Square Enix unveiled its new team-based shooter Foamstars during the latest PlayStation broadcast and if you haven't already seen the announcement trailer, to cut to the chase - social media can't stop comparing it to Nintendo's popular ink-shooter series Splatoon.
As you can see in the video above, there are some obvious similarities - with Square Enix's new game also being a turf war, where you paint the map in your own team's colours. And instead of ink and squids, players cover maps in foam and ride around on surfboards. It's a safe bet Square Enix at least took some inspiration from the Splatoon series, and it's admittedly not the first developer to do this, either.
It's got to the point where Splatoon is even trending on certain social media platforms because of Square Enix's announcement. Here's a small sample of what the internet is saying about this new turf war title:
According to Square Enix, Foamstars for the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 will pit two teams of characters against one another in "fun, fast-paced, foam-filled battles". With these foam weapons, players will be able to also build terrain, block enemies, get to high ground, create slippery surfaces and surf about.
What did you think about Foamstars when you first watched the trailer? How do you think this PlayStation release will go up against Nintendo's Inklings? Leave your thoughts in the comments.
Comments 82
A Hero shooter but splatoon favored...
Sign me out
Its so obviously inspired by splatoon! That isn’t necessarily a bad thing though, I like the somewhat unique take on this style of game and im not opposed to more games like this! It has potential to be fun if the micro transactions are kept to a bare minimum which they probably wont..
Like a tweet posted said. There's no clarity on what is going on in screen.
Yeah, I'll just stick with Splatoon 3.
S-E's answer to Splatoon and Ninjala with a bit of Fortnite vibe.
I'm interested so I watch how this one goes, but knowing how S-E is, I will also be very wary.
Splatoon but anime
To be honest I actually kind of like how it looks, but it also looks like it's harder to keep track of things in that game than it does in Splatoon. The screen feels more cluttered. I don't have a PS4 or 5 though so I can't even try it anyway, not that I really want to since I'm already good with Splatoon, but if it ever does happen to come to Switch (or its successor) I may give it a try sometime.
Provided it doesn't contain any ugly microtransactions, anyway, like they did with Chocobo Racing. Ew.
Sony is copying Nintendo's homework again!
When I read square enix shooter I really hoped it was going to be a 2d shmup 😪
I've never been a Splatoon guy, but this trailer made me want to pick up Splatoon in spite of Square Enix.
@mariomaster96 and much much worse
I didn’t know AI generated games had progressed this far.
Can't wait to play Splatting All Stars Battle Royale
Kinda reminds me of that Chinese Splatoon ripoff from a few years ago as it looks about as terrible to play as that did.
I wonder what inspired them to use foam. If it's just 'to be different from Splatoon' then lordy, this has all the charm of those DvD movies entrepreneurs release next to blockbusters in the vain hope of being bought by folk who don't know what they are doing lol.
It could turn out alright if Square Enix supports it properly and sells it like a standard game. If they make it F2P, overload it with microtransactions, or launch before it's had enough time in the oven, they could have another Babylon's Fall on their hands.
But yeah, watching the PSS live, I immediately said "Oh, it's Splatoon but with foam"
The artstyle looks alright to good. But the gameplay does not look as fluid and fun as Splatoon's. I will definitely stick to Splatoon, especially after Splatoon 3.
@BenAV You talking about Ninjala? I remember that game coming out and thinking it was going to be like the next Splatoon or Arms.
@Joker1234 Nah, there was some Chinese mobile game that was literally just bootleg Splatoon.
I love the artstyle and I love hat it’s foam! And I’m definitely going to check it out! But it’s kinda falling into (a lot) copy territory, it being more terrain based and use ina surf boards for movement is different, but my goodness do the ults look just like splatoon, I could do a one to one comparison with a lot of them shown, I mean heck, I can’t even get away from the tenta missiles in a different game!
Well this is one way to get around color blind options, not even people with good eyesight can see what’s going on!
I'll admit, the idea of the 'ink' changing the verticality of the map is actually quite cool but wow does this game take a lot from good old sploon. The sound effects death animations etc are nearly identical
So, if Turf War is the common mode in Splatoon, what is the one in Foamstars called? Team Bathmatch? Lol!
It looks craptastic.
Personally, I thought it looked alright. One that I'd definitely give a go when it eventually comes to Plus.
FEEL OR RIPOFF?
@Sahnec Okay but this goes way beyond inspiration. Look at the specials in the later half of the trailer, they are literally Ctrl+C Ctrl+V'd from Splatoon.
Bet servers will be shut down one year from launch.
This will be dead soon after release.
Yikes, I predict another Square Enix release that underperforms in relation to their expectations. I’m not seeing any personality in that trailer at all. Does make Splatoon shine even brighter though.
That pinkie haired girl with black cap looks very similar with this girl from Beatmania IIDX 16 EMPRESS
I mean if you've always wanted to try a Splatoon type game but don't have a switch then I guess this would be appealing. I don't like Splatoon's gameplay in any capacity though so it'd be a hard pass for me regardless.
I was little in the shock when I saw this but at the same time happy.
I don't care that it takes inspiration from a squid game, it looks really fun I'm kinda gutted that I don't have a PS4/5 to play it lol
Classic example of idiots taking the wrong message about why a game is successful.
Splatoon isn't the 2nd fastest selling game of all time in Japan because turf shooters are "in". It's not because online competitive "cute" shooters are hot or popular. It's not visuals. It's not even gameplay.
It's because it's Splatoon.
It's because it's connected to a massive hype and marketing push that started 2 years before the game was even in development, spanning music CDs, a manga, live concerts, and tons of merch.
It's not that it's impossible to recreate the success the game has had ... but you're copying all the wrong things.
Can't wait for the first SploogeFest!
there's such a thing as copying too much...
It's a hero shooter similar to Ninjala and paladins with objectives and is more focussed on kills, splatoon is about covering more of the map in paint than the other team.
Completely different games but same genre but because it's colourful it must be a splatoon clone 😏
I for one are looking forward to this game, the more games like this the better as I enjoy these 4 player team shooters better than the usual battle royal tripe that's everywhere, paladins, overwatch 1 and splatoon are some of the best fun I've had from a multiplayer game, so hopefully this is as polished and fun as those.
The Cease and Desist letter made me laugh out loud.
Looks like it will appeal to more people compared to splatoon
Take the most god awfull generic Fortnite like Design and put a Splatoon gameplay, Wow..
To think that they once made Chrono Trigger.. I miss the 90s so much
It looks fun but it's another Splatoon clone like Ninjala. Saying that, these games owe a lot to graffiti mode in the Tony Hawk's Pro Skater series
@HeadPirate I feel the Nintendo lineup at the time helped Splatoon a lot. While Yoshi's Woolly World did release in June for Europe and July for Japan (it was October for NA), Splatoon pretty much had the entire summer to itself back in 2015. If you wanted a new Nintendo game to play your option was Splatoon.
This looks dead on arrival
Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.
@Grumblevolcano lol stop this is the same for every major Nintendo release
@Crockin My point was that new IPs need room to grow. Splatoon wouldn't have done as well as it did if Nintendo released a load of huge games in existing IPs very close to Splatoon's launch. For example we saw this with how ARMS fell off when Splatoon 2 launched a month after ARMS' launch.
I just picked up Splatoon 3 yesterday but now I wish I had waited for this.
PlayStation has all of the online QoL missing from the Switch (basic things like party chat etc).
Whenever I play Switch games online, I'm reminded how far behind the competition Nintendo have become.
@Grumblevolcano
I'm sure that helped, and I'm sure it wasn't an accident.
Callie and Marie (back when they were mascot suits, not holograms) gave their first solo performances back in 2013, and the "culture day" where they became "The Squid Sisters" was staged a couple of times mid 2014. I don't think a publisher has ever put the cart before the house as hardcore as Nintendo did with Splatoon, building the franchise before they even had a game ready, and giving it that window to ensure it had the best chance at success seems logical.
This looks like it could be fun.
But I mean so does splatoon. I bought the 3rd one and I never ever play it
When I first saw it all I could think was “this is literally just Splatoon”.
Not opposed to more games like Splatoon but got to say that much like PlayStation All-Stars before it, this game is pretty brazen in not hiding what it's inspired off of.
I find this hilarious and sad considering most of Square Enix’s online games have failed horribly in the past, the fact that it’s a Splatoon clone makes it even funnier. (they even put some of the exact same specials in the trailer like Trizooka, Baller, Inkstrike and Killer Wail) It lacks the charm Splatoon’s known for too
Honestly it always amazes me how many companies STILL try to copy games like Splatoon or Mario Kart or Smash in a bid to take those audiences but don't seem to comprehend the charm factor Nintendo injects so effortlessly.
These characters, yeah they're colourful and rendered in a more cartoony way but they're dime-a-dozen, generic avatars. Even Fortnite's avatars have more personality and character in them.
Splatoon isn't just fun because of it's bright colours and a good mechanics. The inklings themselves and all the peripheral characters and worlds and themes are so overloaded with charm it's very hard to not like them and it adds a huge amount to the overall appeal.
This feels like a cash-grab. I'm sure the artists and devs tried to push it more but were told to reign it back to keep mass appeal. It happens all the time with higher ups thinking they know better than the talent they've hired.
Plus the foam is so similarly coloured and so lumpy that it's really hard to see who is even winning.
It is a tie between Activision and Square Enix as today's worst developers. I think they are at their lowest point - and they manage to continue to surprise me with games like this. Look at their games - are they even capable of an original idea any longer? And even those stolen ideas - they are bottom-of-the-barrel bad.
It is bizarre - I used to be one their biggest fangirls you could find.
The generic look doesn't help it. Splatoon works so well partially because of how it's oozing in charm and unique style. Simply recycling a Nintendo concept, in and of itself, doesn't ensure a compelling product.
Sony learned that with their ill-fated Smash clone which never took off.
Right in the middle of the uncanny valley between colourful, carefree cartoonyness and po-faced, edgy realism.
Arguably Fortnite and Overwatch sit in a similar space, but they’ve successfully carved out their own niches and sit a bit further up on either side of the valley.
This screams, “Hey y’aaall! I’m like… soooo totally not serious haha LOLOLOL! … but like, please take me seriously… please. like seriously, PLEASE, I’M SERIOUS.”
It doesn’t seem to know what it wants to be, which combined with the confusing and far-from-fluid footage doesn’t exactly fill me with confidence.
I'm honestly not that into Splatoon, but like, this looks really bad. Being a Splatoon knockoff isn't even my issue with it, the characters look Genshin rejects and I can't tell what's going on at any given point. Also holy ***** that Sony presentation was a real let down.
Originality is something this industry is really struggling with these days, doesn’t it?
Not to sound hypocritical or anything; I frequently play Super Animal Royale, which is more of a simplified “Fortnite” so to speak, but at least its in-game purchases are nowhere near as exploitative as others.
Wow. Beyond being a blatant ripoff, this looks absolutely horrendous.
@Ralizah Square is making this, not Sony.
I prefer this design than Splatoon design. I don´t like the splatoon art style.
It will be better if this game has battle against BOTS.
@Rafie I never said Sony was making this.
Looks cooler than Splatoon NGL!
While the characters look decent and the foam...thing is interesting I can see the similarities (Seriously that one special is straight up the baller special) but hey not all “rip offs” are bad so we’ll see how it goes.
@Hajilee i don’t disagree they look extremely similar, but I think unless Nintendo issues a cease and desist to square enix (highly unlikely) then this still falls under fair use. I doubt all the splatoon fans will think it is fair but given the current state of technology where AI is able to copy anything it finds on the internet and claim it as new.. its not surprising really
This is SE copied Splatoon and removed the fun parts.
We got to the point where companies would just wait for indie and Nintendo to do something, and then plagiarize it because creating their own IPs means costs and risk.
Square, you did Final Fantasy V to X and we are grateful to you. But whatever this is, won't get you out of the crisis. Just let go.
i dig it. looks pretty, the foam adding some verticality to the map could be interesting, and another teams stab at it could explore more that can be done with the concept. think it's better someone tries doing it than having something like pokemon go largely unchallenged for so long even if none of the new monster tamers have really taken off.
even if it's not great it'll probably have a couple ideas and minor changes that'll be cool to compare, see how they affect things, and maybe even make you appreciate the inspiration more.
Splatoon has a certain cool style, this one more of generic anime with some odd looking artsy environments. Will be forgotten 1 week after launch!
I have a PS5 Wii U setup (remote play + side controllers) and it's great.
Hopefully they'll add motion controls for Spla, uh, Foamstars.
This looks like the kind of game that Switch gamers would enjoy; guess they'll have to get a PS5 to play.
Looks really fun.
It's Square Enix, I have little to no faith in them not screwing up with this one.
I wonder if they have a dog that judges them at the end
Whoever took over at SquareEnix a few years ago needs to go home - They're drunk. It's weird seeing them copying other people, doing weird NFT stuff, and greedy cash-grab stuff. I mean, it's normal for them now, but it's just...not right.
I mean, they're a company, and making money is what it's about, but it's like they've lost their sense of self-respect. They're still capable of so much more than what they're doing right now.
At least they're cranking out a good bit of decent RPG's though. Seems like they're becoming the Japanese EA or something, if they haven't already.
@Sahnec I mean yeah legally speaking this is fair use, but from a consumer perspective it's almost a carbon copy. I don't think it'll last very long...
First they copy the Wiimote with their wand, then they announced a hand-held that essentially turns the PS5 into a Wii U and now this.
Foam? Need I say more?? 🤣🤣🤣
I'm a little baffled by who this is intended for. If you wanted to play a Splatoon-like, odds are you already have a Switch and will just play Splatoon 3. It's not immediately apparent what this actually does better.
See also Chocobo GP or whatever, that took the idea of a broad IP Kart racer BUT ALSO featuring fewer tracks, more grind, and microstransactions. I wouldn't be shocked if they tried to wedge NFTs in for good measure.
Foamstars (Splatoon) for the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 (Only switch) will pit two teams of (4) characters against one another in "fun, fast-paced, foam(Ink)-filled battles". With these [foam] weapons, players will be able to also block enemies, get to high ground, create slippery surfaces and surf(Swim) about.
@Nintendo_Thumb
The dog will be black with white spots i'm calling it now
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