Splatoon
| Video game fandom | |
|---|---|
| Name | Splatoon |
| Developer(s) | Nintendo |
| Release date | 28 May 2015-present |
| External link(s) | official site |
| Related articles on Fanlore. | |
Splatoon is a third-person shooter video game series created by Nintendo. Since the release of its first game, there have been three total games in the main franchise. In addition to the games, there is also a manga titled "Splatoon" but referred to as "Coroika" by fans as to not confuse the two mediums.
As each game has released, the fanbase has grown significantly. Splatoon 3, the latest installment in the franchise, is considered to be one of the best selling games on the Nintendo Switch, having sold 11.71 million copies a year after its release. A significant portion of the franchise's fanbase is in Japan: it currently holds the record for being the the fastest-selling game in Japan, having beat out Pokemon Black and White from 2010.[1]
Overview
Splatoon's main features are being a third-person shooter, and that all player characters and most non-player characters are a fictional squid-human hybrid species called Inklings (or Octolings, for the octopus alternative.) Inklings are able to change their physique at will, from the more humanoid squid kid form, to a smaller and mobile squid/octopus form who can submerge in ink. The primary game style is multiplayer, which allows players to match up against each other in short 4v4 battles in a handful of casual and competitive game modes. Players can choose from a wide variety of unconventional weapons beyond guns, including buckets, umbrellas, bows and arrows, and swords.
Other modes offered in the game include Salmon Run, a PvE mode; a mini rhythm game in Splatoon 2; Tableturf Battles, a card game mode in Splatoon 3; and single player campaigns, which follows a linear plot throughout each game. Splatoon 3, the latest installment, has been marketed as the conclusion to the current story.
Splatoon 2 and 3 also have DLC single player campaigns: Octo Expansion in Splatoon 2, and Side Order, a roguelike in Splatoon 3.
Beyond its gameplay, Splatoon highly encourages players to customize their characters with uniqueness and personal expression, with many options in hair, skin color, eye color, headgear, clothes, and shoes. In Splatoon 3, options adhering to gendered features have been removed; players can pick from a variety of voice boxes separate from their hairstyle as well as their body type, and so on. Because of this, Splatoon has been regarded as an extremely LGBT-friendly game, not only in community but also in in-game character customization. In addition to this, a lack of mandatory voice communications has also made the game more accessible to those who may fear harassment over voice chat in a multiplayer game.
Splatoon's most recent games release updates on a timed cycle, keeping the game alive and constantly feeling "fresh," as the game would call it. These updates include new weapons, stages, and occasionally new multiplayer modes. Each game is rich with worldbuilding and lore, from music credited to in-game bands to recurring non-playable characters.
Each game also features a hub where players can share posts and drawings (the Miiverse for Splatoon 1, during its release on the Wii U). These drawings can be shown in a player's lobby, and also sometimes as random graffiti on stages in-game.
There are also frequent monthly events, most significantly Splatfests, where players pick a team and the winning team may contribute to the game's lore. For example, the final Splatfest of Splatoon 1 was "Callie vs. Marie". Callie's team losing the Splatfest impacted her character arc and caused her to be a minor antagonist in the solo campaign of Splatoon 2.
Characters
The most notable non-player characters in Splatoon are the newscasters, who are also always idols (musicians with very public personas.) This is notable as the news is the first thing players see every time they open up the game. They also always play a significant role in the single player campaign.
- Squid Sisters: Callie and Marie (who are cousins), who appear in every game's main single player campaign
- Off the Hook: Pearl and Marina, who appear in Octo Expansion and Side Order
- Deep Cut: Shiver, Frye, and Big Man, who appear in Splatoon 3's single player campaign
- Cap'n Cuttlefish, Callie and Marie's grandfather who always recruits the player character as the hero to defeat DJ Octavio
- DJ Octavio, the antagonist in Splatoon 1 and 2; he and Cap'n Cuttlefish used to be good friends before the Great Turf War
- Mr. Grizz, a mysterious employer of Salmon Run in Splatoon 2 who makes a return in Splatoon 3
- Judd, a highly intelligent cat clone who only communicates through "Meow!" He is also often seen with Lil' Judd, a smaller cat who randomly appeared one day.
- Commander Tartar, a blob of goo and the antagonist of Splatoon 2:Octo Expansion
- Acht, also known as Dedf1sh, who appeared as the primary in-game musician for the songs heard in Splatoon 2's Octo Expansion, and as a non-playable character in Splatoon 3's Side Order. Acht is only referred to using they/them pronouns, which was noted with elation by many Splatoon fans.
Though players can play as they like in multiplayer, in the single player campaign, the player character is always referred to as a certain "agent" number which varies among different campaigns. Thus, the playable Agent characters can be considered in-game/canon characters themselves (such as protagonists in the Pokemon games), even if fan interpretations of their personalities and appearances may vary.
These characters are:
- Agent 3, the player character in Splatoon 1. Agent 3 appears as a non-player character in the Splatoon 2: Octo Expansion, and again in Splatoon 3 Hero Mode.
- Agent 4, the player character in the Splatoon 2 Hero Mode
- Agent 8, the player character in the Splatoon 2: Octo Expansion and Splatoon 3: Side Order
- New Agent 3, the player character in Splatoon 3 Hero Mode
Fandom
Much of the fanbase is on Twitter and in Discord servers; some gimmicky Splatoon accounts are also on Tumblr, such as are-you-judd-enough. Many Splatoon fans are also YouTube content creators and Twitch streamers (usually called "Splatubers"), who have fanbases of their own. Popular content creators tend to also be featured in Splatoon fanworks, such as art and fanfiction. There is also a competitive scene composed of teams of highly skilled players; some of these teams also have their own fans. However, all fan communities tend to overlap in some way.
A sizable portion of the Splatoon fanbase is based in Japan.
Shipping
- Pearl/Marina (Pearlina)
- Agent 3/Agent 8 (Agent 24)
- Callie/Marie
- Shiver/Frye
- Marie/Agent 4
- Agent 3/New Agent 3
- Cap'n Cuttlefish/DJ Octavio
Notable Players and Content Creators
Fanworks
| Examples Wanted: Editors are encouraged to add more examples or a wider variety of examples. |
Artwork
- Cafe Cardemari Tales, a popular fan comic
- Splatoon by ErikStrider
- - Splatoon - by coreymill
- Pearl - Splatoon 2 by Invidiata
Fan Animations
Fanfiction
Impact
Though its English fanbase is small in comparison to other video game franchises, its community is relatively tight-knit and very dedicated to solidarity.
On December 5th, Nintendo announced that they had cancelled their livestream of the finals of Splatoon 2 North American Open December 2020. While it was only stated to have been done due to "unexpected executional challenges," Slimy, a Splatoon 2 tournament organizer, had confirmed that it was caused by 30% of teams being registered having names in support of Melee and the Smash community due to Nintendo's actions against The Big House Online. Following this, the Discord server for the Big House event was spammed by many members of the Splatoon community in wake of the stream's cancellation. This led to many members of the competitive Smash community to begin supporting the Splatoon 2 scene in thanks for their solidarity; notable players such as Mew2King streamed Splatoon to show their support. Many people with large followings outside of the competitive scenes also took notice and began posting tweets criticizing the actions of Nintendo.[2]
Archives & Fannish Links
- Splatoon works at AO3
- Splatoon works at FFN
- Squidboards, a forum dedicated to Splatoon fans
DeviantART
Resources
References
<references>
- ^ [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Splatoon_3 Splatoon 3] on Wikipedia. Accessed February 9, 2024.
- ^ Taken from [https://www.ssbwiki.com/Cancellation_of_The_Big_House_Online#Effects_on_outside_communities Cancelation of The Big House Online: Effects on outside communities]. Accessed February 9, 2024.