Splatoon facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Splatoon
Genres	Third-person shooter
Developers	Nintendo
Publishers	Nintendo
Creators	Hisashi Nogami Shintaro Sato
Composers	Toru Minegishi Shiho Fujii Ryo Nagamatsu
Platforms	Wii U Nintendo Switch
First release	Splatoon 28 May 2015
Latest release	Splatoon 3 9 September 2022

Splatoon is a super fun video game series made by Nintendo. It's a type of game called a third-person shooter, but instead of bullets, you shoot colorful ink! The games are set on a future Earth where cool sea animals have evolved to live on land.

The main characters are called Inklings and Octolings. Inklings are like squids, and Octolings are like octopuses. They can change between a human-like form and a sea creature form whenever they want. In their human form, they use awesome ink-shooting weapons. In their sea creature form, they can swim super fast through ink of their own color, or even hide in it!

The first game, Splatoon, came out for the Wii U in 2015. Then, Splatoon 2 arrived for the Nintendo Switch in 2017, with a cool story expansion called Octo Expansion in 2018. The newest game, Splatoon 3, was released in 2022. People really love the Splatoon games for their unique style, exciting gameplay, and catchy music. The series has sold over 28 million copies worldwide!

Splatoon has also teamed up with other companies and even has its own esports tournaments. There's a Splatoon manga series (comic books) and even concerts in Japan where the game's characters perform as holograms!

How to Play: Ink Battles and Festivals

Splatoon is mostly about battling other players with ink. You try to cover as much of the ground as possible with your team's color of ink. The team with the most ink on the ground wins!

Splatfests: Pick a Side!

"Splatfests" are special, fun events that happen in the games. Players get to answer a question and then pick a team based on their choice. For example, you might have to choose between "mayonnaise or ketchup" or "fork or spoon."

Once you pick a team, you play lots of ink battles to help your team win. The team that gets the highest score overall wins the Splatfest! Splatoon has had many cool Splatfests, sometimes even teaming up with other famous games like Super Smash Bros. Ultimate and Pokémon, or even real-world brands like McDonald's and Nike.

In Splatoon 3, things get even more exciting because there are three teams to choose from! Usually, the winning team just gets more in-game rewards. But sometimes, the outcome of a Splatfest can even affect the story of the next game! For example, the final Splatfest in the first Splatoon game changed what happened in Splatoon 2.

Esports: Competitive Ink Battles

Because Splatoon has exciting competitive modes, there are also professional esports tournaments. Teams of four players compete against each other to see who is the best.

Nintendo started hosting the Splatoon 2 World Championships in 2018. Teams can play in online games or live tournaments to earn a spot at the World Championships. These big events are often held during Nintendo's E3 shows and are streamed live for everyone to watch!

Making the Games

The first Splatoon game was made for the Wii U. It started as a simple idea: two teams of four players covering an arena with ink. The developers then thought of adding squid-like characters, which became the Inklings. These characters could switch between human form (to use weapons) and squid form (to swim through ink).

Splatoon was first shown to the public at a big video game event called E3 2014. People were surprised because Nintendo was making a brand new game series! A free demo called "Global Testfire" was released before the game came out, letting players try the multiplayer mode. The full game, with both a story mode and online multiplayer, was released in May 2015.

Splatoon 2 was made for the Nintendo Switch and announced in 2017. The story of Splatoon 2 happens about two years after the first game's final Splatfest. This game brought new maps, weapons, and special abilities. It also added a new mode called "Salmon Run," where players team up to fight waves of enemies. Another demo, the "Splatoon 2 Global Testfire," was released before the game's launch in July 2017. There's also an app called SplatNet 2 where players can check their game stats and chat with friends. In 2018, a paid expansion called Splatoon 2: Octo Expansion was released, adding a new story and a new playable character type: Octolings!

Splatoon 3 was announced in 2021 and released in September 2022. This game's story takes place about five years after Splatoon 2. It features even more new maps, weapons, and ways to move around. There's also a brand new card game mode called "Tableturf Battle." Before the game came out, there was a special "Splatfest World Premiere" demo for players to try. Like the previous game, Splatoon 3 also has an app called SplatNet 3 for stats and voice chat.

Splatoon's Impact

The characters from Splatoon, like the Inklings, have appeared in other popular Nintendo games! You can see them in Super Mario Maker, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, there's even a Splatoon-themed stage and music. Splatoon 2 also had a special event with Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp.

The NES Zapper, an old Nintendo toy gun that appears as a weapon in Splatoon, has become a popular item for collectors! You can even buy real-life water guns that look like the weapons from the games.

Many people think Splatoon is different from other shooting games. It's known for having a very friendly and welcoming community of players.

Splatoon in Other Media

Comics and Books

Splatoon has its own manga series (Japanese comic books) illustrated by Sankichi Hinodeya. It started in 2016 and is still ongoing! These comics are also published in North America. There's another funny manga series called Splatoon: Squid Kids Comedy Show too.

Awesome Music and Concerts

The music in Splatoon is super cool and unique! It's made by composers like Toru Minegishi, Shiho Fujii, and Ryo Nagamatsu.

In the Splatoon world, the game's characters like the Squid Sisters, Off The Hook, and Deep Cut are famous pop stars who create all the music you hear. Because of this, real-life virtual concerts have been held where holograms of these characters perform on stage!

The music mixes many different styles like pop, punk rock, hip-hop, and electronic music. You might hear influences from J-pop, jazz, and even world music in Splatoon 3!

Concert tours like "Squid Sisters Live" have been held in Japan and Paris to celebrate the games' success. Recordings from these concerts have even been released as music albums. Fans and critics love the Splatoon soundtracks, calling them experimental and amazing!

See also

In Spanish: Splatoon para niños