Now that Splatoon 3 is out, Digital Foundry has made a video about the game from a technical point of view, looking at things like frame rate and resolution.
Splatoon 3 tech analysis highlights
- The lighting seems to be better than in other games. Compared to other hubs, Splatsville has better graphics and is bigger.
- When docked, the resolution goes as high as native 1080p and as low as 820p. It uses dynamic resolution scaling to make sure everything runs smoothly. In portable mode, the highest resolution is 720p, and dynamic resolution scaling drops it to about 75% of that. More often than you might think, especially in portable mode, the maximum number of pixels is kept.
- It looks like FSR 1.0 is used for Splatoon 3, but it doesn’t do much
- Most of Splatoon 3 runs at 60 FPS. Only the hub runs at 30 FPS. Stability of performance is high
- For the first time, Splatoon 3 adds fur to goo and some enemies that looks like shells. In single-player mode, the paint you spray stays on the islands even if you jump from one level to another or close the game. In single-player, there doesn’t seem to be any FPS slowdown
- Load times aren’t too long.
About Splatoon 3
Enter the Splatlands, a desert where Inklings and Octolings who have been through a lot of battles live. This dusty wasteland’s most exciting place is Splatsville, the city of chaos.
Even in this desolate place, Turf War is the best game, and battles are going on in new stages in the wilds around here.
With dynamic new moves and a new bow-shaped weapon for throwing ink, these fighters can avoid attacks and cover more ground.
Features:
Turf War is the most popular thing to do in Splatsville, so it makes sense that the game has been improved. In three minutes, two teams of four try to mark the most turf on the map. New moves have been added, like the Squid Surge, which lets players swim up walls quickly, and the Squid Roll, which lets players jump out of ink while turning around. When a player’s character glows during the move, it also keeps opponents from getting ink on it.
Turf War battles will take place in a variety of exotic places, some of which are new and some of which are old. There are stages like Eeltail Alley, Scorch Gorge, Mincemeat Metalworks, and Undertow Spillway that are only in the Splatlands. There is also the new Hagglefish Market, which is a pier full of street vendors selling all kinds of things. Museum d’Alfonsino, Hammerhead Bridge, and Mahi-Mahi Resort, all from Greater Inkopolis, are also back. At launch, there will be 12 stages, some of which were shown in the video presentation. In free updates after launch, more stages will be added.
The trio from Deep Cut: Deep Cut is a well-known group of three people who host the news show Anarchy Splatcast in Splatsville. They tell you about the battle stages that are currently available and other news. For the first time in the series, you can even read these updates while you’re out and about in Splatsville.
The Splatfests are back: In these events, players vote for their favorite option out of three choices that fit a theme that has been announced. Based on their choice, they join a team, and battles over a certain amount of time decide who wins. Splatfests will have two parts. In the first part, the three teams will fight in Turf War battles with four players on each side. In the Tricolor Turf War battles in the second half, three teams fight at the same time. This is a new mode. Can the team in first place defend itself in this unusual 4-vs-2-vs-2 match?
The main weapons of the Splatlands: All of the main weapon types from previous Splatoon games will be available right away in Splatoon 3. New Splatlands-specific weapons have also been added, like the Tri-Stringer, which looks like a bow and can shoot in three directions at once. It can also fire charged shots that freeze for a moment before exploding. When you swing the Splatana Wiper, it creates a centrifugal force that makes blades of ink fly. If you swing it after it has charged up, it will become a charged slash.
Special Weapons: When you ink enough turf, you can use special weapons. Splatoon 3 adds some new and different special weapons. One of these is the Tacticooler, which, when turned on, makes a fridge appear with drinks that help the team’s stats. The Wave Breaker sends out sonic waves that move around the area. And the Reefslider is a shark-shaped float that moves forward with a burst of ink that hits opponents. Some special weapons from previous Splatoon games will be back, such as the Tenta Missiles, Inkjet, Ink Storm, Ultra Stamp, and Booyah Bomb. Special weapons go with main weapons, so players can find the right combination for how they like to kill things.
There are more ways to fight in the Splatlands than just Turf War battles. In Anarchy Battles, players try to get to the top of the rankings. There are four different game modes that are played in turn. These are Splat Zones, Tower Control, Rainmaker, and Clam Blitz. Anarchy Battle (Series) is for people who want to play alone and take on a challenge. If you want to team up with friends, you could also join Anarchy Battle (Open). Players can set modes and other options to their liking in Private Battles. Except for Anarchy Battle (Series), every mode in the lobby can be played with friends. This means that you can keep playing with the same group after the first match in a series ends. At the Shoal, players can also talk to people nearby to play with them in different game modes.
Salmon Run is back in Splatoon 3, and it’s bigger than ever. Four players must work together to collect Power Eggs from Salmonids that are coming at them. Salmon Run can be played at any time in Splatoon 3. Boss Salmonids, like the new Slammin’ Lid and the Big Shot, are dangerous creatures that players will meet. Cohozuna, a giant King Salmonid, will sometimes show up. Also, every few months, Salmonids come to the city where Inklings and Octolings live for Big Run.
Return of the Mammalians: The all-new Story Mode is a great way to learn how to fight and use weapons while going on an adventure to find out the secrets of Alterna, the Fuzzy Ooze, and how it relates to the game’s main theme. As Agent 3, the newest member of the New Squidbeak Splatoon, players will fight against the Octarian Army, whose members are covered in hair for some reason. Players can go through many stages with their Smallfry friend. Each stage has its own twists and turns.
Features in the lobby: There are a number of things in the lobby of Splatsville. Friends you have online look like holograms in 3D. It’s easy to join a battle as a friend or drop in as an enemy. And when people play as a team, they can see what their friends are doing at any given time. The lobby also has a Memory Player, which lets you watch recent battles all over again, even from the point of view of another player.
Customizing with the catalog: Splashtags show up when a battle starts. You can change the title, background, and badge on these. Also, the “emote” that a character does when they win a battle can be changed. All of these and more can be found in the in-game catalog, which will be sold at Hotlantis, a general store on the edge of Splatsville. Players can use the points they earn in battles to buy things like seasonal gear and chunks of abilities. After the catalog comes out for the first time, updates will come out every three months for the next two years.
Tableturf Battle: The Tableturf Battle Dojo is in a vacant lot in Splatsville. It is where Tableturf Battle takes place. Tableturf Battle is a one-on-one card battle game based on Turf War. With different cards, players can draw different shapes, build up power, and then use a special “comeback” attack to use all of it at once. You can get more than 150 cards.
SplatNet 3 is an online service for Splatoon 3 that can be used with a smart device through the Nintendo Switch Online app. It lets you look at your battle history, order special gear from the SplatNet Gear Shop, and do a lot more. Crusty Sean’s Wandercrust is a new thing. You can help Crusty Sean on his journey by giving him Inked Points you get from battles. At launch, you will be able to play SplatNet 3.
