Splatoon[a][b] is a third-person shooter video game franchise created by Hisashi Nogami and Shintaro Sato and developed and owned by Nintendo.

Players select from a range of water guns and oversized painting equipment that they use to spread their ink across the floors and walls of the gameplay area and to damage enemies.

"Splatfests" are special and recurring in-game festival events that take place in the games, where players are asked a question and pick a team based on the answer that they chose.

[10] Similarly to the first game, Splatoon 2 features Splatfest events that include crossovers with other brands, both from other Nintendo properties such as Super Smash Bros.

Ultimate[11] and Super Mario,[12] and third-party franchises including Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles,[13] McDonald's,[14] Uniqlo,[15] Nike,[16] Sanrio,[17] Meiji,[18] Pocky,[19] and NPB.

[20] For Splatoon 3, there are three sides to choose from and just like in the first two games, crossover Splatfest events are included with other Nintendo franchises such as Pokémon[21] and The Legend of Zelda.

The themes range from preference questionnaires (e.g. cats vs. dogs,[23] arts vs. sciences),[24] to paradoxes (e.g. chicken or the egg),[25] or sometimes be part of a real-life corporate partnership or sponsorship with Nintendo (such as a Transformers-themed Splatfest with Hasbro,[26] the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and SpongeBob SquarePants-themed ones with Nickelodeon,[13][27] or one with McDonald's).

[14] In most Splatfests, the outcome tends to only affect the player's level of in-game reward at the end of the event[28] and typically have no impact on the overall playability of the game.

The player characters of Splatoon were originally anthropomorphic rabbits with the ability to burrow through virtually any solid surface so long as it was covered in ink.

[48] The Inklings were designed to be teenagers since the developers wanted to give the image of a strong, rebelling character, while having the attitude of being "cool".

[50][51] The Inklings' aesthetic design have received a positive critical reception from multiple video game publications following the release of the first Splatoon,[52][53] and have since become a popular subject for cosplay activities.

[54] The integration of the Inklings' physiological characteristics into the gameplay mechanics of the Splatoon series have been praised, as it allowed players to explore a unique tactical concept.

[56] A seemingly-intentional decision to remove gendered language from player character customization in Splatoon 3's English localization was praised by some American publications.

[59] In 2014, Splatoon was revealed during a Nintendo Direct video presentation at E3 2014, and a playable demo version was made available on the show floor.

[33][34] Splatoon 2 features a redesigned user interface due to the lack of the Wii U GamePad's touch screen, and includes new maps, weapons and abilities.

On 22 April 2022, the same day as the Splatoon 3 release date trailer, the DLC was added as a benefit to members of the Switch Online Expansion Pass.

[77] In addition, the Nintendo Switch Online app includes SplatNet 3 with in-game stats, voice chat, and other features.

In the 14 September 2023 Nintendo Direct, the paid DLC Splatoon 3: Side Order was announced,[78] featuring a new single-player campaign designed to be replayable[79] which was released on 22 February 2024.

[80] Games in the Splatoon series have been generally well-received, and its unique gameplay has been credited as a successful reinvention of the third-person shooter genre.

Ultimate additionally features a playable stage, Moray Towers, 26 music tracks, and an Assist Trophy based on the Squid Sisters.

[118] The more welcoming nature of Splatoon's playerbase, and its including a large number of LGBT people, was analyzed in Xtra Magazine, where Jade King suggested the large queer playerbase of Splatoon was a result of the series' emphasis on individuality, rebellion, self-expression and style, the lack of gender-restricted styles and customization, as well as the lack of a voice chat creating a more welcoming environment.

[119] Between January 2016 and March 2017, two webcomic series based on Splatoon appeared in Enterbrain's Weekly Famitsu magazine: Honobono Ika 4koma illustrated by Kino Takahashi, and Play Manga by various doujin writers.

[124] In April 2017, a manga series illustrated by Hideki Goto [ja] titled Splatoon: Squid Kids Comedy Show was published in Bessatsu CoroCoro Comic.

In an 'Ask the Developers' feature from Nintendo, series creator Hisashi Nogami, composer Toru Minegishi, and graphic artist Seita Inoue explained the decision to establish the music of Splatoon as being created by in-universe artists as a way to add to the depth of the game's world and depict the passage of time between each game.

[145][146][147] Deep Cut, introduced in Splatoon 3, performed live for the first time in Japan on 9 October 2022, one month following the game's release.