Splatoon Raiders brings co-op raid combat to Switch 2
Developed over time first seen 2 months ago
Nintendo has unveiled Splatoon Raiders, a new Switch 2 exclusive that departs sharply from the series' trademark competitive turf-war format in favour of raid-based combat akin to looter-shooters such as Borderlands and Destiny. The game reworks the franchise's core weapon system by decoupling sub-weapons from primary weapons, letting players mix and match freely, and introduces a robotic companion that assists during treasure raids against waves of Salmonid enemies. For a series long defined by ink-based competitive play, this represents a significant creative shift that could widen its appeal to fans of co-operative shooters.
Players choose from three gadget tank specialisations — speed, power and technical — each shaping combat style and resilience as enemy difficulty escalates through raids. While Splatoon Raiders is being promoted primarily as a single-player experience, it also supports co-operative multiplayer for players wanting to tackle raids together.
- Nintendo announces Splatoon Raiders, a raid-focused Switch 2 exclusive
- Weapons decoupled; new robotic companion aids treasure raids
- Three tank specialisations; single-player focus with co-op support
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Splatoon Raiders is a new game from Nintendo made exclusively for the Switch 2 console. It belongs to the long-running Splatoon series, which has traditionally focused on competitive multiplayer matches where players use ink-based weapons to cover territory. This new title instead centres on co-operative raids, a style more commonly associated with games such as Borderlands and Destiny, where players team up to fight through waves of enemies for rewards.
The game keeps some familiar Splatoon elements, such as its cast of squid-like Inkling characters and enemies known as Salmonids, but changes how weapons and equipment work, allowing players to combine gear more freely than before. It also introduces new features like a robotic helper and different character specialisations geared towards handling raids, which are structured battles against groups of enemies.
The story matters because it signals Nintendo experimenting with a well-established franchise, adapting it to a genre with a large existing fanbase rather than sticking to its usual competitive format. This could affect how both longtime Splatoon players and newcomers to the series respond to the game once more details and reviews become available.
Both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
Supporters of this shift welcome Nintendo's willingness to experiment with a beloved but ageing formula, arguing that turf war alone could not sustain the franchise indefinitely and that borrowing proven co-op raid mechanics from looter-shooters offers a smart way to attract new players. Decoupling sub-weapons from primaries and introducing specialised tank builds adds meaningful strategic depth that rewards experimentation rather than rote memorisation of fixed loadouts. For players who enjoyed Splatoon's world and characters but found competitive ink battles stressful or inaccessible, a single-player-led raid mode with a helpful robotic companion offers a gentler, equally creative way into the series.
The case against
Sceptics worth taking seriously argue that Splatoon's identity has always been inseparable from its competitive, ink-based turf war, and that pivoting toward a genre already crowded with Destiny- and Borderlands-style raid games risks diluting what made the series distinctive rather than building on it. Breaking the tight pairing of sub-weapons and primaries, while flexible, may undermine the careful weapon-class balance long-time players have come to value and mastered. There is also a fair concern that marketing the game primarily as single-player, while leaving co-operative multiplayer poorly explained and hard to access, shortchanges the social, shared-play aspect that many fans consider central to the franchise's appeal.
Coverage
- Nintendo Life — Splatoon Raiders Switch 2 Launch Update Out Now, Here Are The Patch Notes
- Polygon — 10 Splatoon Raiders beginner tips to help you beat back the hordes in style
- Polygon — Which gadget tank should you pick in Splatoon Raiders?
- Polygon — How to play with friends in Splatoon Raiders
- Destructoid — All Gadgets in Splatoon Raiders – Best Gadgets to use
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