Splatoon 3
Splatoon 3 is an upcoming third-person shooter video game developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Switch console. Like its predecessors in the "Splatoon" series, the game consists of competitive online multiplayer matches alongside a story-driven single-player mode. It was announced via Nintendo Direct on 17 February 2021, and more details were shared on 24 September 2021, with details on the co-op mode shared on 9 February 2022. "Splatoon 3" is currently set to be released on 9 September 2022. Gameplay. "Splatoon 3" has similar gameplay to the previous entries in the series , which have all been third-person shooters. Returning from the previous game is the ability for players to choose between "Inklings" and "Octolings" as their player character. They wield weaponry that shoots colored ink. Each weapon type has different abilities. For example, Rollers are large paint rollers that can cover large amounts of area in ink but are generally limited to close-range combat, while Chargers are sniper rifle-like weapons with a long range for sniping opponents but are less effective at painting the ground. "Splatoon 3" expands upon this by adding new main and special weapons to the  game. Inklings also have the ability to morph into squid creatures, referred to in-game as the "Squid Form" which can be used to climb ink-covered walls or swim through ink faster than the humanoid forms can walk. Weapons have a finite amount of ink ammunition, and going into squid form replenishes it quicker than in humanoid form. Confirmed by Nintendo to be returning as a playable online multiplayer game mode is Regular Battle, also called Turf War. In Regular Battles, two teams of four players compete to cover the most amount of the map's area in their  respective ink color. Each team can cover over an area covered by the opponents with their color in return, and the opposing team's ink slows movement, gradually deals damage and prevents the use of the player's squid form. Each player is equipped with a weapon set, chosen prior to each match, and each set comes with additional secondary and special weapons in addition to its main weapon. Secondary weapons provide alternate forms of attacking the other team and inking the ground; for example, Splat Bombs that explode a second after contact with a surface and Burst Bombs that  explode upon impact. When enough ground is covered in a player's ink, they may use a special weapon, which are primarily used to attack the opposing team. Weapons and other forms of attack can deal damage to opposing players; when enough damage is given, they will "splat" their opponent, forcing them to restart from their starting location. Matches last three minutes, and whichever team covers a higher percentage of the field at the end of the match is declared the winner. Also confirmed to be returning from "Splatoon 2" is the Salmon Run co-op mode, being titled "Salmon  Run: Next Wave". The main hub of "Splatoon 3" will be called "Splatsville", nicknamed "the city of chaos", which will be located outside the usual location of "Inkopolis" in a place called the "Splatlands". Similar to the previous games in the series, this game will have a single-player campaign. It was revealed that the story for "Splatoon 3" will be titled "Return of the Mammalians" and one of the locations will be called "Alterna". The single-player campaign is going to focus on the reappearance of mammals. Development. "Splatoon 3" was first announced with a teaser trailer in a  Nintendo Direct on 17 February 2021. The teaser trailer revealed gameplay similar to "Splatoon 2", and revealed new items, weapons, and abilities, including an Ink Bow and a new apocalyptic design. More details were revealed later that year in September, including the name of "Splatoon 3" single-player mode, "Return of the Mammalians." The game is planned to release on the Nintendo Switch on 9 September 2022. A trailer for "Splatoon 3" co-op mode “Salmon Run” was premiered at a Nintendo Direct on 9 February 2022. On 22 April 2022, Nintendo uploaded a video to YouTube that showed gameplay  of the "Turf War" game mode, as well as providing an exact release date.