Splatoon Standard Edition - Nintendo Wii U

When Nintenfo first announced Splatoon, I didn't care. I was skeptical to say the least. How could they pull off a family friendly shooter game? Later though, I saw gameplay footage and I instantly got it. In the months prior to release, I found myself becoming increasingly hyped for the game and in the end was not disappointed. Sure, it's bright, colorful and not your average shooter, but that's what makes it so great. The game is crazy addictive, I have lost entires days into this game! I've been a Nintendo fan since the late 1980s and I can honestly tell you this is their best new IP in years. Now, I hope this review has helped, I'm going to get back into the game!

Splatoon takes an old idea and warps it into something new and fresh. I enjoy going around, spreading ink everywhere and chilling in the hub world, Inkopolis, as a squid. I say this game deserves to be a modern "classic" alongside the likes of Pikmin, Rhythm Heaven and Golden Sun. Maybe even a spot next to the old classics of Mario, Zelda and Metroid.

I'm in college full-time, so many of my RPG games, I don't play because they require too much thought, effort, strategy, and the games are quit long to complete a mission or a task. So, Splatoon as well as Hyrule Warriors have been my go to games. Splatoon games range from 3-5 minutes between regular/splatzone battles, and ranked battles (which has various modes, like a capture the flag like mode). One cool thing about splatoon is it's very personalizable. You can pick all your own gear. Each piece of gear has various effects that boost stats and effects. Splatoon allows you to have a full range of skin tones, which is relevant for me being African American and not always having a skin tone or a close skin tone when creating an avatar. In addition to weapons of fashion that have added bonuses, you have various types of wearons that fit to your playing style. Once you level up, you get access to more weapons, as well as gear. You're even given the option to test our each weapon, quickly after scrolling over it. Therefore, you're not wasting points buying weapons that aren't as effective or suitible for you as you thought. Splatoon is a game that I believe wasn't built fully upon release. There were very few options upon release. So the level of entertainment and gameplay has only really been reached and realized, months after release. Splatoon comes with a lot of free DLC, that will be given up until January 2016. DLC features new weapons, new gear (clothes, armor, fashion pieces, shoes, etc), new maps, and even new modes. So, my love for the game has grown upon release. There are always Splatfest that happens about once or twice a month, that are themed. You basically take a poll of a side, like cat vs dogs. And on a Saturday, you'll be on that time and will have a splatfest (which I believe are splatzone games), that ranks each member, and team, for an overall score. The side that wins get the most Super Sea Snails. You can use these snails to add a slot to your gear, or order items that you've pinned from people around the Splatoon city. There's also Amiibo support. This allows you to scan an Amiibo for single player missions that challenges you to do the story mode task with a particular weapon only, for exclusive gear and/or weapons. SIngle player mode was fun. I think it took me about 12-20 hours. But honestly, it was quite short, wish there was more to it. The golden core of this game is the online mode in the lobby, playing against other players worldwide. There is a two-player mode called Battle Dojo, but it sucks. For a game like this, using the Wiimote by itself, would've been perfect, especially with accessories lke the shooter accessory that you put your wiimote in. Either that, or with the nunchuck, or once again without it. Nintendo has seemed to drop the WiiMote functionality and controls in lots of games, sadly in the games that it would make most sense to use them in, like sports games, and shooting games like this. Additionally, you have no teams on Battle Dojo. It's just you vs. your friend in local player. It gets old very fast. There should have been 4 players or more, or 2-4 players and the rest an onine time, allowing you to have a local teammate and the rest online, or something of that stature. They could've also used the Octosquid girls as CPU teammates, as well, but they just said forget that. So the local player and single player/story are the weakest on the game. But it can be quite fun, especially if you want to jump into a game, and don't have to worry about not having time to get through anytime. I rate it about a B-.

It's the best experience ever. It brings a whole new feel to the shooter genre . This game will have you playing for hours, that's how fun it is. I can honesty say I have no problems with it at all. Simply a great game produced by Nintendo . I would totally recommend this to any shooter fan. Oh and BTW it beats COD by a long shot .

This game is boatloads of fun! Although it's still fairly new, the content that is given as of now is great with more to come in the future! If you are a third person shooter, paint and competitive kind of person AND own a Wii U, this is the game to get!

Great game, our son loves it! And the Splatfests are fun! Just wish there was a two player mode other than the Battle Dojo so I could have fun in the online battles too!

Splatoon is easily my favorite multiplayer game of the year. It's the most creative shooter I've ever played and its definitely the most fun.

I'm a big gamer but not typically a fan of online shooters and the like. I like my stories and single player adventures most of the time and rarely play online. Even though Splatoon got excellent reviews, I held off because of this.. Months later, I had some extra money and wanted to play more on my Wii U, so decided to pick it up. Hooooooly moly. SO FUN. I started with the short single-player mode to get my feet wet (no pun intended), and once I started, I could NOT put it down. I played through every level and unlocked all the blueprints for upgraded weapons (for online play), and I wanted MORE. I couldn't resist and hopped into online quick and ranked matches, and was immediately and absolutely hooked. The gameplay and premise sounds silly but it is INCREDIBLY fun. The balance of using the paint to not only go on offense but also for defense (by hiding, and to regain health and "ammo") works brilliantly, and since you can also swim through the paint, you can create pathways of sorts on walls and such and use it to flank your opponents or make yourself creative hiding spots in nooks and crannies around the stages. It gives you a lot of mobility throughout the very well designed levels, both to move around quickly but also to move vertically. If you see a surface, you can probably paint it and swim through/up/on it. The amount of creativity it gives you (for how you want to use it and to cater to your style) is more than I have ever seen in any kind of shooter. Get up close and personal, sit up high and rain paint down, sneak around your opponents, create a bottleneck, hang back and defend an area, rush in and disrupt the opponent's team, whatever. It all works. There is a good variety of weapons, and items/gear you obtain gets upgraded by experience gained while wearing it playing online, which unlocks perks for that gear. The amount of gear is extensive (styles, combinations of perks) and new items cycle in every day. Nintendo also introduces new items with fairly frequent updates. The "Plaza" (essentially a hub) will populate with random other players, and you can even approach them and have an NPC order gear of theirs that you like for you. Weapons vary in ways that seem minor at first but actually cater to very different styles of play, allowing you to experiment and see what works best for you. Weapons all fall into one of a handful of classes, and variations within those classes typically revolve around the combination of subweapons (a main subweapon and special), which again may seem subtle at first but actually can make a big difference in-game. Combining gear lets you get the perks you want to support your play strategy (and different gear/perks can complement your weapon of choice) while also allowing you to apply your own style to your character. Monthly Splatfests (where the entire userbase is split into two teams and compete for 24 hours) not only are a blast, but also reward you with special currency which lets you add perk slots to existing gear or reroll maxed out items. Splatoon Amiibo unlock bonus levels, which when beaten, in turn unlock exclusive gear for your character. Online matches are quick (3 minutes, not counting matchmaking and the quick flyover), battles are INTENSE, and everything, soup to nuts, is just a joy. You can even play mini-games on the gamepad while waiting for matchmaking (which is generally pretty fast). Graphics and performance-wise, it's a first party title from Nintendo, so as expected, graphics are vibrant and colorful (without being loud or obnoxious), music is great and fits the game perfectly, and everything runs silky smooth without a hitch. Gamepad usage is appropriate and non-intrusive, being used to "super jump" to teammates when respawning or to return to base, as well as being used to target some special weapons and to monitor what the paint distribution looks like at a given time (to plot your path to your next destination). Outside of matches, you can look at stats and navigate between different game areas (stores, stages, online, etc.). Everything's is just great. Wow. I can't gush about this game enough. Well done, Nintendo. Well done. If you have a Wii U (which you must, if you're reading this), buy this game. Now. The ONLY negative thing I can say about it is if you're like me, you'll find yourself playing at the end of your day, only to check the time and realize HOURS have blown by, leaving you accomplishing nothing you wanted to that evening and also convincing yourself that you'll be just fine at work/school the next day with 3-4 hours of sleep (or less) so you can squeeze in a few more matches. Stupidly fun, and dangerously addicting gameplay. If you can't tell, I can't recommend this game enough for any Wii U owner. Do yourself a favor and jump in.