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. Triblue
    May 22, 2023
    7
    Jeu original et sympa. Le gameplay est cependant un peu répétitif et au final la plupart des parties se ressemblent.
  2. sideshownate
    Aug 13, 2023
    7
    I dont remember what expections I had for this game but whatever it was that wasnt it. Still fun
  3. PearlinaFan23
    Jul 5, 2023
    7
    Such a good game, and truly revolutionary. The reason it's so low is because of the servers being discontinued, but I did love my time with it
  4. vahn
    May 2, 2016
    6
    When it first came out I didn't jump into the hype train since that, for one thing, I was not able to play online due to my impossibility of using wi-fi (yes, some people don't have wi-fi) and because I simply thought it was a poor man's shooter with basically nothing new, except the insertion of ink instead of bullets. And no, I'm not a CoD player so I'm not comparing it to that atrocity:When it first came out I didn't jump into the hype train since that, for one thing, I was not able to play online due to my impossibility of using wi-fi (yes, some people don't have wi-fi) and because I simply thought it was a poor man's shooter with basically nothing new, except the insertion of ink instead of bullets. And no, I'm not a CoD player so I'm not comparing it to that atrocity: at least splatoon didn't die a year later.

    With that said, this game is just ok. Sorry but it is just that: ok. I played for about 2 days and I was starting to get bored to infinity already...which is sad because the game is actually pretty good and fun, but there are so many issues with it that I simply couldn't play past day 2.

    For one thing, the single player mode is bad: it's boring, it's completely detached to online mode (which makes sense) and overall rushed just to make those 40 euros (or 60 dollars in america apparently) worth your time. I immediately quitted and went online because hey, that's what this game's for right?

    And it's....just okay, again.

    Now the thing I liked about the game is how the controls are pretty well done - except the retard **** who thought that starting the game with motion control was a good idea: i got stuck for half an hour because I couldn't turn around!. Still I like the controls of it and it's fun to move around as a squid and to shoot your weapons. On that part I have no complains: it works, it's fun, and it's also original.

    But everything else just doesn't work and burns you out damn quick.

    For starters you can play in 2 (TWO) arenas every 4 hours (which I also had to research because I didn't play long enough to see the rotation)...and whoever came up with that was probably high or lobotomized, because it gets repetitive insanely fast. The maps are fine though, don't take me wrong, but 2 maps every 4 hours? Seriously why? Why not just simply allow more? I don't know but they clearly don't care since everyone seems fine with this. I don't.

    Secondly, matches last only 3 minutes and according to the wiki (yes because I couldn't manage to play these matches yet) there are about 3 types: Turf War (color the most of areas) Tower Control (King of the hill essentially) and Rain Maker (A sort of carry the flag). Now I don't have a clear idea of these types of matches because for 2 days straight I only had turf war and due to the bad idea of rotating every 4 hours it can easily becoming repetitive in less than 30 minutes.

    Plus, I wish the matches were longer: sometimes I'm having a lot of fun and having a blast until the timer is running out. Sad thing is, I wait more than 4-5 minutes for finding all players and this can be really annoying, especially when your best matches only last 3 minutes. Maybe in those 2 modes the timer is longer but again, I have no idea at all: in 2 days that I played, for about 3 hours each, I did not play any other mode but Turf War.

    And this simply means that this game is padded to no limit and because of that, I'm very sorry, I'm giving it a 6: for 40 bucks (still full price after a year?) I was expecting more, MUCH more, but considering you can play better fps games overall, and some of them even being free (("cough" TF2 "cough")), I just can't recommend this game fully.

    If you have friends then MAYBE I'll give it a pass, but alone this game gets boring really fast and considering the relatively high price point, I simply cannot recommend it when there are better games around.    … Expand
  5. 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
  6. 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
  7. MiawMix
    Jun 7, 2015
    6
    Unique art style is the single redeeming point. This game seriously suffer from lack of content. Little choice of maps, weapons, and game play mode. No character variations and build. I'm bored already in 1 hours. For that price i kinda expect more.
  8. SomeNavyGuy
    Jun 6, 2015
    6
    I would never imagine that a simple game like this could also be so complex! It is a very good and a must try if you own a Wii U. What annoys me about this game is how the controls are currently programmed where if you use the right analog stick (Instead of the Motion controls) The X-Axis and Y-axis are programmed for different sensitivity levels and It makes it WILL screw you over in aI would never imagine that a simple game like this could also be so complex! It is a very good and a must try if you own a Wii U. What annoys me about this game is how the controls are currently programmed where if you use the right analog stick (Instead of the Motion controls) The X-Axis and Y-axis are programmed for different sensitivity levels and It makes it WILL screw you over in a firefight!.

    RENT if you can at first, because 60 bucks is a bit steep for this!    … Expand
  9. cliki
    Jul 6, 2015
    6
    I don't fully understand why so many people view this game with such high regards. Perhaps they expect mediocrity because none of the positive reviews seem to mention any of the game's downfalls that I can find.

    1. Lag/high latency/connection issues. It feels although I get 500-1000ms latency in most battles of Splatoon even though my normal games will rarely exceed 100. This means    I don't fully understand why so many people view this game with such high regards. Perhaps they expect mediocrity because none of the positive reviews seem to mention any of the game's downfalls that I can find.

    1. Lag/high latency/connection issues. It feels although I get 500-1000ms latency in most battles of Splatoon even though my normal games will rarely exceed 100. This means you will wonder why the inkling you just splatted somehow has their weapon still shooting you while laying on the ground.
    2. Lack of content. The selection of ink guns is decent...fairy average in-fact with most 'shooters', but other gear and maps is lackluster. You can buy different gear through amiibo...thankfully this at-least isn't pay2win.
    3. Matchmaking. When you manage to get into a server, (extra busy on saturdays), you will likely find yourself on completely imbalanced teams. This is assume everyone actually connects, which seems to be an issue about 5% the time. Other cannot join to balance out the teams once the match has started...so be thankful it will only last 3-5 mins.
    4. Don't like the music? Too bad, you have no option to turn it off.

    There are a fair bit of positives to the game as-well...like originality, nostalgia (if you enjoyed water/paint gun fights) and cute factor. Other than that, this is not a $60 game...it's worth 30-40 at best.    … Expand
  10. omgsmash
    Aug 24, 2015
    6
    Splatoon is the first original nintendo game in a while and i gotta say it is pretty unique but it is not polished and hardly has that much content . you cant make your own match and there are only 5 game modes. Seriously? you also cant exit out of lobbies once you join them. your stuck in a game unless you turn the wii u off. Also the game is too reliant on online wifi. other than theSplatoon is the first original nintendo game in a while and i gotta say it is pretty unique but it is not polished and hardly has that much content . you cant make your own match and there are only 5 game modes. Seriously? you also cant exit out of lobbies once you join them. your stuck in a game unless you turn the wii u off. Also the game is too reliant on online wifi. other than the campaign, there is nothing you can do if your connection is bad. and there is not even voicechat. Splatoon is a very tactical shooter and it requires communication. there is also a poor variety of weapons and modes like I mentioned before. My biggest complaint is that when you have splitscreen there is only one mode you can do you which is balloon pop which sucks. there are only 2 players max for splitscreen and for online there are only 4 v 4. why not 5v5 or 6v6. this game still has a lot of potential but it still lacks tons of content there could be in this game… Expand
  11. ShiroiKabocha
    Sep 26, 2015
    6
    It's a game that attempts all new mechanics to try and shake up the third-person shooter genre. However, it falls flat because of the low amount of content that it contains. Only a few of the weapons feel effective online and the small amount of content in single player is underwhelming. But if they can improve future iterations, then Nintendo will have a very good and successful franchise.
  12. CntrlAltDel101
    Oct 1, 2015
    6
    A decent game. Some fun game modes. Interesting take on the shooter genre.

    This game got boring really quickly though. Not worth full price, maybe grab it in the sales if you fancy something a little different.
  13. Masterbaiter
    Nov 19, 2015
    6
    A charming kid-friendly game that is held back by its lack of content and restrictions. Modern Nintendo prevented this game from being far greater than what it currently is. With very few weapon selections, no teamspeak, and very few game modes this shooter fails to meet expectation.
  14. Captain_Heropon
    Mar 4, 2017
    6
    Alright, so I actually took the time to write a full and lengthy review for this, but it was a bit too long and complex, so here it is in a basic format:

    PROS: Fun and "unique" (for lack of better terms) gameplay, which some would find addicting. Some fun stages, each one having something unique in its own way. Good variety of weapons, despite some feeling a little unusual to use.    Alright, so I actually took the time to write a full and lengthy review for this, but it was a bit too long and complex, so here it is in a basic format:

    PROS:
    Fun and "unique" (for lack of better terms) gameplay, which some would find addicting.
    Some fun stages, each one having something unique in its own way.
    Good variety of weapons, despite some feeling a little unusual to use.
    Several cool online modes such as Ranked Battles and friend rooms.

    CONS:
    The solo story mode is very meh, however there isn't a whole lot you can do to make it good, because it just doesn't quite fit for this type of game.
    Zero communication during online matches aside from "Booyah!".
    Several things that would just make me sound picky, including things like losing level points just because you or some other person had a communication error and the repetitive and annoying music.

    So basically, it's an alright game. Probably not completely my taste, but I can see why some people would like it so much. Not sure whether or not I'd recommend it.    … Expand
  15. Manucoel
    Feb 25, 2021
    6
    This game is alright I guess had some fun playing some games, buying some guns and clothes but just felt kinda boring after a while.
  16. 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
  17. firestonex
    Jun 3, 2015
    5
    Splatoon has a lot of potential but is lacking in SO many areas. It's online system is horrible. It is nearly impossible to play with friends. There is no lobby system and no easy way to get a party going. There is also no way to switch your weapons between deaths, This means that you can't change strategies during game-play to help your team. Local Multiplayer is pretty much nonexistent,Splatoon has a lot of potential but is lacking in SO many areas. It's online system is horrible. It is nearly impossible to play with friends. There is no lobby system and no easy way to get a party going. There is also no way to switch your weapons between deaths, This means that you can't change strategies during game-play to help your team. Local Multiplayer is pretty much nonexistent, only for one mode.
    There are no option for 2 local players to play together online, which you could do in Mario Kart 8. The countdown clock is meaningless.

    The game IS addictive, but it has so many problems. For a full list of all these problems and more, check out Video Games Awesome. Fraser Agar and Becky Blow played the game, and while they had a lot of fun, they go over all the problems that this game has. As Fraser said, "This is a great demo"    … Expand
  18. 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
  19. 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
  20. Oomzy
    Apr 8, 2016
    5
    An Alright game at best really. I like Splatoon more than standard Competitive multiplayer games but it has some clear problems.
    Pro's:
    -Singleplayer is great! -The Game plays well with Turf War being a creative game mode. -Buying clothing and weapons is beneficial and suits the playstyles of most players. Con's: -Every four hours you can only play TWO maps...FOUR if you have the    An Alright game at best really. I like Splatoon more than standard Competitive multiplayer games but it has some clear problems.
    Pro's:
    -Singleplayer is great!
    -The Game plays well with Turf War being a creative game mode.
    -Buying clothing and weapons is beneficial and suits the playstyles of most players.

    Con's:
    -Every four hours you can only play TWO maps...FOUR if you have the ranked battles leading to the multiplayer being repetitive after like four matches.
    -Rollers are overpowered. I mean cmon. It's not fun to just watch as some person sits in ink all day and pops up to insta kill others.
    -Map design is....Ehhh for the most part. The Pirhana map is my least favorite as it just looks dull. What happened to all those creative things in the singleplayer levels? I understand it would be more of a challenge but Cmon! Do something more than just making us run around 24/7
    -Only one game mode? Why not more? I'm getting sick of playing TURF WAR over and over and over.
    -Character customization is limited(Except for the outfits)
    -I can't communicate with other players WHY? If you're trying to host competitive games then COOPERATION via voice chat is needed! And before you reply with: "Ooooh just use Skype or host a LAN party in your house!" Some people dont have Skype or can't host Lan parties.

    Splatoon is an overhyped, Bare bones game. Really only the singleplayer campaign is actually worth checking out. 5/10......You know you've failed your multiplayer game when the Doodle Jump clone you play in the lobby is more entertaining.    … Expand
  21. Salme
    Jun 2, 2015
    5
    Splatoon is what people deserve: a shooter with good base that lacks on everything else. No local play besides a silly mode of popping ballons at 2015 is just plain idiot.No bots and no splitscreen, no good shot'em'up. But the worst of all is the people saying this is a masterpiece. It could have been a good game but the lack of basic things make Splatoon a mediocre game.
  22. Mememaster1337
    Jun 29, 2015
    5
    The game is okay. I honestly cannot see how this is appealing. After watching the digital event in 2014 Splatoon looked ok. But the internet thought different, because fanart was popping up a long ways before the game came out. There are 4 modes in the game, but one of them is locked behind amiibos, and the local multiplayer is not worth your time. No, I do not consider ranked battles aThe game is okay. I honestly cannot see how this is appealing. After watching the digital event in 2014 Splatoon looked ok. But the internet thought different, because fanart was popping up a long ways before the game came out. There are 4 modes in the game, but one of them is locked behind amiibos, and the local multiplayer is not worth your time. No, I do not consider ranked battles a different mode, I consider it a sub-mode. The online feels like Destiny, and the single player is very lackluster. But it's fun the first couple of times, and innovates on the shooter genre, plus the music is catchy in a good way! Just wait for a price drop, if that ever happens because the game is super popular. I you love it, that's great!… Expand
  23. destiny6573
    Jul 16, 2015
    4
    All You Do Is Shoot The Ground With Ink And Splat Players With Red Ink to Make It Like Blood A Bloody Copy Just Know one Knows It But It Is DIFFRENT WORLD BLOOD
  24. 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
  25. 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
  26. Josephsa
    May 29, 2015
    3
    Splatoon represents everything wrong with gaming. It is not a terrible game. A terrible game could be simply not played and forgotten about. Instead Splatoon has some fresh and innovative concepts that are buried and ruined by the incompetency of Nintendo and their inability to keep up with modern times.

    Think of a multiplayer game and think of the features you'd commonly find in one.    Splatoon represents everything wrong with gaming. It is not a terrible game. A terrible game could be simply not played and forgotten about. Instead Splatoon has some fresh and innovative concepts that are buried and ruined by the incompetency of Nintendo and their inability to keep up with modern times.

    Think of a multiplayer game and think of the features you'd commonly find in one. Usually about 10-20 maps, 5-10+ game modes, voice chat, a party system, local competitive play etc. would all be common features. Well, Splatoon has none of those. Launching with a meager 5 maps and 2 game modes, no voice chat, no party system, the only local competitive mode is a 1v1 balloon popping mode, and the inability to switch out your loadout in a match (so rather than feeling like you can adapt to a changing match, you're stuck using the same loadout the whole match), and a 4-5 hour singleplayer campaign, Splatoon is as barebones a package you could find in 2015.

    This is simply unacceptable for a game in 2015; the game has been rushed to market, missing in basic content, and spoilt by the complete incompetence of Nintendo and their inability to adapt to modern times. This game was rushed to market to fill a gap in the game releases and to satiate a months long gaming drought.

    After playing the testfires and a few hours of the game after launch, the game does feel fresh and is a unique take on the genre, but frustration quickly overwhelms due to the repetition of maps (two maps every four hours), lack of basic features isolating one from the other players, and overall lack of fresh content. Singleplayer has been somewhat satisfying, but it lacks the usual Nintendo charm and feels rushed, and just simply is not enough justify a $60 purchase (for some reason this game is reduced retail price in Europe, but not NA).

    Overall, Splatoon is a 3 as it stands now. Perhaps, it could be a 7 or an 8 if it had launched with more maps, modes, voice chat, party chat, local play, a longer campaign, etc. but as it stands now, Splatoon is an incomplete package, and if Nintendo rushes and releases an incomplete package, that is what I will review. I am not of the mindset that we should buy a game simply on the word that there will be future content. I will not lay down $60 for a simply incomplete game and play the waiting game, while the community wanes over time and just simply hope that even some of these features are improved upon. I recommend you give it a rent at most, if nothing more than to see what could have been, but there simply isn't enough unique and fresh content in the game to justify even a $30 purchase, let alone $60.    … Expand
  27. 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
  28. 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
  29. pauljcrary
    Jun 23, 2015
    2
    Really Nintendo.... You just HAD to make a shooting game. I know it would boost your popularity, but shooting is NOT RIGHT. It doesn't fit with the company. It got REALLY boring overtime because it is SO repetitive, even campaign! Even Smash could it up like throwing a Pokeball at a 999% Mario. Just, don't buy it.
  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

All reviews »
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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