the controls, but that was a nice change from all the lobbies with random jerks wielding Aerosprays.
 
Yeah that was danielle herself playing, shes gaining a wicked skill set now so I'm getting scared. :scared: I actually done the single player in one 7 hour sitting. :lol: :lol: I really wanted to just have it done so I could focus on the online! I've been using the Splattershot Jr recently, that seems to be my most effective gun but considering switching to the Jet Squelcher.
@Classic -- You've already vanquished the Octarians, and I haven't stopped playing online. :lol:

I think I've learned how to be pretty effective with the roller. I hadn't really spent much time with it since the Global Testfire, but I kept ending up on teams with weak defense, and my Splattershot Pro was an ill choice to mop up the turf they were neglecting. It occurred to me that I was trying to do a roller's job. On the plus side, I think playing as a shooter gave me some insight into what a roller needs to do, lessons you might miss if you spend all your time rollin'.

I joined up with nintendwan today, too. I wasn't sure which one of you was at the controls, but that was a nice change from all the lobbies with random jerks wielding Aerosprays.
 
I had buckets of fun playing with you and Danielle today, @Classic. :D I might be on again to try the new stuff, but I've actually passed the GamePad to @Mrs Wolfe, who's giving the game a try herself. In your words: Ninty does it again. :)
 
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