Nintendo has announced a new update for its multiplayer squid-shooter Splatoon 3 and it's packed with all sorts of adjustments.
This latest update most notably makes some changes to amiibo following the Grand Festival and also includes multiplayer changes (including weapon adjustments, Salmon Run and Splatfest adjustments) as well as plenty of bug fixes.
Here's the full rundown, courtesy of Nintendo's official support page:
Splatoon 3: Ver. 9.2.0 (Releasing November 20, 2024)
Changes to amiibo
- Enabled a feature that allows players to remember the Grand Festival, even when not connected to the internet, by tapping the following characters’ amiibo figures at the amiibo box in the plaza.
- Callie
- Marie
- Pearl
- Marina
- Shiver
- Frye
- Big Man
Changes to Multiplayer
- Specifications for some main weapons have changed.
Weapon Change Details Splattershot
Tentatek Splattershot
Hero Shot Replica
Octo Shot Replica
Order Shot Replica- Increased the speed of shots by approximately 3% and extended the flight distance.
Splattershot Pro
Forge Splattershot Pro- Reduced the scatter of shots while on the ground by approximately 7%.
Luna Blaster
Luna Blaster Neo
Order Blaster Replica- Increased the radius of the damaging explosion area by approximately 6%.
L-3 Nozzlenose
L-3 Nozzlenose D- Reduced the amount of ink consumed by approximately 4%.
H-3 Nozzlenose
H-3 Nozzlenose D- Reduced the amount of ink consumed by approximately 8%.
Goo Tuber
Custom Goo Tuber- Reduced the time required to charge fully by approximately 1/15th of a second.
- With this change, the time until it will deal 100.0 or more damage is also reduced by approximately 1/20th of a second.
Douser Dualies FF
Custom Douser Dualies FF- Reduced the time between the end of a Dodge Roll and being able to take another action by approximately 1/20th of a second.
Undercover Brella
Undercover Sorella Brella- Reduced the time required for broken canopies to recover from approximately 4.0 seconds to approximately 3.7 seconds.
Splatana Wiper
Splatana Wiper Deco- Reduced the charge time required to do a charge swipe by approximately 1/30th of a second.
- Specifications for some sub weapons have changed.
Sub Weapon Change Details Autobomb - Increased the radius of the enemy detection area by approximately 8%.
Angle Shooter - Initial velocity is approximately 5% faster, and flight distance has been extended.
Fizzy Bomb - Adjusted the way that they bounce due to explosions and slightly reduced the distance moved with one explosion.
- With this change, the area that can be inked with 2 or more explosions will be reduced.
- The area that can be inked with dropped ink spray when not charged to full power will be expanded.
Torpedo - Lengthened the time required to transform by approximately 1/12th of a second.
- This change will give enemies more time to shoot down torpedoes.
- Increased the initial velocity when thrown by approximately 3% and made it possible to throw them farther than before.
- Specifications for some special weapons have changed.
Special Weapon Change Details Booyah Bomb - Slightly increased the amount of power charged by the player and their allies’ Booyahs, making it possible to throw the Booyah Bomb faster than before when players send Booyahs.
- Increased the radius of the explosion area by approximately 5%.
- Increased damage dealt to Big Bubblers by approximately 33%.
- Points required for some special weapons have been changed.
Weapon Before After Zink Mini Splatling 190 200 Mint Decavitator 200 210
Changes to Salmon Run
- Improved communication processing to reduce the time between players not on the host device touching Golden Eggs and being able to use them by approximately 1.5/60th of a second on average.
Changes to Splatfests
- In Tricolor Turf War, made it possible for players on different attacking teams to gauge each other’s positions by making it so that the names of players on the other attacking team display on the screen. Those players’ icons will also display on the Turf Map.
This update focuses on making it possible to use certain amiibo features even when not connected to the internet as well as adjusting the balance of battles.
We adjusted the specifications for Splattershot and Splattershot Pro with the intent of expanding the range of situations these main weapons can handle. Additionally, these weapons have specifications that form the benchmark for various other weapons. By improving these, we also intend to make room for further improvement of specifications for weapons with similar distance specializations as these weapons in future balance changes.
For other main weapons, we have made changes that bring out their strengths and make them easier to use for players who regularly use them.
For Fizzy Bombs, while the efficiency of the strategy of continuously throwing Fizzy Bombs from afar will decrease, by making it easier to focus damage where aimed and create an ink path, we have made it easier to support moving to the frontlines.
For Torpedos, by giving more time to shoot them down, we have made it easier for players they are thrown at to handle them. Also, by making them easier to throw when aiming at enemies’ sides or backs, we have improved their usability for the players who use them.
For the Autobomb, we made changes to make it easier to take advantage of their trait of revealing enemies swimming in ink.
With the Angle Shooter, we made changes to make it easier to take advantage of its trait of affecting more distant enemies than other sub weapons.
For the Booyah Bomb, we have made changes to make it easier to take advantage of its properties even in fast-paced battles between experienced players.
The next update will focus on changes to the balance of battles based on long-term analysis of battle data.
Bug Fixes
- Fixes to Player Controls
- Fixed an issue with Splat Bombs and Autobombs thrown in Salmon Run stages or stages with moving terrain where sometimes the thrown bomb’s actual trajectory differed from the prediction line displayed when pressing the R Button.
- Fixed an issue where, when a player moving toward the screen quits holding a charged shot and returns to Inkling or Octoling form, sometimes the character’s orientation became confused.
- Fixed an issue where, when a player activated their special weapon while simultaneously performing repeated dualie Dodge Rolls while their remaining ink was low, sometimes a dualie Dodge Roll was performed after activating the special weapon.
- Fixed an issue where, when a player performed repeated dualie Dodge Rolls or splatana lunges after doing a Super Jump, sometimes that player’s position on other players’ screens would be greatly misaligned and stay that way.
- Fixed an issue where, when a player activated a Big Bubbler while swimming on a wall, sometimes the Big Bubbler would be placed inside terrain.
- Fixed an issue where, when a player used Kraken Royale to charge from diagonally above at a Splash Wall placed diagonally by an opponent, sometimes damage would not be dealt to the Splash Wall even though there were no other obstacles.
- Fixed an issue where, when an attack hit an inkrail start point right before the inkrail effect ended, sometimes it would appear as if the effect had extended even though the effect did not actually extend.
- Other Fixes
- Fixed an issue where, when players with certain hairstyles equipped the Captain's Cap Replica, their appearance did not display as intended.
- Fixed an issue where, when a player tapped an amiibo to remember the Grand Festival while a Splatfest was active, on rare occasions the game would crash.
This latest Splatoon 3 update follows the Grand Festival event which took place in September. Since then, there's also bee a special 'Splatoween' Splatfest, with 'Team Ninja' taking out the victory. You can learn more about both of these events in our previous Splatoon 3 coverage on Nintendo Life: