A couple weeks ago, during Nintendo Direct, Nintendo showed off a brand new trailer for Splatoon, which releases next year for Wii U. The showcased the amazing single player mode… unfortunately, I forgot to cover it. Luckily, however, Nintendo have been constantly releasing more and more news about the title, giving us a chance to do another news blowout article like we did for Super Smash Bros. last month!

Check out what has been announced after the break!

Single Player Trailer

Let us start of with the brand new trailer. First, we get to see some more parts of the the multiplayer game, including new maps and weapons, however it is quickly interrupted by an army of dodgy look squid tentacle soldiers [seriously, what the heck were the developers on when creating these characters haha]. This then leads onto the single player mode. I have to say, the mode does look very awesome, it looks almost like a sort of platformer and third-person shooter hybrid… imagine an industrial themed Mario game with a paint gun!

Gotta Have a Story!

Next, we have an official word of the basic plot of Splatoon from the official Splatoon Twitter account.

Don’t speak Japanese? Don’t worry, we have a rough translation!

Investigative Report from the Squid Research Lab. The protagonist, wearing the Hero Suit, travels through this underground world. The Octopus Army Corps, hoping to invade the Squid’s world, built this underground facility. Is it just me that feels the Octopus’ longing for the world above-ground from the blue sky projected onto those large monitors?

Not too much information was given about the story, but I will assume we will get more details about it closer to release.

Splatoon-SpecInkling

Weapons of Mass Destruction

The Twitter account also released some info regarding different weapons, controls, characters and more. Here’s a brief overview of what has been said courtesy of several users from NeoGAF:

  • Results on Turf Wars only depend on how much ground is covered by ink, defeating opponents does not count towards this. Painted walls do not count either
  • There is a suit called the Hero Suit which is worn by the protagonist in the single player mode, titled Hero Mode. This was based off the appearance of a firefly squid
  • The cat is the referee of each turf war and can determined who has covered the largest area in an instant… why this is the only cat in a world of squid is unconfirmed
  • Controls:
    • ZL – Squid (dive into ink, restores ink)
    • L-stick – move
    • R-button – Bomb (uses 70% of your ink)
    • ZR – Ink Shot (uses up ink)
    • R-stick – looks left/right
    • X – Jump
    • Y – Camera Reset
    • Touch the Squid Icon to make a big jump to one of your team mates.
    • Use the gyro to aim (can be turned off at any time)
  • The gyroscope only requires quick wrist movements rather than sweeping motions
  • The Charge Gun lets you hit from a distance
  • The Roller is good for close combat
  • The Splash Bomb is an example of a sub-weapon. It will explode and cover a surrounding area in your ink. Not only does it hurt enemies, but it can also be used to distract them and hurt hiding ones too.
  • The Inklings’ body colour will changes with each battle and some can apparently change their ink too
  • When in squid form, inklings can move faster and climb up walls… as long as they are in their coloured ink

Splatoon-Gyro

Inkling Adventure

There are even more details which the Twitter account released, but this time they are talking more about Hero Mode and its contraptions and characters.

  • There are various contraptions in Hero Mode
  • One contraption includes an Ink Cannon which allows you to shoot very powerful ink bullets
  • There is a mysterious old man [I mean squid] who guides the protagonist through Hero Mode and seems to be the only one who knows the plans of the Octopus Corp
  • Denchinamazu [translated to Battery Catfish], looks like it is Splatoon’s version of Power Stars from Super Mario. The world runs on the energy from these critters and your goal is to retrieve the stolen Denchinamazu.
  • Denchinamazu are apparently based off of real Electric Catfish
  • Another contraption in Hero Mode are Sponge Blocks
  • When shot with squid ink, they expand. When shot with octopus ink they shrink.

Splatoon-SquidMan

And that is everything that has been revealed so far. It seems that Splatoon will definitely be much more comprehensive than most people would have thought, and I can not simply wait to play the full game. I am really in love with the look of Hero Mode, like I said earlier, it’s like a Mario and shooter hybrid in an industrial setting.

Before we close up, here’s a gallery of all the screenshots and art that were posted in the past two weeks:

What do you think of Splatoon? Will you be purchasing it? What do you think will be your favourite mode? Tell us in the comments below.

Leon Fletcher

I am a huge Nintendo fan, hence why NintyBuzz exists. I especially love all things Zelda and Metroid. NintyBuzz was started by me back in the Summer of 2014, it started out mainly as a hobby, though the site has gradually grown, and I hope it grows for many years to come!