Nintendo's answer to persistent pleas for a single-player Splatoon experience has arrived in unexpected form. Splatoon Raiders isn't a straightforward campaign but rather a roguelite adventure that wraps gear progression, persistent upgrades, and mounting difficulty around the series' core ink-slinging gameplay. After several hours with an early build, the formula clicks in ways that could sustain a dedicated player through substantial playtime.
The setup: your helicopter pilot character crashes on the Spirhalite Islands alongside treasure hunters Frye, Big Man, and Shiver. A month later, stranded and resourceful, the crew has constructed a floating fortress and pivoted to treasure hunting. It's thin narrative scaffolding, but it serves its purpose by getting you into the field and hunting for Mysterious Shards, the game's primary collectible.
Movement remains Splatoon's strongest asset, and Raiders preserves that magic. Gyro controls feel responsive. Swimming through ink remains a joy. Even mundane traversal like surfing across wooden planks radiates charm. The Salmonids you encounter start manageable but escalate in size and difficulty, each demanding the familiar paint-and-splatter solution that defines the series.
The first major twist arrives when you repair a small robot. This mechanical companion, piloted by Big Man, transforms combat and exploration. It boosts you into the air for platforming, drills into massive crystals to extract shards, and unleashes Showstoppers, the game's most spectacular special abilities. Ride Big Man himself like a mount while he blasts away John Woo-style, or summon Shiver's rocket-powered shark to obliterate anything downrange.
Here's where the roguelite structure reveals itself. Between expeditions, you return to base to upgrade. Defeated Salmonids drop eggs used to unlock Showstoppers. Treasure chests yield ink tanks, each paired with distinct gadgets. Speed tanks grant Blast Boot for explosive aerial movement. Tactical tanks deploy turret-like Shot Pots. Gadget parts amplify these abilities, shortening cooldowns or magnifying explosions. You spend earned levels boosting health, weapon damage, or gadget part slots. Salmonid Relics layer on passive bonuses like double jumps.
The loop is recursive by design. Stronger builds enable tougher missions. Tougher missions reward gear that pushes you further into difficulty. Weapons like the Oil Blaster and Roller can be upgraded at base. Lore about the Salmonids awaits those who want to dig deeper. The base itself functions as a hub where pressure never mounts, allowing players to absorb complexity at their own pace.
Raids underground expose the system's teeth. Trapped in confined spaces with time limits to collect a set number of Salmonid eggs, difficulty spikes sharply. Early confidence crumbles fast. You fail repeatedly, refine your build, sharpen your execution, and eventually push through. Winning feels earned. Even losses entertained because the core action never stops feeling responsive and tight.
Four-player co-op arrives as a natural extension. Nothing fundamentally changes, but simultaneous gadgets, guns, and Showstoppers create beautiful chaos. Multiplayer transforms the experience into something more social and less grinding, the preferred way to sink extended sessions once the solo loop potentially wears thin.
What emerges is a game that operates on multiple difficulty tiers, scaling from breezy to brutal depending on your build and mission selection. The roguelite framing isn't window dressing. It justifies repeated runs through similar terrain because your loadout constantly evolves. Each expedition feels distinct because you're never the same player twice.
Author Emily Chen: "Raiders proves Nintendo understands why players want more Splatoon,and that roguelite DNA can deepen the franchise rather than dilute it."
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