How are you feeling about splatoon raiders?
VERY excited!
I was going to be hype for a Splatoon spinoff no matter what because honestly, the game play is only half of why I like this IP so much.
It makes me very happy to see it branch off from the original 4v4 shooter format. Not because I DIDN'T like that format, but because it opens the doors to seeing Splatoon in even MORE formats than its original. It's clear that the series has enough world-building, lore, and depth to be more than just a shooter and this is a great sign of that!!!
So no matter what the trailer threw at me, I was gonna be optimistic. I do remember being initially a wee bit disappointed though with how many resemblances it had to Side Order though since I wanted something completely different. Same with the salmonids returning as enemies. However, looking back at it, the little details and some of the analyses about it, my hype grew again.
The salmonids returning, while aren't new, give us a lot more potential to further explore slamonid lore which I think we're due for!! Also, ProChara pointed this out in an analysis video that bringing back old enemies at least confirms we won't have a deficit in enemies. Considering that this is a hoard mode, I think having a lot of familiar + some new enemies is leagues better than having a few completely new enemies. He also mentioned that we haven't gotten to fight the salmonids in this kind of environment before which will make it feel VERY different! (People pointed out that some enemies from side order are kind of just reskinned salmonids, but I disagree with that idea. None of them are COMPLETE reskins. Even as similar as they are, they have small differences. And for games like Splatoon, small differences on paper can have huge differences in execution. Especially when the differences are stuff like, 40hp smallfry vs the 400HP SWARMING LANGUENDO despite serving the same purpose of being the little guys)
Side order as a concept wasn't too bad, and I think the first few runs of it were pretty fun, but it kind of got stale really fast. I have a few gripes with Side Order tbh, but that could be an entirely separate post.
Either way, it seems like Raiders would tackle a lot of those right off the bat! The weapon leveling system in particular gives me the most hope because WHAT!! LEVEL 13 MINI?????? AND THAT'S JUST ONEEEE WEAPON!? And the relic powers, and the gadgets, and the tool-specific upgrades. It looks like play styles will be more customizable than ever which has me very hype
I also can't say I know much about what's going to happen lore wise, but I do have tidbits of hope about it. The little bits of the cutscenes look interesting and hopefully abundant so MAYBE Deep Cut will get their justice.
The Mechanic as a protagonist though I think is the least self-insert friendly and I am ALL about that. Throughout all the games the fan base has proven that the agents are more than just self-inserts to us, and it looks like they're embracing that the MOST with the mechanic. With the very limited hairstyles, the MANDATORY freckles, the unique call outs, their personality filled animations, the fact that they double as both a pilot AND a mechanic. This is like, a whole character right there.
Obviously they have customization options and it's not like we're locked to this Mechanic design. But I do think there is a difference between designing a character as a self-insert vs a designing a defined character, yet allowing altercations to make them more relatable. Kinda like how Link is with gender.
Ofc, I doubt Nintendo is TOO bold to deviate from the norm (of Splatoon games specifically) too much. But I do think we'll be able to learn a lot about this protagonist. Maybe even more so than Agent 8!
This isn't even talking about the realization I had taht this is straight up what I thought Splatoon 4's campaign was gonna be IN AN IDEAL WORLD. Like I thought they could never go that far. And maybe it's true for an optional campaign in a multiplayer shooter game, BUT NOT FOR A SPINOFF BABYYYYY
Oh also THERE'S LAVA??????? IN MY SPLATOON GAME??????? LAVA???????
