Splatoon 2: big changes coming to Splatfests, end of new maps/weapons additions, new Sub and Special weapons, more

15 September 201815 September 2018 Lite_Agent Splatoon 2, Squid Research Lab

Splatoon 2 was showcased during the latest Nintendo Direct presentation, with a trailer introducing the new content and features coming soon to the game:

A new Software update, Ver. 4.0.0, was released right after the presentation: check out this page for the full patch notes!

One of the biggest changes made in Ver. 4.0.0 impacts Splatfests. Starting with the 14th Splatfest, two new modes will replace the previous Solo and Team modes:

Normal
Pro

In Normal Mode, you can play either on your own or with up to 3 friends from the same Splatfest team (random solo players will complete the team if your team doesn’t have 4 players). In this mode, the amount you ink is crucial, because it’s added to any win bonus you get in order to determine your clout.

If your team is on a win streak, then the game will try and match you against other teams with a similar streak, to make things fair (and fun) for everyone. Also, if your team (and more precisely your weapons, gear, or general styles) meets specific conditions, then you will get a nickname and a matching bonus!

As for Pro Mode, it’s similar to the previous “Solo” mode: it’s for those who want to go solo. In this mode, you’re judged on your Splatfest Power; if you raise it high enough, you could end up in the Splatfest Top 100. In Pro Mode, you only get to increase if you manage to beat the opposing team. Naturally, the higher the Splatfest Power of the opposing team, the more clout you earn!

But that’s not all: another feature will be introduced to Splatfests, called 10x Battles. As the name implies, those matches allow you to earn 10 times the usual amount of contribution points, but they’re usually pretty rare… but not as rare as the super rare 100x Battles, which allow you to earn 100 times the usual amount of contribution points!

What’s more, if one of your friends win a 10x Battle, or if someone wins a 100x Battle, then their teams may appear on the big screen in Inkopolis Square. You will also get a news flash-like pop up if you’re in the lobby or during matchmaking. Finally, Team nicknames are also shown in Regular mode.

Despite the two new modes, the way Splatfest results are calculated doesn’t really change. It’s still based on three factors, and more precisely:

Votes
Clout from Normal mode
Clout from Pro mode

One thing that isn’t changing is the fact playing against players on the same Splatfest team doesn’t allow you to earn points (or in that case, Clout): you can only get that by clashing with players from the opposing team. Also, players from the winning side will still receive more Super Sea Snails as a reward once the Splatfest is over.

But that’s not all! The Squid Research Lab has also announced that the next Software update for Splatoon 2 (Ver. 4.1.0) will be released in early October. It will add the following:

new stage (will go live as part of the next content update); this will be the final one!
new weapons from the Kensa Collection, featuring new Sub and Special Weapons (will go live as part of the next content update);
new music tracks

Also, it has been reconfirmed that content updates will continue until December (except for Stages, as we just mentioned), and Splatfests until July 2019.

One of the new Sub weapons to be added in Ver. 4.1 of Splatoon 2 is called the Tansan Bomb in Japanese. The longer you “charge” it, the more powerful it will be once thrown. But you can’t just charge it in a quiet corner, because the more you move around, the faster the bomb charges. The Squid Research Lab also shared pictures of the new Special Weapons, but didn’t share any details…

Finally, the Squid Research Lab has shared some additional details about the special gear you can get as Special Offer for subscribing to a 12-month Nintendo Switch Online plan:

Fun fact: the in-game jersey is based on the uniform worn by Team Japan, who won the Splatoon 2 World Championship! Our colleague informed us that the jersey has “online” written on the front in Japanese text because they originally won an online tournament!

Source: Squid Research Lab / Squid Research Lab (Twitter)