Topic: Splatoon 2

I think I may have somehow broke the ranking system? I was about to hit Modern King, but it suddenly kept on ranking me up under the label Rank_Boy_1, Rank_Boy_2 and etc. Had to quit out of the game to make it stop. Would post it here but I'm unsure about how to link twitter posts.

Edit: Thanks @Dogorila I'll add it in now.

@Eric258 You can link twitter posts just by copying the URL of the post, and it automatically embeds in the forum. But I had a look at the video by going to the twitter account in your signature and wow, that's a really weird glitch. I've no idea what could have caused that.

Does anyone else feel that the color choices for the retro vs modern Splatfest are unfortunate? Ketchup vs mayo was bad enough but this one looks like poop vs tartar sauce.

@countzero I think they look fine. Retro is more orange, and the only problem I had was my full ink tank sometimes looking empty because of how dark the orange is. Ketchup and Mayo I liked, because the colours contrasted well. The worst was definitely Chicken vs Egg, where I often couldn't tell whether a bomb was an enemies' or a teammates'.

@countzero I think the colours are okay, but the ink colour and the team colour don't seem to match. I'm team retro and my Octoling is brown, but then the ink is orange? I guess they were going for a colour scheme based on the Splatfest pictures

...Pearl and Marina don't look particularly exciting though, they just look black and grey instead of something fun

In my Splatfest matches yesterday us Retro peeps got tan, orange, purple, and green ink. Not all in the same match, mind you. Meanwhile Team Modern had used yellow, purple, green, and gray ink. Brown/Gray was the more frequent combination though.

@FaeKnight Those other colours are used when you're matched up against opponents on the same splatfest team. It usually happens when its taking too long to find other opposing teams to play against. So you'll know when to get really serious when you see the splatfest colours.

@FaeKnight Brown/Gray were the only Team Retro vs. Team Modern battles. The other Splatfest matches would've been Team Retro vs. Team Retro (if you were Team Modern, Team Modern vs. Team Modern battles would've had the same result) which happens so that you're still matches rather than waiting in the lobby for a long time.

It kept saying the other team was Modern, so I assumed it has a rotation of ink colors.

That said, the times there were different colors then Tan/Gray were also when there was no Team Modern for 3 cycles of the count down.

The last new stage for Splatoon 2, note this doesn't necessarily mean no stages at all afterwards as there could be more returning stages inbound.

The Splatoon tumblr said 'The new stage in early October will be the final one to be added'. The wording there makes me think it will be the final stage of any kind, i.e. there won't be any more returning stages either. I hope I'm wrong though; it would be nice if they brought over every stage from the first game, otherwise some stages will be lost if/when the Wii U servers shut down (and I imagine it's probably quite hard to find a match in Splatoon 1 these days anyway).

I was hoping that all the Splatoon 1 stages would return but I've always thought that there are few that won't come back - mainly Saltspray Rig and Flounder Heights, mainly because their layouts are just so different to the rest of 2's stages.
I'm sure some of the stages won't hold up as well these days due to new weapon types, specials and ranked modes but I'll miss some of them.

Do you think Shifty Stations will return? I wonder if they'll add all of them to the rotation after the final Splatfest...

I think they'll add 'Shifty Station' to Turf War only, and whenever Shifty Station gets chosen, it's a random Shiftty Station from a Splatfest. Maybe they'll do a poll to see which Shifty Stations are most popular, maybe they'll only put it on at the weekend or something like that.

So after playing Splatoon 2 extensively, I think I've come to the realization that for me personally, I much prefer Splatoon 1 to 2. There's a lot of issues with Splatoon 2 that really impede my enjoyment of it compared to 1:

• Horrible netcode: I'm pretty sure more people have disconnected during matches in a month of playing Splatoon 2 than in the almost 3 years I've played Splatoon 1. This might also be due to people playing in handheld mode and by extension in places with unstable internet, but it's still a negative for 2.
• The Specials: I feel the specials of 1 are much more fun to use than the specials of 2. Plus, I think Tenta Missiles and Splashdown are quite unfair. Splashdown is pretty hard to counter unless you can roll away, and tenta missiles shouldn't take as little time as it does to deploy (not to mention the blast radius should be much smaller — you really should be splatted only if you're directly on the blast spot, not near it).
• The OP weapons: In Splatoon 2, Bloblobber and Clash Blaster are incredibly OP weapons. Anyone on a team with one of them can easily tip the scales in favor of their team in any of the Ranked modes. There weren't any weapons this OP in Splatoon 1. The Dualies in 2 are also annoying but they're not as bad as the Bloblobber and Clash Blaster in making matches unfair.
• The subs: In Splatoon 2, A lot of subs became useless or new unfair subs were introduced. Autobombs really should take more ink — you shouldn't be able to throw more than one autobomb before you have to refill ink. Ink mines and Disrupter (which became Toxic Mist in Splatoon 2) also got nerfed and became less useful.
• The music: Splatoon 1's Splattack theme and the other theme it has during matches are so good, far better than anything Splatoon 2 has. Why can't Splatoon 2 keep the music from Splatoon 1 and add more tracks, instead of replacing the tracks from Splatoon 1?
• The intro: Pearl and Marina take WAY too long to introduce stages. I honestly think they take twice as much time as Callie and Marie did in Splatoon 1. Part of it is due to more info to announce (like League Battle and Salmon Run), but there are a lot more things they could fix with the intro in Splatoon 2. I feel Pearl and Marina take longer to talk and can't be skipped through as easily as Callie and Marie, and Pearl and Marina's ending animation takes much longer to finish (since Marina has to push the desk out of the way and Pearl has to push the chair out of the way, and both have very long animations for their catchphrase). On the other hand, Callie and Marie quickly went to their catchphrase and have a short animation for their catchphrase. You don't have the option to skip the intro or even fast forward through the intro which is quite ridiculous. I facepalm every time Pearl and Marina ironically make fun of Sheldon for talking so much when the same exact issue is not only present but far greater of a nuisance with Pearl and Marina's intro.

There are a few things I like about 2 compared to 1, like better graphics and visuals, more modes, and the ability to change your weapon and clothing between matches. But there are a sizable number of downgrades in 2 IMHO that keep me from enjoying it quite the same way as 1.

What do you guys think?

EDIT: @toiletduck @Zyrac @FaeKnight @ReaderRagfish @EvilLucario @Eric258 @Grumblevolcano @Dogorilla @Kimyonaakuma @countzero @NinjaAceTrainer @Maxz @Ryzaerian @1UP_MARIO @Octane — I apologize in advance for the mass tagging, I've probably overdone it but I'm curious about what you guys (since you recently commented in the Splatoon 2 forum) think since this has been bugging me for a while now.

Of course anyone is welcome to reply, not just the people I've tagged!

Points 2, 3 and 4 are basically wrong for the most part, except for maybe the first part of point 2, which is preferance.

Tenta Missiles and Splashdown are widely considered the two worst Specials in the game in terms of the competitive scene. Bloblobber is an alright weapon which is annoying at most, and Clash Blaster is just a bad main weapon all around. You're better off using any other blaster.

Your points on the subs in point 4 are all basically wrong as well. Autobombs were garbo before they were altered and now are useable. Mines are a thousand times better now than in Splatoon and Toxic Mist is one of the best subs in the game. In all honesty, the only subs that are pretty bad in general are Beakons (which are still better than in Splatoon) and arguably Point Sensor (which I think takes too much ink).

Agreed with Green. Y'know, Tentas have been buffed multiple times and they're still not very good. I think overall this game's specials are better balanced than those of the original; I mean, in my mind there will never be anything more aggravating to deal with than the Kraken.

Bloblobber and Clash can carry bad players and are annoying, but aren't really an issue balance-wise. Autobombs are typically a minor nuisance; just get close to make them detonate and then get away from the tiny blast radius.

I think I like this game's soundtrack better overall, personally. And I've always thought complaints about Nintendo's online are overblown, although I can't compare too well to the first game since it's been a real long time since I played it.

I don't mind the news too much either... but I'll grant you that one, actually. It annoys enough people that it probably ought to be skippable.

I won't have played Splatoon 2 as much as other people here and I don't play ranked modes very often (I'm just not very competitive ), but I guess I'll share some opinions seeming as I played the first game quite often. I'll try and keep my paragraphs quite short but I'll admit that I usually write lots!

As for the online multiplayer, I don't usually have problems once I'm in a match, but I have had very long waits just for a Turf War. However I think these problems have disappeared since the Online Service went live...except one game of Splat Zones where everyone vanished and I was stuck in Arowana Mall...

I'll agree that Splatoon 1 had more "fun" specials, I think the Inkstrike was useful as a last minute effort for Turf War and the Kraken was just OP...but also really fun to use. Splatoon 2 seems to be more balanced with specials but to be honest I only use a few of them - mainly the Inkstorm and Tenta Missiles. I have never had much success with the Stingray or the Bubble Blower, they just aren't much fun despite the cool concepts. The other ones are okay but not amazing, but I think they might be suited to other people's playstyles instead of mine.

I only find the Bloblobber annoying in cramped spaces but I think most of the other weapons are decently balanced, it just takes me a while to adjust to some of the uncommon weapon choices. As for Subs I mainly use Curling and Autobombs, they work in multiple situations unlike many of the others in my opinion. Toxic Mist, Point Sensors and Ink Mines seem like a waste of ink to me. But again I think some of them don't match with how I play the game, but I've seen people make use of some of these weapon combinations so at least people have options and variety.

I like Splatoon 2's music more, at first I didn't but I enjoy listening to 2's songs over and over again compared to the original. Except those songs with the violins! They give me RAGE!!
I think the Splatfest music is an upgrade, Splatoon 1 has one song (which is great and I still listen to), but the sequel has 3 or 4 songs which I really appreciate. I prefer Off the Hook and the Squid Sister's music to most of other songs...I think the songs mixed with the night stages is a great mix. I at least know that I like all of those songs while there are more of the standard songs which don't excite me or I find "meh" after 20 matches.

I like Pearl and Marina more as characters but they have too much to announce and not enough ways to say the same things. I had learned most of their lines off by heart in the first month or two and I'm not even a hardcore player...
However I like how Pearl are Marina are different but still friends, Callie and Marie feel like two halves of one person to me which isn't as interesting. Callie and Marie of course have more of a backstory compared to Off the Hook, but I'm sure we'll see more from them in the future. Octo Expansion had some nice glimpses at their past but I really wanted more!

I'd say that 2 is better, it has a lot of improvements. But I think the original was a little rough around the ages and unbalanced but that made it charming. 2 is more polished but a lot of the weapons aren't fun (to me) or are quite similar. But objectively I believe that 2 is better, I think my memories of the original game are better than it actually is because it's innovation covered up flaws which I didn't realise until the sequel.

@shadow-wolf I haven't actually played Splatoon 1, so my viewpoint probably isn't the best comparison, but from what I know:
Horrible Netcode: I couldn't comment on Splatoon 1, but I would assume that since matchmaking is now regional priority, connection would be better. Disconnects are too frequent in Turf War, but in Ranked they are much less common. What bothers me more is the lag on enemy movement, where I see them falling off a platform but in actuality they are moving towards me, as I see a moment later, which really throws me off.
The Specials: As stated above, Tenta Missiles and Splashdown are not very good. Splashdown is easily countered/avoided unless you superjump with it, and that's something very situational. Tenta Missiles are quite pathetic honestly. All you need to do to avoid them is move around, and then you can take a second to re-ink the turf they painted and build your own special up. They serve only to pile pressure on foes who are in fights, which requires good team co-ordination. No specials seem particularly overpowered, and they can all be used effectively. The specials in Splatoon 1 seem overpowered to me, Killer Wail and Inkstrike completely shut off areas of the map while Inkzooka fires high speed lethal projectiles, Echolocater gives you the jump on all enemies and shuts down sneak attacks and Kraken can rush and ambush foes with ease. How am I supposed to counter that as easily as I can just swim away from the specials you mentioned?
The OP Weapons: For starters, the Clash Blaster is no trouble at all once you know how to counter it. I ran some tests, and its DPS is not very good compared to other weapons of similar range, the the N-Zap. I used to hate how the Clash Blaster users barely had to aim to kill me, but then I realised that the fact that I can aim back at them and deal more damage makes them non-threatening. My golden rule for all blasters is to rush them. The Bloblobber is extremely prone to just moving to the side to avoid it, and you shouldn't really have issues with it unless you're in the same range ballpark, in which case strafing/swimming and shooting is the way to go. As for Dualies, most Dualies users I see dodge roll too much, making their movement predictable and therefore easy to take down later in the game, when it matters the most.
The Subs: Autobombs were okay before they got buffed, and a buff they did need. If anyone throws 2 at you, you'll know that they'll have very little ink left, so it's generally a bad idea. Avoid them by detonating them, then moving away. Ink mines I would say are quite good actually, as they take on more of an area control role than a passive killing tool. It's quite fun to place a third Ink mine to detonate another too, and can be used actively in that way. Toxic Mist is alsi very good not for killing, but for area control. No one's going to want to swim through mist to take turf/the objective, effectively making any area a choke point.
The Music: Having listened to both, I prefer Splatoon 2's soundtrack, but that is subjective.
The Intro: I'm not particularly bothered by the intro being long, and I like the personality it adds to the game. I'm probably one of the few people who thinks that though, as I'm not too bothered to sit through a 30 second long notice. Splatoon 1 had you sit through it every time the stages changed, so I would think that would be worse honestly.
Overall, I would say at launch, Splatoon 2 was worse than 1, but it isn't really fair to compare a 50% finished game to a 100% finished game. Now, I would say that 2 has more than eclipsed its older brother in content, improvements, etc., and the fact that they can keep building on Splatoon with continual great updates is amazing.

It's been about a year and a half since I've played Splatoon 1 so I don't remember every detail of it, but I definitely prefer Splatoon 2. My thoughts on @shadow-wolf 's points:

• Netcode: Yeah this is the worst thing about S2 imo. Disconnects happen way too often and ruin the match when they do. I wish they'd use dedicated servers instead of P2P.
• Specials: I don't find Tenta Missiles or Splashdown too difficult to dodge. I kind of miss the Kraken though, that was fun.
• Weapons: To be honest I don't really know how unbalanced those weapons are. Bloblobber is maybe a little overpowered, but I haven't noticed it or the Clash Blaster single-handedly dominating a battle or anything.
• Subs: I agree a few of the non-damaging subs are a little too situational to be particularly useful, but I don't find Autobombs too bad.
• Music: I don't really remember the first game's music too well but I really like the second game's music. I suppose it would have been better if they'd added some of S1's music to S2 as you suggested though.
• Intro: I quite like seeing Pearl and Marina's dialogue, but yeah it's baffling that there's no skip or fast-forward button. It's a very minor nitpick though.

Splatoon 2 is not perfect but thanks to the new weapons and stages, Clam Blitz, Salmon Run, the Octo Expansion, the improved graphics, the new characters, and the various quality of life improvements, it's easily better than the (also excellent) first game in my opinion.

I’m in agreement with a lot of the above comments - even the more nuanced or finicky points. Splatoon 1 had a more of primary coloured charm in that it was trying out all these whacky new ideas and somehow pulling them off, but Splatoon 2 is the better game is for just about every reason mentioned above.

I will say though, Splatoon 2 loses when it comes to mini games (no Squid Jump) and also overworld (Inkopolis feels more confined in the Spat2’s little alleyway).

I think Splat 1 was more charming and generally bolder (for actually inventing the world and concept), but Splatoon 2 is the better Splatoon game and game in general.

Splatoon 2 can be improved, but so wouldn’t use Splatoon 1 as the template for how to do to. In fact, in my eyes, Splatoon 2 is an exceptional template for how to improve Splatoon 1.