The first ever Splatoon spin-off is coming, with Splatoon Raiders releasing exclusively on the Nintendo Switch 2. Whilst details were sparse for a while, Nintendo just released a major new trailer that not only gives us new gameplay, but also confirms new amiibo and a summer release for the game.
Coming July 23, Splatoon Raiders sees the player take on the role of a mechanic working alongside idol trio Deep Cut on the mysterious Spirhalite Islands. The main gameplay loop will involve splatting hordes of Salmonids as you look for treasure on the island, which in turn grants you more ways to upgrade and expand your arsenal and to take on higher level monster waves.
The new trailer shows off new systems such as a map of the islands, with the areas showing a difficulty level based on the Salmonids in the area. The members of Deep Cut follow you in a submersible machine, and assist in your search for treasure as the Salmonids attack. The UI suggests players get three lives, with some particularly difficult waves of enemies appearing later in the video – including Boss Salmonids!
We also see the new Mechanic’s Shack location, which lets the player construct new ‘Gadgets’. The ones shown include a weapon that enables dash attacks, along with a spiralling ink shield and an automated ink-firing turret. The menu has sections for players to equip a Weapon, two Gadgets, five Relic Powers, an Ink Tank, outfits named Styles and a Bot Buddy – which appears to be your own choice of Deep Cut companion.
In between the action we see lots of cutscene animations, suggesting there will be plenty of interacting with Deep Cut as the narrative continues through the Spirhalite Islands. The trailer ends with a look at new Deep Cut amiibo in their Splatoon Raiders outfits, and the description confirms it’s a single-player focused action-shooter. However, Nintendo also say the game “supports the ability to join with up to three other players online or via local wireless”.
Splatoon Raiders launches July 23, exclusively on the Switch 2. We’ll be covering everything we hear as we get closer to the launch, as we did with the recent age rating news that led to this trailer, so check back often to GameObserver for more!
