Saved by the Switch
By James Andrawes
Splatoon was a stand out game on the WiiU but not too many people got to play it because well it was on the WiiU. It did, however, gain a kind of cult following as only big fans of Nintendo played it and if it was on the PS4 or Xbox One then it would’ve had to of been against shooters like Call of Duty and well it would’ve been….splattered. It was a really good game on the WiiU and after playing Splatoon 2 on the Switch I can tell it will be awesome to take anywhere you want, except flights from the Middle East, which saves it from being pretty much the same game.
First time I played the Testfire, the beta for Splatoon 2, I played it on my TV, just like the last Splatoon and for recording purposes, and I found the game to feel almost identical to the first Splatoon. There were a few things different as the gameplay seems better and the new weapon of the Splat Dualies is really quite cool, with it’s added John Wick style dodge roll as you fire being a personal favourite. The gameplay and the whole experience is the same and it was very easy for me to remember how to play because of the sameness about it. I guess it would be wise to keep it pretty similar since there are a lot of people who bought a Switch but didn’t buy a WiiU and they haven’t experienced Splatoon yet.
When I took the Switch out of the dock and held it in my hands to play it was a totally different experience that I loved. Every game that I have played on the Switch so far, six by the way, has been great for just playing it on the go and, in fact, I’ve actually barely used the Switch on my TV. Zelda is perfect for the handheld mode, Shovel Knight is great to stop and start every now and again and Fast RMX is great to set up as a two player game in tabletop mode without the tv. Splatoon 2 works perfectly in handheld mode and the only reason why I’d use it on the TV is for recording purposes or if I get a pro controller. The motion controls with the handheld mode work really well, especially compared to the motion controls in the TV mode with the controller. I noticed with Zelda that I kept the motion controls on, despite the fact that I don’t normally like controlling that way, but I don’t mind having them on. Splatoon is even better as it makes a guy like me who isn’t the best at shooters have better control over what I’m trying to do.
The whole game on its own though better have more in it when it comes out in Winter, Australia winter/US summer, as the game doesn’t change too much and definitely needs a local multiplayer mode that will really make use of the handheld/TV mode advantage that the Switch has. This is the type of crazy and fun shooter that people don’t necessarily want to play on their own and would much rather play with other people next to them on the couch creating banter and competing against each other.
As for the stability of Nintendo’s online platform well it didn’t break down once or have any lag at all while I was playing which was really good. Everything about this beta ran smoothly and finding a game to join was effortless and hopefully, the full game is streamlined just like this beta was. I think that Splatoon 2 will be a system seller when it comes out because it is exciting and along with Zelda and Mario Kart 8 it will be one of the core titles to own. I just hope that when it launches that it will launch with a lot more content than I am expecting it to have, a few different online modes won’t make it last till Mario: Odessey.