While Splatoon has been a big hit with Nintendo fans, one of the common complaints was the way the maps got served up, with two in each mode refreshed every four hours. After all it can get old being constantly sniped on Moray Towers when all you want to do is charge around with a splat roller in Camp Triggerfish.
Speaking to EDGE magazine game producer Hisashi Nogami has heard these complaints and has promised a more frequent rotation of maps in Splatoon 2 for Switch:
We feel that part of the gameplay is actually selecting which weapons would be best for that combination of two maps. In Splatoon 2, the maps rotate every two hours, so it’ll be a much faster cycle than the previous game.
While this is still not quite as flexible as the voting system found in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe or the broader freedom seen in other multiplayer-focused games, it should hopefully go a long way to alleviating boredom with having to play the same map for 4 hours. Perhaps switching every 2 hours is a good compromise?
[source neogaf.com]
Comments 58
Map rotation was Splatoon's biggest flaw, but why fix what's broken? Wait..
I also hope that they rotate more than just two maps at a time. It should be three at a minimum.
Aw yiss, I hated this moments, when I was like "time to play Splatoon!", but game was like "that's nice, I can offer you 4 hours of Rainmaker".
Or they should do like any other game in the last 20 years and pick a map randomly. Wait it's Nintendo.....they're still 20 years behind.
@Menchi187 "...part of the gameplay is actually selecting which weapons would be best for that combination of two maps."
To be honest I liked the fact that you knew which two maps you got for a certain time frame. Would like to see say three or four different maps every two hours but when everyone gets to choice the majority will pick the map best suited for their weapon
I honestly prefer map rotation to random map generation.
So Nintendo wants us to pay to play online now but isn't going to bother to make their online any better? What a joke.
I guess it keeps things different from the norm. I do prefer voting for maps and having classes you can change to but I guess if you start introducing that kind of stuff then you're already making Splatoon 2 more like just a typical shooter.
Still only 2 maps? Lol nintendo. That's not good enough especially to have to pay to play online. Ill be sticking with the superior multiplayer game called Overwatch.
Smart move. There were times I checked in Splatoon and just wouldn't play, then do other stuff and forget to check again in 4 hours.
Have they been talking about a website or app to tell us the maps and mode? Seemed like Japan had it up and running long before the West got it. If we need our phone for voice chat might as well have the app telling us what's what before we bother to turn the game on.
I liked the map rotation but making it every 2 hours does sound like a good idea.
This was something a few people had gripes with, though I never actually minded. I also hope we can see three maps per rotation - even if this makes it a bit harder to pick the 'ideal weapon' for specific one.
EDIT: Having reread the article it doesn't sound like it. Perhaps it'll be preserved for Splatfests (or the equivalent).
Yeah... if Splatoon 2 doesn't have split-screen local multiplayer then I won't even bother with the sequel. As much as I loved the first, I won't be paying to play this game online. The two map rotation was a horrible idea, and ensured that I only played for like an hour or less at a time because I got bored quickly.
Or they could just randomly select a stage from the entire list and let us select a weapon set before the start of each match.
Nice change, I just look forward to hearing exactly how there are going to do online and if they are going to drip feed content again.
I love always getting the same map during the 30 minutes I can play the game twice a week. But what am I expecting, Nintendo to focus on adults who have jobs and money, or kids?
@amiiboacid Because you can't pick your weapons after the map is selected but before the round starts? Or when you die/respawn? Or is Nintendo 20 years behind on that too?
Just make the selection process like MK8 deluxe. Vote on the map. Switch out gear if necessary.
Good. Otherwise we'll all be constantly playing leet on de_dust2 and miss out on all the rest.
The rotation is a great way to keep people playing.
I'd think two maps every hour would be a great compromise. Not sure two maps per two hours is that much better - there can't have been many people who played Splatoon online for 4 hours straight on a daily basis.
@Menchi187 ...they are picking the maps randomly.
@rjejr They had a website anyone can access.
Two hours is so much better!
I like the map rotation, but a 1 hour rotation would be better.
The game should tell you what's coming up next too. The web site was nice, but having it integrated into the game would be useful.
Why have map and mode rotation at all? If I want to play my favorite modes, I have to go on ranked and hope for the best. Wouldn't it just be better if all modes and maps were randomised at all times, like it is in a game like Overwatch?
I think having three maps in the rotation would be better. I would often get the same map 7-10 times in Splatoon which was really frustrating.
Yay. That's an improvement, but I still don't like the map rotation.
I'd agree with taking it down to an hourly rotation. If you think about the global testfire and how that limits you to one hour, to me that feels the right amount of time to play on a set of 2 maps without it becoming boring. The 4 hours on Splatoon 1 was far too long.
With how fast Splatoon matches are, selecting weapons before a match isn't really feasible. If you add a minute for weapon selection before a match that makes 25% of each match choosing you weapon or waiting, and I don't really think you could shorten it.
I'm glad Nintendo's keeping the map rotation. Like weapon breaking in Breath of the Wild, it's a mechanic many will dislike but it improves the game greatly.
@NinjaWaddleDee I believe they have said somewhere that you can have full 8 player matches locally.
Certainly an improvement. Now cut that Moray Towers map entirely and we're good. Honestly, I hate that map with a burning passion.
Still wish we could just ditch the map rotation and just be able to pick our inventory before each match/
It's an improvement, but having to play the same two maps for two hours still sucks. Just let us vote on a map and be able to change our equipment in the lobby.
I don't play close to 2 hours so it doesn't matter anyway they go at it
@jpfan1989 I know that. I'm talking about local on a single console. Like how mk8 let's you do split screen against players online. Classic Halo and even Gears of War do this too.
Meh. 2 hours is still very long. :/ I'd hoped for something akin to MK8's voting system for selecting levels. Ah well, at least it's an improvement. I'd still like to know what the reason is for these limitations.
An improvement for sure, but I certainly wouldn't complain if it was even shorter (or had 3-4 maps in the rotation). 🙂
It'd be nice if they also adopted MK's custom tournament setup, allowing say NLife to setup their own custom rotation/modes etc for anyone to jump in/out of.
a game where you can't choose your level?
why not do it like Left for Dead, you pick your level and play against whoever else picked that level? Then you get the level you want and are still all picking the best weapons for that level.
isn't that the normal way of online multiplayer?
That's not much of an improvement... I seriously wonder why the Splatoon developers insist on these design choices rather than doing what has proven to work for other online shooters for years.
@Elanczewski I would gladly take 4 hours of Rainmaker since that's the best mode in the game.
this sounds great, 4 hours was way too long to play the same two maps, even if i liked both maps. i feel like this'll extend my play sessions as once i start getting bored with the maps there'll always be two new ones coming shortly
Rainmaker is the best mode!
@Elanczewski
"Aw yiss, I hated this moments, when I was like "time to play Splatoon!", but game was like "that's nice, I can offer you 4 hours of Rainmaker"."
Exactly!
Rainmaker at Camp Triggerfish is my favorite combination.
@abbyhitter
"@Elanczewski I would gladly take 4 hours of Rainmaker since that's the best mode in the game."
It's actually Rainmaker right now.
I'll be busy until rotation.
I also hate the slow rotation. Two hours is still pretty long for 2 maps but yeah its still an improvement. I dont know i never cared for weapon selection. I sticked to the weapon of my choice pretty much the whole game. Changed it a few times just to return to my beloved one after a few rounds.
This seems like a really , really strange design decision. I never played the first game,and am keen for this day one, but a multiplayer centric game that wont let the community pick where the next match goes seems like a mistake.
If anything , giving that choice to the 8 people in the match would be more engaging, and on a new system, engaging your player base is key.
Glad it's shortened. 4 hours was too long and stopped me from playing at times when the rotation included some of my least favorite stages. With it being 2 hours there should be more variety if you joined in during an already started stage rotation.
That's an example of a sub headline that literally can't be made any better.
@abbyhitter @BornInNorway81 "Rainmaker is the best mode!"
You spelled Tower Control wrong ;p
@speedracer216 if you could vote for levels the game would be full of metagamers who do nothing but pick 1 weapon and do nothing but vote for the level their weapon and gear set is best at.
The rotation at least means you can choose your gear appropriately for the two stages and that every stage in the game is equally likely to be played. Put the choice in the player's hands and some stages just won't be picked.
@thesilverbrick They could, but IMHO, it would be a terrible idea. Turf War matches last 3 minutes at a time, with a delay between matches while we wait for 8 players. In its current form, that delay could feel to long. To then have to wait for people to faff about picking a weapon set (and by your logic allow them to change outfits as well) before each match equals even more delay, which would ruin the game. That would peeve off a lot of the 'crack-like-play addicted' players, not least myself..
@Powerballad Matches are short and sweet and as such generally frantic. From what I'm aware, there aren't that many other online games like it, so it's not easy to compare to other online games... Having put in the hours playing the game I for one think that Ninty got it right with their rotation implementation. Although I do think that the 2 hour rotation for Splatoon 2 is a good improvement...
I also think some people bemoan about Splatoon's game play decision-making because they feel entitled to choose how they want to play the game, not thinking through that Ninty probably spent many hours trying to find the best way for as many people as possible to get the most from the game, even if it was at the expense of a few who think they know better than the professional developer's...
I don't care as much about stage rotations as much as I do GAME MODE rotations. At any given point, I should be able to pick up Splatoon and play the game mode I want. The old game only offered unranked turf war and one of the other 3 ranked modes at a time. I want unranked versions of all the 4 game modes as well as ranked versions of all 4 game modes playable at any given time. That, to me, just seems basic for a shooter. And I don't even play any shooters!
If it was suggested in the last stretch of comments, my apologies, but how's about each map lasts two hours with one rotated each hour?
Ot sure whether that's good or bad for me. The 4 hour duration had its benefits but downsides as well.
@Charlosa I see what you're saying, but I hate having to back out of the servers to change my weapon. They should allow you to change weapons (not clothing) while waiting for the match to start, or allow you to register three or four favorite weapons to choose from before a match starts. That would cut down on start times and facilitate allowing all maps to be selected simultaneously.
@thesilverbrick It's a tough one, because I don't doubt that a number of players drop out and in simply to change weapons, which is a real shame when you're winning match after match with the same group in Splatfest... Not sure there's an easy answer on this one - pre-match weapon choice would be nice, but the potential increase in delay between matches would annoy the pants out of me...
Yes, SplatNet has been live since at least December, 2015!
splatoon.nintendo.net
It baffles me when Splatoon regulars don't know this.
@rjejr
"Have they been talking about a website or app to tell us the maps and mode? Seemed like Japan had it up and running long before the West got it. If we need our phone for voice chat might as well have the app telling us what's what before we bother to turn the game on."
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