Splatoon

 Wii U
User Score
8.7

Generally favorable reviews- based on 1429 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1,235 out of 1429
  2. Mixed: 104 out of 1429
  3. Negative: 90 out of 1429
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  1. thewwwyzzerdd
    Jun 5, 2015
    9
    New IP from Nintendo and they hit it out of the park! I wont explain the concept of splatoon since you can easily find a trailer or video review that will do that better than me, but I will say that the game does everything it tries to do extremely well. The weapons are surprisingly well balanced, and even with only a handful of maps and 2 multiplayer modes every game feels fresh.

    In    New IP from Nintendo and they hit it out of the park! I wont explain the concept of splatoon since you can easily find a trailer or video review that will do that better than me, but I will say that the game does everything it tries to do extremely well. The weapons are surprisingly well balanced, and even with only a handful of maps and 2 multiplayer modes every game feels fresh.

    In multiplayer lobbies fill up fast with 8 players then they get divided randomly into 2 teams. after the match is over the teams are shuffled, dropped players are replaced and you go again. Some people complain about the lack of voice chat, but in this case while i wont argue that voice chat could have been utilized well here, I honestly dont feel like it detracts from the experience. games are fast and maps are pretty tight, if you need to be told what to do, or tell someone else what to do its probably too late already.

    Ranked mode adds a nice refreshing take on king of the hill, its fast and frantic. This mode has more competitive matchmaking with a c- through a+ rating system. you gain more points and experience for winning but unlike in standard turfwar you will often gain no exp and lost ranked points if you are on the losing team. The only exception here is if the time runs out rather than the enemy team winning by holding the objective for 100 seconds.

    Lets talk single player. The single player here is a real unsung hero. The levels are well designed, the story surprisingly deep. The story mode teaches you everything you need to know about the games mechanics to jump into multiplayer, but does so without resorting to putting you in wattered down death matches with enemies. The turf war scenario or splatzone (king of the hill) mechanics are never used once in the single player. It has its own gameplay identity focusing more on movement mechanics, and platforming.

    So some will argue that the game was shipped "incomplete" because nintendo is releasing new content steadily over the summer (and presumably beyond), but honestly the game was solid out of the box. Dont get me wrong it wasnt the most robust experience ever, but Ive paid 60 bucks for way worse games with way more content and much less quality. This game was great out of the box and gets better with every content update.    … Expand
  2. perydwyn
    Jun 5, 2015
    7
    I am not too sure how to sum up my thoughts and feelings on Splatoon as they seem to change slightly with each play session I have with the game. Lets start with the good aspects:

    *The controls are absolutley spot on. Tight coontrols are very important for this kind of game, and both the motion controls and the traditional analogue stick methods work very well, with no lag. If you can    I am not too sure how to sum up my thoughts and feelings on Splatoon as they seem to change slightly with each play session I have with the game. Lets start with the good aspects:

    *The controls are absolutley spot on. Tight coontrols are very important for this kind of game, and both the motion controls and the traditional analogue stick methods work very well, with no lag. If you can get used to the motion control scheme (it took me about an hour of play for it to click) it is the superior option. The level of precision that can come form slight tilts of the gamepad is better than even mouse control for shooting.

    *The animation is flawless, all running at a slick 60fps.

    *The cental game idea of claiming territory through paint is imaginative and fun, and makes the game (which is essentially a third person shooter) feel so fresh and new.

    *The game pad integration is really good. With the lack of voice chat (see below) being able to see what your team is doing on the gamepad and then instantly jump to their location is a great touch for adding more strategy to proceedings.

    Now the bad:

    *Lack of modes. At launch there was only a single online mode. Another mode was unlocked a few days after release, and yet more are promised in the coming months, but I can't rate the game on what could be released later. The single online mode at launch is good fun, but with a 3 minute timer it is far too short. Often you feel like you are just starting to get a grip on the current battle when it ends abruptly. The single player is surprisingly good for what is essentially an online game...but it is pretty short (should last about 5 hours).

    *Lack of voice chat. I HATE voice chat in most online games as it generally just decends into teenage brats shouting obscenities at each other. But in a game like Splatoon which is about teamwork, not being able to communicate with your team is a major let down.

    *Clunky interface. There are lots of small annoyances with the UI, such as having to listen to pointless chit chat from NPCs when all you really want to do is buy something, or even just jump into a match. There really should have been a skip button to avoid hearing all the pointless dialogue.

    As I said, it is hard to sum everything up as every time I play I generally have a new feeling about the game (sometimes better, sometimes worse. Overall I think it is a fun game, but it doesn't quite feel like a first party Nintendo game...It feels more like a good indie game, or an e-shop title.    … Expand
  3. mewtilator
    Jun 3, 2015
    10
    At first I thought I was a kid, but then i realized I was a squid. Also this game is incredibly fun, anyone with a Wii U should get it. Games are short and fast paced, sweet fashion choices and A+ memes by other users.
  4. alan666
    Jun 3, 2015
    10
    This game is marvelous. It is filled with personality and customization options. It makes ou addicted to paint everything. The thrills of playing online are incredible, and the single player campaign is nice.
    After playing Splatoon, other FPS's looked like they don't have life.
    Highly recommended!
  5. imapera
    Feb 17, 2016
    10
    Best WiiU game, it was from release date and now it have enforced that condition! Absolute brilliant game in each and every its aspects.

    New, fresh, addictive and perfectly done. 10/10
  6. leopoldo
    Jun 29, 2015
    8
    Splatoon is a game focused on multiplayer. The game is exclusive to the Wii U, and one of the best. The story is quite simple and childish, but that was the idea (I think). Customization is extremely simple, and there are few different weapons, but those that appear in the game are great. The multiplayer is basic and simple but incredibly fun, the graph is in cartoon style and there areSplatoon is a game focused on multiplayer. The game is exclusive to the Wii U, and one of the best. The story is quite simple and childish, but that was the idea (I think). Customization is extremely simple, and there are few different weapons, but those that appear in the game are great. The multiplayer is basic and simple but incredibly fun, the graph is in cartoon style and there are few bugs, you will not have many problems with it. Has three annoying problems in the game, first: the lack of communication between players is very bad in a multiplayer game without it is not possible to plan tactics with your friends, this diminishes the fun of the game; Second, the online games are very short; Third: Nintendo has a bad online network, make the matches fall often. In the end, Splatoon is an extremely fun multiplayer game, but with some annoying problems, but surely one of the best Nintendo game that year. 8/10… Expand
  7. vegitojt
    Jul 8, 2015
    9
    The only online shooter I really Like
    It's a new concept with tons of inavations on it.
    A lot of weapons and new content every week being unlock, so we can enjoy the game little by little and have something new to play
    I have no problems with the conection
  8. Andjelico95
    Jun 6, 2015
    8
    (This review is about the multiplayer)

    I'm not a big fan of multiplayer games, but this game has a revolutionary, exciting, fresh mulitplayer mode, i am not disappointed at all! I have tried the single player mode, and it was good, but playing online was better on this game, which is a shock for me. The gameplay is fun on many ways. You can level up, collect coins, buy new weapons    (This review is about the multiplayer)

    I'm not a big fan of multiplayer games, but this game has a revolutionary, exciting, fresh mulitplayer mode, i am not disappointed at all! I have tried the single player mode, and it was good, but playing online was better on this game, which is a shock for me.

    The gameplay is fun on many ways. You can level up, collect coins, buy new weapons and gears, and obtain different abilities, lovely! There are few maps (Very nice maps!), but there will come more soon.
    The soundtrack on this game is amazing too, it's so different.

    The graphics and psycics are sweet on this game, you can almost feel and smell the ink.

    There is also a addictive mini-game while waiting for a battle start on multiplayer mode, i will give a big plus for that too.

    This game is easy to learn, and fun to master. Good job Nintendo, as always!    … Expand
  9. Berezau
    Jun 2, 2015
    9
    Splatoon is a great new spin on the shooter genre. Plenty of gear, weapns and strategising for different playstyles. The mechanics and short length of online matches keep things dynamic and snappy. Short, but very enjoyable single player campaign (the last boss is great!). Yes, limited content amount on launch, but the gear, weapons and various stats make for dynamic options. AbsolutelySplatoon is a great new spin on the shooter genre. Plenty of gear, weapns and strategising for different playstyles. The mechanics and short length of online matches keep things dynamic and snappy. Short, but very enjoyable single player campaign (the last boss is great!). Yes, limited content amount on launch, but the gear, weapons and various stats make for dynamic options. Absolutely brilliant new game.… Expand
  10. Jorick
    Jun 12, 2015
    10
    Great game, a lot of colors! For a non FPS player, it's really fun. Objective based gameplay. Kills help but it's not the main goal! Customization of you squid is fun, and the single player campaign is done really good!
  11. mrreviwer
    Jun 26, 2015
    8
    Splatoon is a great game and it's totally worth your money. But they should add a xbox 360 version. Please help me spreed the news . I think the single player mode was perfect. I recommend this to you.
  12. Polymorph85
    Jun 26, 2015
    10
    One of the best online multiplayers to date. Reinventive, and makes you tilt and turn the controller on other consoles/shooters to get that perfect aim.
  13. TheDarkMudkip47
    Jun 27, 2015
    10
    Splatoon is nintendos best game ever and you know what it might save the wii u it's the best shooter ever because it's not that hard to get used to and easy to get at least decent at it and if you want to get into shooters try to start at splatoon
  14. echa
    Jul 3, 2015
    9
    This is a game I really can recommend for everybody, especially if you're a fan of Team Fortress 2 kind of games! I love the splatoonfest idea, gives something to wait and compete for.
  15. redubs
    Jul 4, 2015
    9
    The only reason I bought a Wii U. Worth the £160 for Wii U premium and Splatoon. I've been playing it for a week and still enjoying it just as much. A new game mode came out a day or two ago, they keep adding new content this keeps me coming back for more. Really enjoying this game, my game of the year so far.
  16. Dartek
    Jun 4, 2015
    9
    Splatoon is a great game, with a fresh propose, you can think that the game is incomplete but actually Nintendo is doing a great work updating it and adding more content, also you can really use the amiibos, a must have for the Wii U
  17. syphist
    Oct 10, 2016
    0
    Absolutely terrible online connections. I paid to have a good time, and losing my connection a minute into EVERY match is terrible. I wish I could redeem a refund on this game.
  18. vreynauld
    Jun 13, 2015
    5
    I don't get all the praise for the game. If any other shooter launched with this little content, they'd get destroyed in the reviews and rightfully so.

    You can reach max level in multiplayer in about a day and a half of decent play time. There's no skill or rank based matchmaking so fresh level 1's can find themselves dominated by a team full of level 19's and 20's with everything    I don't get all the praise for the game. If any other shooter launched with this little content, they'd get destroyed in the reviews and rightfully so.

    You can reach max level in multiplayer in about a day and a half of decent play time. There's no skill or rank based matchmaking so fresh level 1's can find themselves dominated by a team full of level 19's and 20's with everything unlocked in the game. Spawn camping is easy to do on several maps (the skatepark, for example) with roller and inkbrush spam. Nintendo has opened up two new maps but there's still only a total of 7 and you can only ever play 2 per mode per 4 hours. Since the game pairs you up with no regard to location, rank, or skill, the lag is absolutely horrendous as you end up with players from all corners of the globe. No real transparency on the scoring system means the map might look like your team has won but, in reality, the other team beat you by several percent. Vendor gear resets every 24 hours and after a few days you'll start seeing repeats. The first Splatfest is coming next weekend but it only lasts 24 hours! Single player is novel but also short. Easy to beat in one session if you really wanted to. This doesn't even get into the $35 amiibo paywall for more single player content.

    It's colorful and charming for a while but ultimately shallow and vapid.
    By the time the August Update hits only the diehards will be left.    … Expand
  19. R7critical
    Jul 18, 2015
    5
    Splatoon was a disappointment, sadly. I had high hopes for this game due to all the hype surrounding it, but I was really let down. Lesson learned: (again?) Don't trust the hype for online shooters.

    ONLINE GAMEPLAY: Everything is level gated, Players of max level have an enormous advantage in equipment and weapon choice. You have no freedom of choice to choose the map you would like    Splatoon was a disappointment, sadly. I had high hopes for this game due to all the hype surrounding it, but I was really let down. Lesson learned: (again?) Don't trust the hype for online shooters.

    ONLINE GAMEPLAY:
    Everything is level gated, Players of max level have an enormous advantage in equipment and weapon choice.

    You have no freedom of choice to choose the map you would like to play, you are limited to two maps every few hours of which one is selected for you at random. If you don't like those maps, too bad? Come back later? Not an acceptable answer in my opinion.

    Weaponry comes in sets, this means you are often stuck with a sub-weapon or special you don't enjoy using just because you like the main weapon, there is no option to customize the sets.

    Supers are attached to weapon sets and can be amazing (the kraken - invincible and instakills) or completely useless (killer wail- gives too much warning)

    Matchmaking is completely random and you will frequently end up fighting against players who have maxed out their rank and are wearing finely tuned gear even though you just started playing.

    Customization of your look is almost non-existent, as you must choose your clothes based on the primary bonuses they provide. Almost everyone seems to be wearing gas masks, camo hats, and blue moto boots.

    You are not rewarded based on your individual progress so much as on if your team of random people were able to collaborate better than the enemy team, you receive a large point and money bonus based on victory or losses, so if you had the highest score but your team was asleep, you are punished. This is especially the case during the mandatory event "splatfest" where you are awarded half the splatfest rank points for losing than winning, and if your overall team loses the event you receive half the upgrade items that the winning team did.

    There are a few obvious contenders for "Best Weapon" in the game, so you see these weapons in almost every match. Aerospray, Gal, and Carbon roller come to mind.

    Most weapons are one or two shot kills, so often confrontations are all about "who was behind who" or "who has longer range than who"

    Splatfest events ARE MANDATORY. YOU MUST HAVE MANDATORY FUN CITIZEN. NO YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED TO PLAY OTHER MODES DURING THIS TIME OF MANDATORY FUN.

    SOUND:
    I hope you like unintelligible "squid-pop" consisting of an annoying high pitched nonsense language, and the same few songs OVER AND OVER AGAIN!

    No voice chat for friends or premade groups. Hope you have skype or teamspeak!

    VISUALS:
    Not bad, the graphics look pretty good on this Wii-U title. You don't get much time to admire them in the actual game mode though since every second not smearing everything in your color coded ink is essentially defeat.

    ONLINE CONNECTION ISSUES:
    Unless you have a very fast internet connection you WILL have problems with Splatoon.

    Connection lost, "why isn't my ink showing up" and "why is everything the enemy's color now it was mine a nanosecond ago" were frequent problems, especially when playing with people who were obviously overseas.

    Requires an always on internet connection to access most options such as stores.

    SINGLE PLAYER GAMEPLAY:
    Probably the best part of Splatoon, but sadly very short and you can 100% finish it in an afternoon.

    Normal enemies are ridiculously easy as they are COMPLETELY unaware of your presence if all you do is hold the squid form button and throw grenades. Bosses are the only challenge, and those are still rather easy to defeat. The final boss however does become almost tedious by the time you reach his final form.

    The weapons in this mode actually feel really good and you can customize your loadout, as well as upgrade it.

    Content is locked behind the purchase of three specific amiibos, your collection of amiibos besides these will do nothing, so much for first party games supporting your amiibos.

    FINAL WORDS:
    I am glad nintendo is trying new things, but I would like it if they took the time to review other games of the genre they are getting into and perhaps cut out the really bad bits such as leveling up in an online multiplayer versus game.

    If they just have to keep levels in, then perhaps they should gate off maximum level players from playing against people who just started, and some kind of score based matchmaking system that does not pair you with W33DG0KU420 who is too busy doing bong rips to touch his controller VS a team consisting of maximum level players from japan who've had a long time to practice at this game and are almost guaranteed to cause weird lag shenanigans. VERDICT: Rent/Borrow. Enjoy the single player mode for an afternoon, ignore the online component. Do not buy.    … Expand
  20. Tubey
    Jun 2, 2015
    6
    A really nice take on the shooter genre, with vivid colours and spot on art design. The problems lie in its' depth - very few maps and a very obvious lack of depth in terms of multiplayer options. This game would be a blast if more care had been put into the meat of the title as much as the aesthetics.

    As it stands, it's a really good game, albeit one hampered by Nintendo's desire to    A really nice take on the shooter genre, with vivid colours and spot on art design. The problems lie in its' depth - very few maps and a very obvious lack of depth in terms of multiplayer options. This game would be a blast if more care had been put into the meat of the title as much as the aesthetics.

    As it stands, it's a really good game, albeit one hampered by Nintendo's desire to stay in the year 1992 at all costs when it comes to multiplayer. This wouldn't be an issue if it were not for the genre of the game itself, but a shooter in 2015 lives and dies by its' multiplayer offering, for good or bad. And it needs to be solid on release too, because the multiplayer community for games die off quick when it has no depth to keep it coming back for more (see Evolve for evidence of this).

    I can see it dying off really quickly, I really can. I'd recommend avoiding and picking up cheap for the single player experience in a few months, because there really is nothing to be had here for someone looking to invest time in multiplayer.    … Expand
  21. Revenant87
    May 30, 2015
    6
    Its nice to see Nintendo try something new with shooters, and whats there is pretty enjoyable in short bursts. The problem is that in its current state the amount of content the game offers is more fitting for a budget indie title than a full price major game.

    Theres a single player campaign that contains some imaginative and enjoyable boss fights but its overall fairly short and basic.    Its nice to see Nintendo try something new with shooters, and whats there is pretty enjoyable in short bursts. The problem is that in its current state the amount of content the game offers is more fitting for a budget indie title than a full price major game.

    Theres a single player campaign that contains some imaginative and enjoyable boss fights but its overall fairly short and basic. Obviously the main attraction is the online multiplayer, but sadly right now it has only two game modes (and i'm being generous since its basically just ranked and unranked) and a mere 5 maps. The lack of maps is further exacerbated by the baffling decision to only make 2 of them available at any one time, switching it up to a fresh pair every few hours. Add to this the short length of the battles (3 minutes) and you are going to get familiar to the point of tedium with the maps very quickly. Whats more these maps are not especially huge, intricate or varied either. Theres the usual level progression, weapon upgrade etc stuff as well as headgear, shoes and shirts you can buy that come equipped with special abilites but overall its pretty shallow stuff. The lighting quick pace of the matches and the same two maps being repeated over and over especially makes it hard to really maintain interest for extended periods of time, feeling more like something you dip into casually for half an hour here and there.

    I gave the game an extra point just due to the fact that the amount of content will increase over time. However at this very moment Splatoon is simply too one dimensional to justify being a full price purchase when held against the gaming world norms of 2015.    … Expand
  22. oLTooN
    Jan 5, 2016
    3
    This game is awesome, great, brilliant and funtastic. Its original, adictive, and unique in its kind. It's impossible to define it with words, it's something that you have to try to understand. It offers a completely new way of online gaming, you can make team with your friends or search unknown foes randomly in 2 or 3 online game modes, and you know what? I HATE THIS GAME.
    I hate it    This game is awesome, great, brilliant and funtastic. Its original, adictive, and unique in its kind. It's impossible to define it with words, it's something that you have to try to understand. It offers a completely new way of online gaming, you can make team with your friends or search unknown foes randomly in 2 or 3 online game modes, and you know what? I HATE THIS GAME.
    I hate it because Nintendo needs better servers, I've played not more than 20 hours and all because Sever lose conection before the game is finished. I've completed the offline mode with all scrolls and even finished amiibos quest, it took me around 10 hours gaming. Maybe you think I need better internet conection, but hey! When I play Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate, I don't lose conection 1 minute after I start playing and I can even use wireless conection, because believe me, I used cable to play Splatoon online but really it doesn't work. The big diference is: when you play MH3U and you lose conection, the game continues, the other players disappear, but you stay playing alone against the Monster, at least it gives you the chance to complete the quest (anyway I don't lose conection very often in MH3U and I played 300 more hours than Splatoon).
    This game needs something to improve the internet conection, it could be a graphic downgrade or even to include more offline modes or a deeper single mode. I think they have to stop giving new stages and work harder to solve the internet problem, because not everyone has good internet conection and it's rubbish when you don't know how the game reacts when you lose conection before buying the game. They can even do that if you lose conection all players pass to be CPU players, the game doesn't stop, you finish the game that already started and also gives chance to level up. But this last it's just fantasy of mine. I

    really hope the find a way to fix that because it's a wonderful game.    … Expand
  23. Saikron
    Oct 5, 2015
    3
    I heard that this game didn't have much meat to it when it released, so I waited 4 months to buy it. It still doesn't have much meat to it. Until you level up to 10, you can only play 2 different maps for the day. The maps are kind of simplistic, so I got bored with both maps within an hour. I had to wait until the following day for two more maps. I guess these are randomly picked becauseI heard that this game didn't have much meat to it when it released, so I waited 4 months to buy it. It still doesn't have much meat to it. Until you level up to 10, you can only play 2 different maps for the day. The maps are kind of simplistic, so I got bored with both maps within an hour. I had to wait until the following day for two more maps. I guess these are randomly picked because I only got to play one new one and the same one from yesterday. As far as I can tell there is only one game mode for online play, and that is to try to paint more of the map with your color than your opponent can paint with theirs.

    Paint rollers are so strong that two sneaky guys can flip 25% of the map in the last few seconds of the game. They're supposed to be short range weapons but you can sling paint from them almost as far as the automatic rifles shoot.

    Once you start to get matched with higher skilled players it seems like every game is either a boring, crushing loss or a boring, complete victory. 3/5 of the time one team is forced into their spawn and can't leave. This is partly based on team skill, but it's also based on what weapons you picked before you joined. It can be nearly impossible for one team to leave their spawn vs another depending on the weapon matchup - WHICH YOU CAN'T CHANGE WITHOUT LEAVING THE GAME!

    I'm not sure I'll ever put the disc back in.    … Expand
  24. sonofashepherd
    Jun 12, 2015
    3
    Any game those main point is online should include certain, basic features. Voice chat, Teams, Modes, Matches, Loadouts, Leveling, a real reason to keep playing the game!

    Sadly This game does very little of those things. The lack of maps and modes alone make this not worth the price. The game is fun for a limited time, very similar to many recent games from Nintendo. They have somehow    Any game those main point is online should include certain, basic features. Voice chat, Teams, Modes, Matches, Loadouts, Leveling, a real reason to keep playing the game!

    Sadly This game does very little of those things. The lack of maps and modes alone make this not worth the price. The game is fun for a limited time, very similar to many recent games from Nintendo. They have somehow forgotten how to make a classic game.

    The graphics are on par with most other Wii U titles, they don't seem to get better or worse and I really believe they have already hit the limit of what the dated hardware can do and that is sad considering this is supposed to be the next Gen system for Nintendo.

    As much as I don't want to believe it I think Nintendo, like this game, is short lived and soon forgotten all together. After 4 months I am willing to bet very few will be talking about this game.    … Expand
  25. Llama-lord
    Aug 22, 2015
    0
    It's to reliant on the internet:(. Every thing you do on it needs the internet and unfortunately not ever one has quick enough wifi to play the game. Like what about the people who live,in the country and don't get good enough reception how are they going to play? The only good thing I can say about the game (because I can't play it) is the colours.
  26. hiphoptherobot
    Jul 4, 2015
    0
    Most of these reviews are glaringly dishonest. This game has just enough creative potential to make you hate it. The concept is top notch, the weapons creative and varied, and the gameplay is really quite clever. These wonderful aspects are buried in issues. For starters, it is a game based on teamwork with no ability to communicate. It's sort of like driving a car with no wheels. TheMost of these reviews are glaringly dishonest. This game has just enough creative potential to make you hate it. The concept is top notch, the weapons creative and varied, and the gameplay is really quite clever. These wonderful aspects are buried in issues. For starters, it is a game based on teamwork with no ability to communicate. It's sort of like driving a car with no wheels. The weapons are great, but really imbalanced. So all of that work, and clearly there was a lot, in making each series of weapon unique and interesting is wasted by having to favor the same handful of weapons over and over. The servers are another major issue. Maybe this is because of the wireless-only feature of the wii u, but at peak hours both for the US and Japan the servers disconnect about 60-75% of the time. I'm buying a USB adapter and hoping this will help, but it is absolutely not an issue with my internet. I've checked it in every way possible and this only occurs in this game, none others. If this game didn't have potential, then I wouldn't give it another thought. It has potential. Once again Nintendo has put out something sloppy and done an amiibo cash grab.… Expand
  27. directrix
    May 29, 2015
    5
    A truly spectacular, enjoyable game worthy of a 10/10, albeit with one HUGE issue: the lack of voice chat. After all these years, how can Nintendo not understand that there NEEDS to be vocal communication in a team multiplayer game? It pains me to do this, but I don't think I'm exaggerating when I say voice chat is 50% of the experience in these kinds of games; I'm forced to take off 50%A truly spectacular, enjoyable game worthy of a 10/10, albeit with one HUGE issue: the lack of voice chat. After all these years, how can Nintendo not understand that there NEEDS to be vocal communication in a team multiplayer game? It pains me to do this, but I don't think I'm exaggerating when I say voice chat is 50% of the experience in these kinds of games; I'm forced to take off 50% off of my 10/10 score.… Expand
  28. AGWS
    Aug 29, 2015
    3
    There's a lot of potential for Splatoon to become one of Nintendo's best new properties, but its first offering leaves a lot to be desired and is extremely light on content, usability, and basic features. The motion controls are awful and the kind of thing you would have expected designers to abandon after the early Wii days. The biggest issues with Splatoon's usability seems to stem fromThere's a lot of potential for Splatoon to become one of Nintendo's best new properties, but its first offering leaves a lot to be desired and is extremely light on content, usability, and basic features. The motion controls are awful and the kind of thing you would have expected designers to abandon after the early Wii days. The biggest issues with Splatoon's usability seems to stem from nobody actually trying to approach the game as a normal user would. You can't adjust game settings from in a level or even from within the single-player hub world. You have to quit out of the level and then out of the single player hub world to get back to the main hub world to change something as simple as the camera settings, but that forces you to re-watch an unskippable series of scenes where you're told about the available maps in multiplayer mode. Given the extremely limited number of stages, that's not even helpful. You're not allowed to actually select which stage you play on, so the fact that the stage icons show up on the screen where the game assigns you to a match does everything that scene does without the interruptions.
    The characters themselves are super stylish and cool but their world is just kind of a simple cartoon Japan and doesn't carry the style through. I'd have much rather they created a world that fit these characters and was as unique as they are. I was expecting to build up to beaches or places where the ocean is crashing in or coral reefs encroaching onto dry land, but there's none of that. You never get any different weapons or abilities either, so even though the campaign is extremely short and you can beat in a day or two, it feels stale by the end. Story-wise, there's really no distinction between the good guys and bad guys. The bad guys are evil because they want to enslave some creatures to power their dying city, versus the good guys who want to enslave these creatures to power their thriving city. There's a good way to do the "we're not so different, you and I" plot, but the game doesn't seem to be aware of its hypocrisy or acknowledge it in any way. Plus, the Octolings have way better design than the Inklings so I found myself more attached to the bad guys than my own allies. The character themes don't gel or relate to the core game either. The game makes a point to call out that all the Inklings care about is fighting and fashion, but the final boss is a DJ so there's a weird disconnect there.
    With such a minimalist single player campaign, you soon find yourself in multiplayer but it quickly wears thin. Multiplayer doesn't seem to have the faintest hint of any kind of matchmaking. When I was level 2, I was going up against a team of players ranging from levels 9 to 20 and in the 4v4 match, two of my teammates immediately dropped out. Your level limits what kind of weapons and loadouts you can have and also your stats and abilities. I'm sure none of the higher level players are happy when I show up because my rank means I'm using stock weapons and my stats are lousy. There's no pre-match interaction or set-up, so you can easily load into a battle where everybody is using the same weapon and nobody can play off strengths and weaknesses. You're not even allowed to change weapons between matches.
    It's super grindy to unlock items for multiplayer but at the very end of a match, you can get a communication error and nobody will earn any experience and you get nothing for the match because even though you were transitioning to the results screen, the game counts it as a disconnect. There are only two maps per mode (and you're restricted to one mode until level 10), so the grind itself is incredibly tedious. I bought the game Thursday evening and by Saturday night I felt like I'd seen everything it had to offer minus unlocking new weapons that don't seem all that different and new stats from gear. I can only play three or four matches before turning the game off because it's getting tedious. I was really hoping that given the lessened focus on killing opponents, there would be some kind of cooperative mode where you're working together to fulfill a mission or join forces against a giant boss or something. Instead, it's just two modes with only two possible maps at a time each and lots of grinding. Even after all that grinding, there isn't much variety in the weapons, which is a place the game really could have shown off some style with Ratchet and Clank-levels of weirdness.
    Splatoon feels like it could be the start of a great franchise thanks to the style the characters have, but it also feels like nobody considered how actual users would play the game, interact with menus, try to strategize or communicate with each other, or want different modes to play. If we find out that the game was supposed to be a Christmas release that was yanked up to summer to try to drive some interest in the Wii U and that's why it's so unpolished and bare bones, I would have no problems believing that.    … Expand
  29. DontBuySplatoon
    May 29, 2015
    0
    I bought this game thinking I could play online with my friend but there was no way to send a game invite or join his game. Not that it would matter because the game does not even feature voice chat. Online games are short and shallow, it feels like baby's first fps. I do not recommend this game at all and am returning it to the store tomorrow.
  30. TeneSicarius
    Jul 17, 2015
    1
    It is a really fun game, but the network is so bad. If there is even a second of lag, I'm kicked to the loading screen. This game is fun enough to be 10/10, but this is based on how many games it would let me play. Between being kicked out of a lobby as soon at it was full, to being disconnected as soon as the game began, to the most rage inducing moments when the game is over, but thatIt is a really fun game, but the network is so bad. If there is even a second of lag, I'm kicked to the loading screen. This game is fun enough to be 10/10, but this is based on how many games it would let me play. Between being kicked out of a lobby as soon at it was full, to being disconnected as soon as the game began, to the most rage inducing moments when the game is over, but that isn't when it saves, so I never get any reward for playing. I can't even join the lobbies I'm kicked from, because this system is so stupid.… Expand
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Awards & Rankings

10
#10 Best Wii U Game of 2015
1
#1 Most Discussed Wii U Game of 2015
6
#6 Most Shared Wii U Game of 2015

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
81

Generally favorable reviews - based on 88 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 75 out of 88
  2. Mixed: 13 out of 88
  3. Negative: 0 out of 88
  1. Time
    Nov 10, 2015
    100
    There’s nothing else quite like it, nor the cathartic dopamine jolt to be had when you squid-skim up a paint-smeared quarter pipe, an Inkzooka at the ready, leap over the edge, take aim with your weapon, and reduce a startled opponent to goo.
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  2. SpazioGames
    Oct 23, 2015
    85
    We waited a bit before giving a vote to Splatoon, but after three months, the game is full of new weapons, has some awesome new modes, and it's still really, really fun. It's a WiiU killer app, one of those games that are not only extremely original, but so well made they utterly deserve a big and supporting community. If you have a WiiU and want an atypical shooter, this is the game for you.
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  3. CD-Action
    Sep 18, 2015
    75
    Please don’t just look at the score and “meh” Splatoon, because this online shooter is the best thing that happened to Wii U in a long time. It just needs some major updates, because on arrival it’s just 75% of The Game of the Year. [09/2015, p.46]
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