‘Splatoon Raiders’ Isn’t What the Switch 2 Needs Right Now

Nintendo’s Switch 2 doesn’t need some new ultra-hyped Mario title or Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake to suddenly become any less worth the price, despite it soon costing $500. But Nintendo’s sequel Switch is still missing something—a reason to consistently return to the Switch 2 for a routine dopamine hit, week after week, day after day.

And that’s why Splatoon Raiders, the first solo- and co-op-focused rendition of the beloved multiplayer-centric Splatoon franchise, seemed like such a perfect fit. It’s receiving top billing for the summer of the Nintendo handheld’s sophomore year. It’s unfortunate that inking enemies in the same blasted landscapes over and over too quickly started to taste like an overly salted fish in my mouth.

Splatoon Raiders is a noisey, brackish slog. There was a certain point, early in the game, where I realized that everything I played to that point would repeat ad nauseum until I finished my last raid. The early joys of inking giant, fishy “Salmonids” until they explode into a shower of roe (yes, amassing salmon eggs are how you power up your companion’s high-damage “Showstopper” abilities) eventually turn into numbing boredom.

After playing through just three raid types and a few item-specific challenge maps, you realize you have played through everything the game has to offer. The player character, unceremoniously dubbed “The Mechanic,” is literally flung to each new raid site that has little to distinguish them—whether that’s a dull gray beachhead, a desolate ice shelf, or a devoid-of-life lava crag. You then pick up your weapon and either slash or shoot enemies full of ink until they disappear. Rinse. Repeat. You reach the end, mine a stalagmite of “Spirhalite,” collect your treasure, then go back to base to do it again.

You may think I’m being reductive, but I’m not missing much. A few levels through in short platforming segments that are over in a flash. There are few secrets or branching pathways in each level, save for occasional 15-second excursions where you can find and destroy a few crates full of yet more “Spirhalite Shards” or a hidden compass to yet another challenge course. Other non-boss arenas ask you to slay enough Salmonids before time runs out. Other raids open up the map slightly so you can pick and chose which groups of enemies to attack first. Only the bosses, with their unique arenas and attack patterns, offer any reprieve from the monotony.

It’s such a shame since, just like Splatoon 3, the game oozes personality, literally. The story is centered around a music trio that goes by Deep Cut, made up of the affable Frye, aloof Shiver, and Big Man (he only speaks in “Aye! Aye!” though translated for your convenience). The three accidentally crash their helicopter down on a remote archipelago supposedly filled with secrets and treasure. It’s a thin framework, but each squid kid has enough personality that their company is easy to enjoy. Everything from the music to the slapdash aesthetic to all your gear and hideout gives off a punkish vibe that doesn’t gel with the tedium of the game’s minute-to-minute gameplay.

Splatoon Raiders maintains the same control scheme as the other Splatoon games. You use your right stick to move the camera and the motion controls for fine-tuned aiming. Nintendo decided against any kind of Switch 2 mouse controls, which is an annoying omission considering how well it’s worked in games like Metroid Prime 4: Beyond.

While the controls lack variety, there is at least enough diversity between weapon and gadget types that you can change up your playstyle between raids. However, the maps rarely emphasize the benefits of one weapon type over another, especially when you’re mobbed by a mass of stumbling, slack-jawed fish. At that point, all you can do is spam attacks and hope you can escape out of the mob by jumping on your bot companion to gain some elevation.

At first, this seemed like the kind of repetition that would be aided with a friend. You can play Splatoon Raiders online or via local play, though there’s no option for split-screen co-op. Instead, you’ll need to play with everybody on their own Switch 2 or original Switch via GameShare. Being in the same room with some buds alleviates an ounce of the setting’s obtuse dullness. Just as well, having teammates cuts down on the number of enemies you need to face at once, letting you actually hone in on certain boss Salmonids and not get caught up in the chaff.

You would imagine a series like Splatoon would put co-op front and center. However, the game does nothing to incentivize teamwork. There are no team abilities to pay attention to, just a shared pool of lives that may leave you cursing your one friend who just can’t stop walking into a Salty Tongue Salmonid’s mouth. There’s no in-universe explanation why more than one Mechanic is strolling around the blasted expanse, either. Inevitably, it just makes multiplayer feel tacked-on.

Splatoon Raiders lacks that inherent weapon and area diversity that keeps loot-focused games like Diabo IV from becoming obscenely repetitive. And that’s a shame, because the Switch 2 deserves a co-op focused game that will keep players returning in between major releases. Last year’s standout Donkey Kong Bananza and 2026’s sleeper hit Pokemon Pokopia were already your best reason to buy a Switch 2, and that hasn’t changed. I would rather play smaller titles, like Yoshi and the Mysterious Book or Rhythm Heaven Groove, than ink my way through another dull, samey map in Splatoon Raiders.

See Splatoon Raiders at Amazon