Oh my god can you two fucking KISS ALREADY OH MY GOD-
A fantastic dlc that proves above all that Splatoon 2 truly outshines the rest of the series. Per 3's track record, I was honestly expecting just a rehashed version of the glory Octo Expansion brought us. A similar storyline copying level designs and gameplay from that era of the series, unlocking the ability to play as a sanitized octoling afterwards. I didnt think much else was going to come of it but I'm very happy I was wrong. Pearl and Marina are absolute delights and I'm so glad to see them presented so well. Their style, stunning. Their personalities even more so. Eight is also my favorite protagonist and I love that they kept the kind of sexual swagger Octo Expansion had with Eight's bdsm latex bodysuit thing. It is nice to see the series progressing their cast instead of just kind of freezing them in the past, and I loved seeing different sides of the 3 of them. Acht is cool as well, but I was very distracted most of the time by how hard they were going on Marina and Pearls apparent love for each other. I never say this about anything, especially Nintendo games, but to me it seems very obvious that they're supposed to be presented as a couple. Its a shame they will probably never openly admit that, but I appreciate the concept regardless.
People hate rougelites but gameplay-wise I had a looot of fun. The concept of the spire is smart, and as a very (very) damn good Salmon Run player I had a great time with the difficulty even if I can clear through the 30 floors, no sweat. I love the color chips changing your ink color, I love how broken you can build some of the weapons. The aesthetic, the enemies. Its everything, I absolutely loved it. Exceptions include having to clear the spire with the fucking gatling gun and Eight's horrible horrible palette, but otherwise I was having a ball through and through.
Definitely worth it, reminded me of why I like this series to begin with. Splatoon 3 is a horrible step in the wrong direction, needlessly unfun, and bland as all hell but at least now it has this. Hooray!
People hate rougelites but gameplay-wise I had a looot of fun. The concept of the spire is smart, and as a very (very) damn good Salmon Run player I had a great time with the difficulty even if I can clear through the 30 floors, no sweat. I love the color chips changing your ink color, I love how broken you can build some of the weapons. The aesthetic, the enemies. Its everything, I absolutely loved it. Exceptions include having to clear the spire with the fucking gatling gun and Eight's horrible horrible palette, but otherwise I was having a ball through and through.
Definitely worth it, reminded me of why I like this series to begin with. Splatoon 3 is a horrible step in the wrong direction, needlessly unfun, and bland as all hell but at least now it has this. Hooray!
Back in 2018, Splatoon 2’s Octo Expansion was one of my favourite releases of that year. It turned Splatoon’s core singleplayer gameplay and weapon system on its head, in a way the campaigns only vaguely hinted at - providing ingenious puzzle rooms and a surprisingly steep difficulty curve that finally demonstrated that Nintendo understood & could capitalise on the series’ potential. Leaned into the strengths of Splatoon’s setting too, exploring its bizarre underbelly and fugged vibes. One for the fans of the ‘Rock Bottom’ episode of Spongebob. Seeing Agent 8 in the trailers for this had me a little excited, as Splatoon 3’s campaign was solid but didn’t feel as if it pushed the envelope much, I’ve come to see Agent 8 as Splatoon’s Harbinger of Difficulty and it turns out I wasn’t wrong.
Side Order is cool!! I love the setting (even if it’s basically just something of a play on the Copied City). I found it pretty easy to be excited by the prospect of delving into whatever Nintendo’s idea of a roguelite would be, and it’s a solid foundation but there’s so little variety here I can’t help but find the tower loop a little dry. There are only four mission types, FEELS LIKE there’s only enough individual level layouts for you to see every available one in a single run, and the upgrades you collect as you ascend the floors are merely statistical buffs; “+15% shot speed” type beat. It’s very hard, I like the risk:reward option of choosing harder rooms for better upgrades on top of other chaotic modifiers that can shoehorn you into making rough decisions. As with all roguelites with vertical character progression though, it’s only hard for a while until you power creep your way over roadblocks with permanent character upgrades and such. Numerically overcoming odds always feels cheap to me and I knew my completing the DLC would only be a matter of time investment. Eventually you get the option to retract your upgrades for a prestige reward boost, but I’ll be one hundred percent with you, I don’t like the majority of the weapons in this game and I can not bring myself to be a completionist about this if it means I have to suffer the fucking umbrella. It's all a little undercooked and doesn't have enough to really justify playing over and over for.
Anyway the story is great lol, albeit that there's not a lot of it. The lengths they go to show how much Marina loves Pearl is endlessly cute. She made the currency in her gamedev project “Prlz” maan 🙏🥹. Recalling who won the FinalFest of Splatoon 2 gave me something of a pop-off moment and I’m dying to see how this DLC would have looked if Order won. Endgame is the strongest finale of all of these games yet and that’s honestly a ridiculously high bar. Remix Ebb & Flow forever I will cry every time. Personal favourite soundtrack in the series, too! I love how heavily it leans into its dark ethereal sleep paralysis ambiance. LOVE how the hub/training areas have little environmental tells for the instrumentation in the bgm.
Side Order is cool!! I love the setting (even if it’s basically just something of a play on the Copied City). I found it pretty easy to be excited by the prospect of delving into whatever Nintendo’s idea of a roguelite would be, and it’s a solid foundation but there’s so little variety here I can’t help but find the tower loop a little dry. There are only four mission types, FEELS LIKE there’s only enough individual level layouts for you to see every available one in a single run, and the upgrades you collect as you ascend the floors are merely statistical buffs; “+15% shot speed” type beat. It’s very hard, I like the risk:reward option of choosing harder rooms for better upgrades on top of other chaotic modifiers that can shoehorn you into making rough decisions. As with all roguelites with vertical character progression though, it’s only hard for a while until you power creep your way over roadblocks with permanent character upgrades and such. Numerically overcoming odds always feels cheap to me and I knew my completing the DLC would only be a matter of time investment. Eventually you get the option to retract your upgrades for a prestige reward boost, but I’ll be one hundred percent with you, I don’t like the majority of the weapons in this game and I can not bring myself to be a completionist about this if it means I have to suffer the fucking umbrella. It's all a little undercooked and doesn't have enough to really justify playing over and over for.
Anyway the story is great lol, albeit that there's not a lot of it. The lengths they go to show how much Marina loves Pearl is endlessly cute. She made the currency in her gamedev project “Prlz” maan 🙏🥹. Recalling who won the FinalFest of Splatoon 2 gave me something of a pop-off moment and I’m dying to see how this DLC would have looked if Order won. Endgame is the strongest finale of all of these games yet and that’s honestly a ridiculously high bar. Remix Ebb & Flow forever I will cry every time. Personal favourite soundtrack in the series, too! I love how heavily it leans into its dark ethereal sleep paralysis ambiance. LOVE how the hub/training areas have little environmental tells for the instrumentation in the bgm.
To me, Side Order distills the Splatoon PVE experience to its best qualities. Considering Splatoon campaigns have been exclusively composed of levels designed as obstacle courses, enemy gauntlets, and various other trials, it makes perfect sense to forgo the formalities and just introduce a format that is, itself, a series of challenges: the Roguelike genre. Not only does this create more harmony in the progression systems but it also eliminates some of Splatoons more aggravating mission types: theres no instant-failing rail shooting galleries, box sculpting mini games, and generally speaking no requirement to use some of Splatoons more estranged weapon types.
Or at least for the most part. Unlocks are exclusive to each weapon and so full and total completion would require you to do a full run with every weapon type. This is not necessary to enjoy Side Order however, and the way the DLC doles out upgrades makes it more easy than ever to spec away the flaws of particular weapon types - meaning that while this might be Splatoons most demanding campaign to 100% in terms of effort, its also the most flexible and most rewarding Splatoon has felt across the past 4 campaigns theyve made.
Bonus Thoughts:
- The Jelletons (jelly skeletons?) taking inspo from Salmon Run enemies was smart cuz Salmon Run is also something that plays alot to Splatoons strengths as a game.
- Story lacks the huge climaxes that more traditional story campaigns usually have, however I think the more agnostic boss design is much more interesting.
- With even just a few permanent hacks purchased you are nearly unstoppable (pure happiness) It might seem like quite a task, to be expected to win with weapons like the Umbrella but in truth power skews so far in your favor that essentially every run is a win no matter what youre using. It is deceptively doable.
- Its impossible to not make my Agent 8 look like a gimp that just got back from edm night at the club
Or at least for the most part. Unlocks are exclusive to each weapon and so full and total completion would require you to do a full run with every weapon type. This is not necessary to enjoy Side Order however, and the way the DLC doles out upgrades makes it more easy than ever to spec away the flaws of particular weapon types - meaning that while this might be Splatoons most demanding campaign to 100% in terms of effort, its also the most flexible and most rewarding Splatoon has felt across the past 4 campaigns theyve made.
Bonus Thoughts:
- The Jelletons (jelly skeletons?) taking inspo from Salmon Run enemies was smart cuz Salmon Run is also something that plays alot to Splatoons strengths as a game.
- Story lacks the huge climaxes that more traditional story campaigns usually have, however I think the more agnostic boss design is much more interesting.
- With even just a few permanent hacks purchased you are nearly unstoppable (pure happiness) It might seem like quite a task, to be expected to win with weapons like the Umbrella but in truth power skews so far in your favor that essentially every run is a win no matter what youre using. It is deceptively doable.
- Its impossible to not make my Agent 8 look like a gimp that just got back from edm night at the club
Definitely an enjoyable experience but it being a roguelike definitely causes its story to be less impactful than OE, especially if you beat it in just a few runs. I do wish it was a little harder, but the more challenging levels towards the top are easily the best part of your run. Obviously gonna go for 100% cause its gameplay is PEAK. ALSO HIIII OFF THE HOOKKKK HII PEARL HIII EIGHT HIII DEDF1SH
I missed these two so much. Pearlina Nation we won
Pre-Review: February 21, 2024
If I had to be honest, I might've enjoyed this a lot more than Octo Expansion, maybe because Pearl and Marina appeared more physically along the quest in this.
Oh well, regardless, this expansion was so much fun to play and it feels so amazing to see those two again! ^^
If I had to be honest, I might've enjoyed this a lot more than Octo Expansion, maybe because Pearl and Marina appeared more physically along the quest in this.
Oh well, regardless, this expansion was so much fun to play and it feels so amazing to see those two again! ^^
ITS PEAK IM AFRAID
completed all palettes but have not obtained all hacks or collected all chips. i personally wasn't expecting much [gameplay-wise] but had a lot of fun. it seems i've been enjoying the roguelite genre more and more without noticing, though side order is still beholden to the flaws of such titles; repetition, little to no expansion on systems, get lucky or die. i tolerate these things for love of the splatoon universe and narrative told through its single player campaigns and expansions, and how such a vivid picture can be painted of its main cast through such little dialogue. as an octarian and Octavio fan i really appreciated even further windows into their society and locales as well, even if subtle.
otherwise a wonderful finale for Off The Hook and capstone on their moral as a couple, a beautiful reflection on welcoming change for the better or worse with open arms (Marina's defection, Acht's sanitisation). to spin into a tangent, the nature of splatoon's final splatfests is mystifying in its inviting discussion of "what if?" scenarios and its very permanent decision to deliver on its consequences in favour to the winning team, seamlessly marrying story events directly to gameplay in a predominantly online title. in contrast to that upheld value, side order's decision to reframe and spotlight splatoon 2's order vs chaos was to be inevitably expected having had the most tangible effect on the world reflected in the splatlands and its "chaos" of diversity.
i have a love for the franchise and its chosen vehicle of worldbuilding and storytelling, and i'm grateful a very good friend of mine took the time to share his own love with me. side order is no octoexpansion, but will anything ever be again?
otherwise a wonderful finale for Off The Hook and capstone on their moral as a couple, a beautiful reflection on welcoming change for the better or worse with open arms (Marina's defection, Acht's sanitisation). to spin into a tangent, the nature of splatoon's final splatfests is mystifying in its inviting discussion of "what if?" scenarios and its very permanent decision to deliver on its consequences in favour to the winning team, seamlessly marrying story events directly to gameplay in a predominantly online title. in contrast to that upheld value, side order's decision to reframe and spotlight splatoon 2's order vs chaos was to be inevitably expected having had the most tangible effect on the world reflected in the splatlands and its "chaos" of diversity.
i have a love for the franchise and its chosen vehicle of worldbuilding and storytelling, and i'm grateful a very good friend of mine took the time to share his own love with me. side order is no octoexpansion, but will anything ever be again?
This review contains spoilers
And so the day was saved again, all thanks to Pearl and her ability to scream extremely loudly into a microphone.
This could have stood to be a bit harder and have a bit more variety with its roguelike elements (only 4 objective types seems strange honestly) but this is still a ton of fun and just reinforced for me how much I love the world of Splatoon
what's there is fun, but totally lacking in replayability and content. absolutely did NOT match the quality of storytelling or spectacle that Octo Expansion had. difficult to feel invested in a story where basically nothing happens (love the pearlina fanservice though)
Maybe I'll write an actual review some day but here's some quick thoughts:
- The aesthetics are incredible. This game is an artistic achievement, I've never seen anything that looks and feels like it. Amazing touches like the music in the lobby and foyer.
- The gameplay is real damn fun. Getting a good run makes you feel like a god, everything just dies nigh instantly. The main problem is variety: not enough different floor objectives, not enough enemies & bosses, and not enough different color chips. The way the system works where every weapon basically already determines the run since they each have a specific category of power ups they are much more likely to get makes replaying weapons you've already beaten a run with kinda boring.
- The ending is good but frankly, not as good as something like Octo Expansion.
- The music is good too, very different from the rest of the series and I definitely prefer it that way, but again to my ear not as good as Octo.
- The story is fine in isolation but that title ain't lying: Side Order feels like a side mission. If you think about how important to the world of Splatoon the events of Octo Expansion felt and compare that to the events of Side Order, it's hard not to be a bit disappointed. The way it unlocks is pretty strange too: after your first run the story is essentially over but the game leaves many mysteries still open that gradually get answered by doing runs with other weapons. Fine on paper, but even with all of the weapons completed and all of the "lore" read, I still feel Octo had a much stronger impact.
Edit: after lots of mentally going back and forth between 4 and 4.5 stars I think I'll leave it at 4.5. Although this "review" sounds pretty negative it only is because I'm directly comparing it to the pinnacle of Splatoon instead of looking at it in the wider gaming landscape and compared to the other games I've played: yeah this is still leagues above most of them. What can I say, I just like my gay little squid games.
- The aesthetics are incredible. This game is an artistic achievement, I've never seen anything that looks and feels like it. Amazing touches like the music in the lobby and foyer.
- The gameplay is real damn fun. Getting a good run makes you feel like a god, everything just dies nigh instantly. The main problem is variety: not enough different floor objectives, not enough enemies & bosses, and not enough different color chips. The way the system works where every weapon basically already determines the run since they each have a specific category of power ups they are much more likely to get makes replaying weapons you've already beaten a run with kinda boring.
- The ending is good but frankly, not as good as something like Octo Expansion.
- The music is good too, very different from the rest of the series and I definitely prefer it that way, but again to my ear not as good as Octo.
- The story is fine in isolation but that title ain't lying: Side Order feels like a side mission. If you think about how important to the world of Splatoon the events of Octo Expansion felt and compare that to the events of Side Order, it's hard not to be a bit disappointed. The way it unlocks is pretty strange too: after your first run the story is essentially over but the game leaves many mysteries still open that gradually get answered by doing runs with other weapons. Fine on paper, but even with all of the weapons completed and all of the "lore" read, I still feel Octo had a much stronger impact.
Edit: after lots of mentally going back and forth between 4 and 4.5 stars I think I'll leave it at 4.5. Although this "review" sounds pretty negative it only is because I'm directly comparing it to the pinnacle of Splatoon instead of looking at it in the wider gaming landscape and compared to the other games I've played: yeah this is still leagues above most of them. What can I say, I just like my gay little squid games.
For a rouge lite, this was a joy to play! Having to fill up the palettes with color chips and coming up with weird ways to make your setup stronger was a thrill for me. I'm just....not good at it at all lol.
I think I only got up to the 20th or 22th floor myself, but i enjoyed what i was doing in it. I will definitely come back to it eventually, and maybe I'll have a training arc and git gud!!
I think I only got up to the 20th or 22th floor myself, but i enjoyed what i was doing in it. I will definitely come back to it eventually, and maybe I'll have a training arc and git gud!!
I inhale roguelikes. So I was a bit surprised at how easy this one was? I still only had two lives on the final boss. Wasn’t very upgraded, and beat the game on the run where I first reached floor 20. It’s good fun, new Pearlina content is inherently good to me, but it’s a case of just, don’t go in expecting an Octo Expansion. It’s just mildly underwhelming after a year of buildup? Idk. Definitely still good and there’s something there for the diehards but I beat it in maybe 3 hours?
It's fun, but I was expecting a liiiiiittle more plot and stage variety! I wish the danger challenges showed up more often. Worth the wait though :) You can tell the devs have an Off the Hook bias LOL
I am really hoping the devs iterate on this in a future game. They already have a lot going right with this but god the level objective and boss variety is such a drawback for long-term replayability (such as clearing the Spire with every Weapon).
Even just one different objective type and an alternate final boss would've gone a long way.
At least they did something new and didn't just make another Splatformer with re-skinned Octarians again.
Even just one different objective type and an alternate final boss would've gone a long way.
At least they did something new and didn't just make another Splatformer with re-skinned Octarians again.
This review contains spoilers
Back on Splatoon 2's FinalFest, I was in Team Order. Not only did it strike me as the preferable moral choice, it also seemed like the less hacky threat to theme the next game around. I don't think there's a Nintendo baddie who wouldn't align themselves with Team Chaos, and it seemed easy to picture how that would pair with Splatoon's colourful, forever teenage aesthetic. I wanted to know what an orderly Splatoon would be. It seems the developers were fairly inspired by the curious prompt, too, as they pretty much ignored the divine authority of SplatFest results to deliver this vision as a bit of DLC.
Side Order has a pretty conservative approach to random elements, and that's both a good and bad thing. While I was pretty cold to the idea of Nintendo's new generation of developers handing over the game design tools to an algorithm, the levels here are all tailored with the same care they've traditionally put into the series' single-player content. There just isn't all that much of it. This is billed as a mode that you can play endlessly. One run through Side Order takes roughly half an hour, and the bulk of any two runs will be spent on the same stages. The variables are meaningful, and help to build skills you can carry over to the main multiplayer content, but I don't know if it'll have much meaningful impact outside of Splatoon's active playerbase.
Each run through Side Order asks you to select a pre-made weapon loadout and presents you with 30 floors of a tower to beat. Each one presents you with a random selection of three levels to pick from, each marked with their own difficulty rating and completion rewards. Levels each come with one of five objectives, and all involve either chasing or defending a target while fighting off oncoming enemies. It's fun, but it doesn't really offer the variety or complexity of a typical single-player campaign. I don't think anybody outside of the most hardcore fans will play through it with every loadout.
The thing is, Splatoon gets to use its characters, aesthetic and themes as a crutch. For the most engaged fans who lap up this stuff, this side of the DLC makes up for the relatively shallow pool of content. There's a lot of direct callbacks and narrative ties to previous games and a good amount of Splatoon deeplore stuff. It just seems to repeat a lot of the same beats we've already seen, and the only people who will care about this aspect of the content are the same people who will be bothered by those things.
It's a big showcase for Splatoon 2's pop duo, Off the Hook, with Pearl acting as a Bowser's Fury-style drone partner, taking out swarming enemies and shouting out words of encouragement as you play. She's a pretty good fit for it, really. It was kind of funny to see Marie take a similar role in Splatoon 2, trying to inspire action without losing her cool, but if Splatoon wasn't so committed to its characterisation, she'd have been hooting and hollering like Pearl throughout it. Dialogue and unlockable written content relentlessly reinstate how much Marina and Pearl love each other, though despite the burgeoning enthusiasm from a significant segment of the fanbase, it appears we're not going to see explicit confirmation of a gay relationship in a game from the publishers of Tomodachi Life anytime soon.
Playing through Side Order with different weapon loadouts (each one themed around a familiar Splatoon character, of course) will unlock further weapons, in-game cash to spend on upgrades, and entries from Marina's diary. These act like the Squid Sister Stories did in the runup to Splatoon 2, offering us a little insight on Marina's perspective following Team Chaos's victory, but it's relatively perfunctory. Marina's a fairly pristine character, uniquely talented in a range of interests, and full of love for everyone. It's hard to imagine her doing something maliciously. The developers have far less conviction in pinning her as a villain as they did for Callie in Splatoon 2, putting a lid on the possibility before you even see Side Order's opening titles. It's a little underwhelming, but I respect the team's commitment to established characterisation before everything else. We might get less exciting stories for it, but when the fans watch the concerts, they fully believe in those dancing fish people. You don't want to mess with that.
I'm a little anxious that the politics have taken a bit of a backseat in Splatoon now. Pikmin 4 was guilty of the same, and I really don't want it to be something Nintendo shies away from. Octo Expansion took a really big swing on this stuff. Not only did it deliver a fairly earnest anti-racist message in a way that really complemented the established characters and setting, I was fucking thrilled with how it put the game's ecological message into stark view. Implying that there's something to be learned from the energy and passion of the youth movement of the late sixties, by homaging Planet of the Apes' post-apocalyptic revelation with its sunken Statue of Liberty, but also presenting it in the most Splatoon way possible, with you grinding around it on midair ink rails to a thumping soundtrack and rapidfiring at Lady Liberty's pulsing weak spots. It's difficult for me to think of any part of a videogame that I love more than Octo Expansion's final hours. I was with Splatoon since Day One, and this was the perfect way to tell me that my good will had paid off. Presenting the oncoming climate emergency and subsequent extinction of the human race, not only as a solid fact, but a rollercoaster with popstars and dualwielded uzis. There's nothing like that in Side Order. Just a loose implication that dogmatic authoritarianism is a flawed attitude. It feels pretty lame by contrast. I don't know if anybody else gets as much out of this side of Splatoon, and I don't think they can repeat that high. I just feel obliged to keep prodding the developers to get radical again.
That's not to say that Side Order makes no meaningful progress on the story. Following up on the liberation of the Octoling army, we're given some insight into who those people were and how their lives have changed since. It's significant to our understanding of Marina, and shows commitment to the continuity. It didn't stir me too much, personally, but if there had been so much as a comment from a Squid Sister, I know I'd have been far more invested.
Completing Side Order gives players the ability to set Splatoon 2's Inkopolis Square as their main hub. It's kind of weird to be seeing nostalgia for a game on the same console, but with all the signs that the Switch may be wrapping things up, there is a bit of ennui in going back to the 2017 stuff right now. As a big fan of Zelda, Mario and Splatoon, that year was a complete thrill ride for me. Not only was there excitement for this new console, we were giddy for a version of Nintendo that put all its focus on a single platform. There seemed to be a massive new title every month, for a while. As remarkable a system as it became, I think it's fair to say it didn't really carry on that same trajectory for long. With Tears of the Kingdom, Xenoblade Chronicles 3 and the Mario Kart 8 DLC, it feels like Nintendo have just been trying to repeat those 2017 successes, rather than continue on that journey of invention. Splatoon 2 is good, Splatoon 3 is good, and Side Order is good, but Octo Expansion had me thinking the series would change and get far more ambitious. I don't think that's happened. It's like we've seen everything it can be, and all we can expect now are minor tweaks. I still want Portal 2/Resident Evil 4 structure in single-player Splatoon. I just have far less faith it's going to happen, now.
I'm the kind of fan who paid for this as soon as possible to get access to the Splatoon 1 hub. Of course this is what my criticism is going to look like.
Side Order has a pretty conservative approach to random elements, and that's both a good and bad thing. While I was pretty cold to the idea of Nintendo's new generation of developers handing over the game design tools to an algorithm, the levels here are all tailored with the same care they've traditionally put into the series' single-player content. There just isn't all that much of it. This is billed as a mode that you can play endlessly. One run through Side Order takes roughly half an hour, and the bulk of any two runs will be spent on the same stages. The variables are meaningful, and help to build skills you can carry over to the main multiplayer content, but I don't know if it'll have much meaningful impact outside of Splatoon's active playerbase.
Each run through Side Order asks you to select a pre-made weapon loadout and presents you with 30 floors of a tower to beat. Each one presents you with a random selection of three levels to pick from, each marked with their own difficulty rating and completion rewards. Levels each come with one of five objectives, and all involve either chasing or defending a target while fighting off oncoming enemies. It's fun, but it doesn't really offer the variety or complexity of a typical single-player campaign. I don't think anybody outside of the most hardcore fans will play through it with every loadout.
The thing is, Splatoon gets to use its characters, aesthetic and themes as a crutch. For the most engaged fans who lap up this stuff, this side of the DLC makes up for the relatively shallow pool of content. There's a lot of direct callbacks and narrative ties to previous games and a good amount of Splatoon deeplore stuff. It just seems to repeat a lot of the same beats we've already seen, and the only people who will care about this aspect of the content are the same people who will be bothered by those things.
It's a big showcase for Splatoon 2's pop duo, Off the Hook, with Pearl acting as a Bowser's Fury-style drone partner, taking out swarming enemies and shouting out words of encouragement as you play. She's a pretty good fit for it, really. It was kind of funny to see Marie take a similar role in Splatoon 2, trying to inspire action without losing her cool, but if Splatoon wasn't so committed to its characterisation, she'd have been hooting and hollering like Pearl throughout it. Dialogue and unlockable written content relentlessly reinstate how much Marina and Pearl love each other, though despite the burgeoning enthusiasm from a significant segment of the fanbase, it appears we're not going to see explicit confirmation of a gay relationship in a game from the publishers of Tomodachi Life anytime soon.
Playing through Side Order with different weapon loadouts (each one themed around a familiar Splatoon character, of course) will unlock further weapons, in-game cash to spend on upgrades, and entries from Marina's diary. These act like the Squid Sister Stories did in the runup to Splatoon 2, offering us a little insight on Marina's perspective following Team Chaos's victory, but it's relatively perfunctory. Marina's a fairly pristine character, uniquely talented in a range of interests, and full of love for everyone. It's hard to imagine her doing something maliciously. The developers have far less conviction in pinning her as a villain as they did for Callie in Splatoon 2, putting a lid on the possibility before you even see Side Order's opening titles. It's a little underwhelming, but I respect the team's commitment to established characterisation before everything else. We might get less exciting stories for it, but when the fans watch the concerts, they fully believe in those dancing fish people. You don't want to mess with that.
I'm a little anxious that the politics have taken a bit of a backseat in Splatoon now. Pikmin 4 was guilty of the same, and I really don't want it to be something Nintendo shies away from. Octo Expansion took a really big swing on this stuff. Not only did it deliver a fairly earnest anti-racist message in a way that really complemented the established characters and setting, I was fucking thrilled with how it put the game's ecological message into stark view. Implying that there's something to be learned from the energy and passion of the youth movement of the late sixties, by homaging Planet of the Apes' post-apocalyptic revelation with its sunken Statue of Liberty, but also presenting it in the most Splatoon way possible, with you grinding around it on midair ink rails to a thumping soundtrack and rapidfiring at Lady Liberty's pulsing weak spots. It's difficult for me to think of any part of a videogame that I love more than Octo Expansion's final hours. I was with Splatoon since Day One, and this was the perfect way to tell me that my good will had paid off. Presenting the oncoming climate emergency and subsequent extinction of the human race, not only as a solid fact, but a rollercoaster with popstars and dualwielded uzis. There's nothing like that in Side Order. Just a loose implication that dogmatic authoritarianism is a flawed attitude. It feels pretty lame by contrast. I don't know if anybody else gets as much out of this side of Splatoon, and I don't think they can repeat that high. I just feel obliged to keep prodding the developers to get radical again.
That's not to say that Side Order makes no meaningful progress on the story. Following up on the liberation of the Octoling army, we're given some insight into who those people were and how their lives have changed since. It's significant to our understanding of Marina, and shows commitment to the continuity. It didn't stir me too much, personally, but if there had been so much as a comment from a Squid Sister, I know I'd have been far more invested.
Completing Side Order gives players the ability to set Splatoon 2's Inkopolis Square as their main hub. It's kind of weird to be seeing nostalgia for a game on the same console, but with all the signs that the Switch may be wrapping things up, there is a bit of ennui in going back to the 2017 stuff right now. As a big fan of Zelda, Mario and Splatoon, that year was a complete thrill ride for me. Not only was there excitement for this new console, we were giddy for a version of Nintendo that put all its focus on a single platform. There seemed to be a massive new title every month, for a while. As remarkable a system as it became, I think it's fair to say it didn't really carry on that same trajectory for long. With Tears of the Kingdom, Xenoblade Chronicles 3 and the Mario Kart 8 DLC, it feels like Nintendo have just been trying to repeat those 2017 successes, rather than continue on that journey of invention. Splatoon 2 is good, Splatoon 3 is good, and Side Order is good, but Octo Expansion had me thinking the series would change and get far more ambitious. I don't think that's happened. It's like we've seen everything it can be, and all we can expect now are minor tweaks. I still want Portal 2/Resident Evil 4 structure in single-player Splatoon. I just have far less faith it's going to happen, now.
I'm the kind of fan who paid for this as soon as possible to get access to the Splatoon 1 hub. Of course this is what my criticism is going to look like.
Bit of an easier roguelite, but was still fun and felt well balanced! Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't believe Nintendo has developed a game in this genre before. I really enjoyed the grind while it lasted, but there are tons of unlockables to keep players coming back.
Also, you could reduce the roguelite parts of Side Order if you wanted. There are options to buy lives and continues. It's nice to see accessibility for players who may not play roguelites /likes, but I chose not to use these options. Side Order is plenty do-able on one life with good luck!
Also, you could reduce the roguelite parts of Side Order if you wanted. There are options to buy lives and continues. It's nice to see accessibility for players who may not play roguelites /likes, but I chose not to use these options. Side Order is plenty do-able on one life with good luck!
I really really really like Octo Expansion. I think its one of Nintendo's best. So when this came out and it was just pretty good I couldn't help but feel a little dissapointed. Oustide of my incredibly tall expectations this game is pretty great. Story is really solid and the character interactions really make it. I felt decently incentivised to 100% and had fun doing it too. I wish it was a bit harder tho. Took only 3 tries to beat and thats pretty pathetic for a roguelite. Maybe it woulda been best to have 10 more floors or so, a case of padding that I think woulda done the game some good. Anyways, pick this up if youre a freak for splatoon single player content,
This review contains spoilers
The villain is literally just Z from Xenoblade 3 lol
I missed you so fucking much, Off the Hook...
I missed you so fucking much, Off the Hook...
holy peak
Octo Expansion was so much better.
The main story and Roguelike mode lacks any real meat. I'm honestly shocked at how barebones the experience feels with a lack of mission types and enemy variety. I'm honestly not sure how this took way longer to release than Octo Expansion. I definitely prefer the handcrafted levels Octo Expansion and the Splatoon 3 campaign had.
Pearl and Marina were awesome though (so much better than Deep Cut), and the music/aesthetic were great. Ending was peak as per usual with these Splatoon campaigns.
Honestly not the sendoff I wanted for Splatoon 3 considering how disappointed I've been with the title compared to Splatoon 2. That said Side Order is still worth it especially since a Roguelike mode brings something completely new to the table
EDIT: After 100% the DLC yeah this a super mediocre Roguelike with little difficulty, very disappointed. Also really no secret boss/level like Octo Expansion and Splatoon 3's campaign?
The main story and Roguelike mode lacks any real meat. I'm honestly shocked at how barebones the experience feels with a lack of mission types and enemy variety. I'm honestly not sure how this took way longer to release than Octo Expansion. I definitely prefer the handcrafted levels Octo Expansion and the Splatoon 3 campaign had.
Pearl and Marina were awesome though (so much better than Deep Cut), and the music/aesthetic were great. Ending was peak as per usual with these Splatoon campaigns.
Honestly not the sendoff I wanted for Splatoon 3 considering how disappointed I've been with the title compared to Splatoon 2. That said Side Order is still worth it especially since a Roguelike mode brings something completely new to the table
EDIT: After 100% the DLC yeah this a super mediocre Roguelike with little difficulty, very disappointed. Also really no secret boss/level like Octo Expansion and Splatoon 3's campaign?
unrelated but i was banned from anilist once because i kept spamming my status about how much i loved tropical freeze
I think this is a pretty fun little expansion, and a fun little foray into roguelikes for Nintendo. Notice how I said little twice?
I don't want to sound like an entitled gamer with this review, but my biggest complaint with Side Order is that it felt like it was JUST short of being something really special. The first chunk of this DLC is really cool, the tutorial climb up the tower is full of dialogue and character interactions, there's cutscenes and intrigue. You get to the top and win the fight! But uh oh, the real big bad appears! Back to the bottom of the spire with you! Now for the roguelite to begin!
Now the first couple runs of Side Order proper are really fun! Seeing all the new bosses, the new enemies and floor layouts, the new chips to modify your weapon! It's all super cool to see, what's next! With little to no upgrades its super challenging and has a good amount of butt clench! I really was proud of myself for beating it on my third attempt (#humblebrag) because it felt like the odds were against me! I cleared the final boss with my final life and got hyped up for the final sequence of the game! It was a really good time, and now they're challenging me to beat it with every weapon? Sick!
However that's where the cracks start to show.
The first thing that kind of grated on me was that excluding the final boss, there are only 3 possible bosses, and you see 2 of them on each run. This leads to the randomness of bosses during runs being, pretty limited. I wish they had either had all 3 bosses during the run and eliminated the random chance, or perhaps added just one more boss so that there weren't so few boss combos possible. Second, the chips simply aren't as run changing as they should be. The ultimate change in each run is what weapon you're using, it doesn't feel fun to build around certain chips when all that REALLY matters is the gun. Finally, the "hacks" from Marina make subsequent runs trivial once you have enough. After clearing the tower 2-3 times, I don't think I lost a run until the final challenge.
As for the story, well. It's really bare bones. You get scraps each time you beat the final boss with a new weapon, and the dev logs explain how the expansion came to be, but it's not really anything crazy, unlike the octo expansion in the (much better) game before this. There's some cute dialogue in the elevator going up the tower, but in a game that encourages you to beat it at least 12 times, it repeats too soon, and I started skipping it.
Ultimately I think it's the best part of Splatoon 3, which is not a high bar as I think splat 3 is a step down from it's predecessor. So if you already own the game and have 20 bucks to spare, check it out, its fun enough to dive back into Splatoon for a bit.
Finally I want to talk about the final challange Spoilers ahead for that I guess (it's just gameplay mechanics.)
The idea of climbing the tower with no upgrades again was cool, something deserving of a giant reward. It was cool to some extent! I liked only having one life, it made every mistake feel grave and I went into a panic! Beating the final boss as "wimpy" as possible felt cool too...
and then nothing. no cutscene. barebones rewards. nothing. Hell, the story implication is that you just saved your own soul and they don't. really mention that. I was really pissed at this. I get a reskin of a weapon I don't use in the multiplayer, and a sticker for my battle tag? and story wise all i get is a pat on the back from Pearl? come on dude.
I don't want to sound like an entitled gamer with this review, but my biggest complaint with Side Order is that it felt like it was JUST short of being something really special. The first chunk of this DLC is really cool, the tutorial climb up the tower is full of dialogue and character interactions, there's cutscenes and intrigue. You get to the top and win the fight! But uh oh, the real big bad appears! Back to the bottom of the spire with you! Now for the roguelite to begin!
Now the first couple runs of Side Order proper are really fun! Seeing all the new bosses, the new enemies and floor layouts, the new chips to modify your weapon! It's all super cool to see, what's next! With little to no upgrades its super challenging and has a good amount of butt clench! I really was proud of myself for beating it on my third attempt (#humblebrag) because it felt like the odds were against me! I cleared the final boss with my final life and got hyped up for the final sequence of the game! It was a really good time, and now they're challenging me to beat it with every weapon? Sick!
However that's where the cracks start to show.
The first thing that kind of grated on me was that excluding the final boss, there are only 3 possible bosses, and you see 2 of them on each run. This leads to the randomness of bosses during runs being, pretty limited. I wish they had either had all 3 bosses during the run and eliminated the random chance, or perhaps added just one more boss so that there weren't so few boss combos possible. Second, the chips simply aren't as run changing as they should be. The ultimate change in each run is what weapon you're using, it doesn't feel fun to build around certain chips when all that REALLY matters is the gun. Finally, the "hacks" from Marina make subsequent runs trivial once you have enough. After clearing the tower 2-3 times, I don't think I lost a run until the final challenge.
As for the story, well. It's really bare bones. You get scraps each time you beat the final boss with a new weapon, and the dev logs explain how the expansion came to be, but it's not really anything crazy, unlike the octo expansion in the (much better) game before this. There's some cute dialogue in the elevator going up the tower, but in a game that encourages you to beat it at least 12 times, it repeats too soon, and I started skipping it.
Ultimately I think it's the best part of Splatoon 3, which is not a high bar as I think splat 3 is a step down from it's predecessor. So if you already own the game and have 20 bucks to spare, check it out, its fun enough to dive back into Splatoon for a bit.
Finally I want to talk about the final challange Spoilers ahead for that I guess (it's just gameplay mechanics.)
The idea of climbing the tower with no upgrades again was cool, something deserving of a giant reward. It was cool to some extent! I liked only having one life, it made every mistake feel grave and I went into a panic! Beating the final boss as "wimpy" as possible felt cool too...
and then nothing. no cutscene. barebones rewards. nothing. Hell, the story implication is that you just saved your own soul and they don't. really mention that. I was really pissed at this. I get a reskin of a weapon I don't use in the multiplayer, and a sticker for my battle tag? and story wise all i get is a pat on the back from Pearl? come on dude.
Brave of Nintendo to release a DLC that's just 10 straight hours of Pearl and Marina sloppily making out in an elevator while Acht watches uncomfortably
This review contains spoilers
Unfortunately held back by the inherent flaws seen in any other roguelike, where level design kinda has to accomodate for every single possible weapon, so you don't see a lot of unique layouts because of that, rather only seeing stages where some weapons are superior and other weapons are annoying at worst, but never impossible; definitely makes this DLC stand out less than Octo Expansion in my eyes, where every level was deliberately designed around a strict set of challenges best achieved by a selection of a few different weapons
Of course another classic roguelike paradigm is having a run live or die on your luck with upgrades, or level setups, or what have you; a problem that could boil down to "skill issues" but also doesn't feel very satisfying when you can't learn anything from a run where bad luck made you lose or a run where good luck made you win
Another issue is how repetitive the game feels in objectives, having only like 4 different ones to choose from and then only a whopping 4 bosses (2 of which are randomly picked for each run, and the final boss doesn't change); for something that was hyped up for over a year I don't think it really lived up to it
That said, as a person who both likes roguelikes and loves Splatoon, this is still a very fun campaign, and they absolutely deliver on giving us more gay cephalopod content; despite all the words I wrote that would lead people to believe I hated this expansion, I found myself having a lot of fun with the synergies you can accomplish with the color chips
If you either A: hate roguelikes, B: hate Splatoon, C: are homophobic, or D: are a combination of the three choices, don't bother with this
EDIT: Beat the game with every palette, my main complaints still stand but Agent 8's palette offers a really unique challenge, especially if you pair it up with the risky rewards upgrade; definitely worth giving challenge runs a shot for this I think
Also gonna dock points for having just so little interesting lore bits, we really only get characterization for Acht and Off The Hook; Agent 8 gets very little, Agent 4 gets even less, and Cipher is just a dude
They didn't top Octo Expansion, but let's be real: will they ever?
Of course another classic roguelike paradigm is having a run live or die on your luck with upgrades, or level setups, or what have you; a problem that could boil down to "skill issues" but also doesn't feel very satisfying when you can't learn anything from a run where bad luck made you lose or a run where good luck made you win
Another issue is how repetitive the game feels in objectives, having only like 4 different ones to choose from and then only a whopping 4 bosses (2 of which are randomly picked for each run, and the final boss doesn't change); for something that was hyped up for over a year I don't think it really lived up to it
That said, as a person who both likes roguelikes and loves Splatoon, this is still a very fun campaign, and they absolutely deliver on giving us more gay cephalopod content; despite all the words I wrote that would lead people to believe I hated this expansion, I found myself having a lot of fun with the synergies you can accomplish with the color chips
If you either A: hate roguelikes, B: hate Splatoon, C: are homophobic, or D: are a combination of the three choices, don't bother with this
EDIT: Beat the game with every palette, my main complaints still stand but Agent 8's palette offers a really unique challenge, especially if you pair it up with the risky rewards upgrade; definitely worth giving challenge runs a shot for this I think
Also gonna dock points for having just so little interesting lore bits, we really only get characterization for Acht and Off The Hook; Agent 8 gets very little, Agent 4 gets even less, and Cipher is just a dude
They didn't top Octo Expansion, but let's be real: will they ever?
Whoever decided to turn the gameplay into a roguelike is a genius. And whoever decided to give us like an hour of content is not. And don't get me started on the ten minutes of story. Fun idea, definitely could have been executed better. Octo Expansion remains the prime example of how to do Splatoon DLC.
An incredible adaptation of Splatoon to the roguelite genre. Reaching the top of the Spire of Order is an extremely satisfying experience, and the return of fan favorites Off the Hook and Dedf1sh are the cherry on top.
I was expecting a bit more of a challenge, as I beat the main story on my second run (third if counting the tutorial). It's also a bit disappointing there isn't much variety on the level objectives.
But, there are a LOT of level variations, and a good variety of weapons with their respective "upgrades" so every run feels extremely fresh. There have to be some crazy Color Chip combinations I haven't tried yet.
I'm going to work on the post-game content, and it seems it's gonna take a long while, trust me on this one. Don't let my "3 and a half hours played" steer you away from this expansion, if you can't get enough of Splatoon, it's 100% worth it.
UPDATE 04/18/2024
I took it a bit leisurely, but I finished it some days ago, I'm writing this after processing my thoughts on it a bit.
I took around 15 hours to complete the Spire with every weapon. It's an estimate, as I was playing the other modes in between.
The lore tidbits spread throughout Marina's Dev Diaries are pretty cool, they tie back into Octo Expansion and everything we knew about Pearl and Marina's world tour until this point. They were an excellent motivation to keep climbing the Spire and find the next one.
I still wish there was a bit more to do in Order Central, and that the game explored the newly introduced characters better. There could still be a bit more variety in the level design and objectives, but I feel I'm satisfied with what I got here.
I hope Nintendo doesn't drop this game mode in the next game and really fleshes it out, this expansion has everything it needs to become one of the most addicting games ever.
I was expecting a bit more of a challenge, as I beat the main story on my second run (third if counting the tutorial). It's also a bit disappointing there isn't much variety on the level objectives.
But, there are a LOT of level variations, and a good variety of weapons with their respective "upgrades" so every run feels extremely fresh. There have to be some crazy Color Chip combinations I haven't tried yet.
I'm going to work on the post-game content, and it seems it's gonna take a long while, trust me on this one. Don't let my "3 and a half hours played" steer you away from this expansion, if you can't get enough of Splatoon, it's 100% worth it.
UPDATE 04/18/2024
I took it a bit leisurely, but I finished it some days ago, I'm writing this after processing my thoughts on it a bit.
I took around 15 hours to complete the Spire with every weapon. It's an estimate, as I was playing the other modes in between.
The lore tidbits spread throughout Marina's Dev Diaries are pretty cool, they tie back into Octo Expansion and everything we knew about Pearl and Marina's world tour until this point. They were an excellent motivation to keep climbing the Spire and find the next one.
I still wish there was a bit more to do in Order Central, and that the game explored the newly introduced characters better. There could still be a bit more variety in the level design and objectives, but I feel I'm satisfied with what I got here.
I hope Nintendo doesn't drop this game mode in the next game and really fleshes it out, this expansion has everything it needs to become one of the most addicting games ever.
The new roguelike mechanics are extremely fun and addictive and I really hope they flesh them out in a future entry. I like to keep my reviews spoiler-free so I'll just say: the only real failure with this dlc is the plot. Its not bad, its very good actually! Its just there is so little of it. I know to some that may sound strange but Splatoon fans really love the lore and character writing, its honestly some of nintendo's best (the cutscene direction is also not praised enough its great) but yeah I dont know I really enjoy the gameplay portion of it but I wish it was more especially with how long this took to come out. People talked and still talk excitedly about Octo Expansion and I don't know if this one has that kinda conversational staying power. Really hope they do more story stuff in the next game.