Splatoon 3 feels like a natural, if uninspired evolution of the series

I used to play quite a bit of Splatoon back in the Wii U days but in the end I let Splatoon 2 pass me by because, from what I could gather, it basically looked like the same game with just a few minor changes.

After going hands-on with Splatoon 3 at a recent preview event, this new sequel felt pretty similar to how I remember the first game playing. Sure, there’s a new single-player campaign to play through, along with a bunch of new maps for Turf War and Salmon Run, but to my out-of-touch eye the focus for this sequel seems to be on updating and improving what the players already love, rather than revolutionising the game and giving Splatoon fans something new to wrap their fish fingers around.

You can see what I mean in the video below, in which I showcase three early levels from Splatoon 3’s new single-player mode, along with two matches of Turf War and a couple rounds of Salmon Run.

NEW SPLATOON 3 SINGLE-PLAYER GAMEPLAY! First Look At Splatoon 3 Campaign plus Turf War & Salmon Run! Watch on YouTube

Splatoon 3’s single-player mode (worryingly called “Return of the Mammalians”) starts off pretty gently, introducing the player to a few of the new mechanics in the game, as well as most of the returning ones. There’s a loose narrative behind it all, something to do with the Octarian Army and some Fuzzy Ooze, but honestly, it just seems like a nice place to get to grips with the controls and weapons.