EDIT: I'm leaving my initial thoughts in for posterity but I've come to realize the distaste I had at the time of that writing was predicated on a critique that I am not fond of: how much a game is worth.
In the past I've found that such incorporation of cost, while pragmatic in some cases, shrinks the conversation to discussion of quantity, which I largely don't care about. The logical endpoint of design catered to such a viewpoint is something like Destiny 2 - soulless, ever-expanding troughs of CONTENT that are introduced, deprecated, and recycled ad nauseum. I don't want to live in a world where games aim for that goal, so I admit my hypocrisy.
Splatoon 3 is a really polished, intelligent, and exciting game. I haven't delved into the campaign just yet - still want to run through 1/2/Octo Expansion first as a refresher - but everything else is top-notch, especially after the server fixes. It still has the absolute best multiplayer going right now - there is no such thing as a 'missed shot' or a negative K/D player being dead weight, everyone has a chance to contribute, even accidentally. There is surprisingly genuine challenge to high levels of the PVE mode, requiring organization and communication. And while it does indulge in trendy FOMO systems, they revolve around fashion, which is forgivable in that fashion works that way in real life as well. Exclusion is sort of baked in.
At some point I'll nuke this blurb and start anew, but I don't want my voice to wield the same criticisms that I don't take seriously from other critics. Splatoon 3 is fantastic and worth the plunge.
---------------------------------------------------------------
From 9/12/2022:
Thoughts from three days in...
This is Splatoon 2: Archery in the Badlands DLC. Of course, Splatoon 2 was also Splatoon DX: Rescued from WiiU.
More than any other Nintendo franchise, Splatoon struggles to justify the new entries. It's still extremely fun and incredibly clever - the movement, territory mechanics, and disincentivization to hunt kills instead of paint all sum up to a one-of-a-kind multiplayer experience. And, as you know, the vibes are great. But why does this exist?
In the past I've found that such incorporation of cost, while pragmatic in some cases, shrinks the conversation to discussion of quantity, which I largely don't care about. The logical endpoint of design catered to such a viewpoint is something like Destiny 2 - soulless, ever-expanding troughs of CONTENT that are introduced, deprecated, and recycled ad nauseum. I don't want to live in a world where games aim for that goal, so I admit my hypocrisy.
Splatoon 3 is a really polished, intelligent, and exciting game. I haven't delved into the campaign just yet - still want to run through 1/2/Octo Expansion first as a refresher - but everything else is top-notch, especially after the server fixes. It still has the absolute best multiplayer going right now - there is no such thing as a 'missed shot' or a negative K/D player being dead weight, everyone has a chance to contribute, even accidentally. There is surprisingly genuine challenge to high levels of the PVE mode, requiring organization and communication. And while it does indulge in trendy FOMO systems, they revolve around fashion, which is forgivable in that fashion works that way in real life as well. Exclusion is sort of baked in.
At some point I'll nuke this blurb and start anew, but I don't want my voice to wield the same criticisms that I don't take seriously from other critics. Splatoon 3 is fantastic and worth the plunge.
---------------------------------------------------------------
From 9/12/2022:
Thoughts from three days in...
This is Splatoon 2: Archery in the Badlands DLC. Of course, Splatoon 2 was also Splatoon DX: Rescued from WiiU.
More than any other Nintendo franchise, Splatoon struggles to justify the new entries. It's still extremely fun and incredibly clever - the movement, territory mechanics, and disincentivization to hunt kills instead of paint all sum up to a one-of-a-kind multiplayer experience. And, as you know, the vibes are great. But why does this exist?
youkiddinme16
1 year ago