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Starting with Splatoon 2, Nintendo implemented a PvE cooperative multiplayer mode called Salmon Run that let up to four people face hordes of Salmonid enemies in order to accrue their Golden Eggs for Grizzco for fun and profit. Splatoon Raiders is what happens when you take that existing horde mode and turn it into a full looter-shooter with campaign stages and continuous egg, Spirhalite Shards, gadget parts, and weapons. It’s definitely enjoyable and does work solo, but it feels very different from the traditional Splatoon series campaigns and, in some ways, shows the Salmon Run limitations.
Splatoon Raiders begins with Deep Cut members Shiver, Frye, and Big Man heading out with an unknown Pilot to head out to the Spirhalite Islands in order to find treasure to assist with paying off Splatsville’s debts. Upon their approach, a strange light emerged from the islands below and burst through the clouds, causing them to crash in the process. The Pilot, now Mechanic, begins working with the trio to uncover the secrets of the islands and Salmonids while also pulling enough treasure together to make the voyage a success.
Splatoon Raiders levels are scattered around the Spirhalite Islands, with the fog lifting to reveal new Raids as new ones are completed. Each has a recommended level assigned, to give you an idea of how strong your character and equipment should be before heading into it. These also tend to all fall into certain categories. The most traditional stages involve investigating parts of the island until you reach the Spirhalite Crystal at the end to bust up into shards, relics, and treasure with the Exploration Bot manned by Shiver, Frye, or Big Man. (You choose which one to equip, which affects your Showstopper attack.) These are more linear, and they’re one of my favorite experiences since they often include platforming elements and opportunities to slightly venture off the path for collectibles.
An offshoot of that variety is a stage in which you’re in an island region with a number of Spirhalite ore deposits and one large one. You need to defeat enough Salmonids to get eggs to power the Exploration Bot drill so you can mine the biggest deposit. I found this gets the most tedious and to be my least favorite experience, since you often need to wait for more smaller deposits to respawn in order to build up energy so you can move on. Though, admittedly, these are one of the best ways to build up reservoirs of Spirhalite Shards and feel better balanced and quicker when in a group.
The third kind of Splatoon Raiders Raids act a bit like dungeons and feel most like the Salmon Run experience. These can be multi-level spaces, where you get a set number of time to clear out Salmonids. While early floors in multi-level ones involve getting enough eggs to power the Exploration Bot to get to a lower floor before time runs out, the last will feature a Seasoned Salmonid boss that is stronger than usual and must be defeated before time runs out to clear it. These sections also must be run three times, once with each type of tank, in order to claim all rewards and truly “complete” them. Fortunately, clearing it once with one tank is typically enough.
Fourth are the Compass-related stages. When exploring during other levels, you may happen upon this collectible that lets you “hunt” for a hidden mission on the world map. When you find it, you are taken to an area with strict rules and limitations. They mostly act as tutorials for the different tanks and gadgets, which is fantastic! Sometimes, they feel like a series of puzzles or even like a minigame challenging you to make the best use of new mechanics like the surf board. I found myself favoring the Tactical tank, since its gadgets all tended to involve deploying turrets and proved very helpful against hordes when playing alone. But because of these tasks, I did play around more with the other options and even developed gadgets I might not have otherwise.
Finally, there are the traditional boss fight stages in Splatoon Raiders. These feel quite similar to the bosses encountered in the Splatoon 3 campaign! They’re big! They’re bulky! They feature patterns you can learn and adapt to as you work through the stage. The difference is, they also incorporate some of the new gameplay and Salmon Run elements to remind you that yes, this game did spawn from a PvE horde mode experience. While each of these stages feels unique and can be quite challenging, there will always be portions in which the boss will become invulnerable in some way. As a result, you’ll need to fight through hordes of Salmonids to get eggs to power up the Exploration Bot to… you guessed it, drill through defenses. It works really well, and it helps them to feel unique while tying back to the experiences and skills we built up in other stages.
What’s interesting in Splatoon Raiders is while there are new Salmonid foes here, we get to see Nintendo play around with and adapt existing ones from Splatoon 3’s Salmon Run to work in these new circumstances. The Steelhead? It doesn’t only take damage when you shoot the bomb it gradually inflates until it explodes, but that’s still the most effective way to take it out. The Flyfish? Since you don’t have bombs to toss into its launchers when they open to take it down, you instead need to aim for the lil’ dude flying the device. The adjustments make sense, but they don’t take what made the encounters special or challenging in the original game. At the same time, I found some foes that might not have been as annoying in Salmon Run are absolute jerks to deal with in Splatoon Raiders, with Stingers and Slammin’ Lids being at the top of my hit-list due to the range of the former and the difficulty in taking down the latter. In fact, I think Slammin’ Lids still are a little OP in some situations and result in situations that almost feel like multiplayer is still required to properly eradicate them.
Which brings me to another point about Splatoon Raiders that also cements it as a true looter-shooter type of game. It is fine on its own. I played most of it solo. But while that was enjoyable, the multiplayer session is when I had the most fun with the game. Seeing the scaling difficulty in action and actually being able to approach the more difficult Spicy versions of maps without hesitancy or fear felt fantastic, and it also feels like the different tank types and gadgets complemented each other so well when in a group. Given the timing, I wasn’t really able to take advantage of the “call for help” feature that let us ask for help on a stage or join someone who did request assistance. But I feel like once it launches, I’ll be doing a lot of that for fun and grinding even though I’m “done.”
Because the grind in Splatoon Raiders does feel fun. Weapons aren’t flowing in at a tremendous rate, but they do come up at a good pace and with a decent variety. It’s possible to upgrade ones you like a bit with shards to increase its power, which can make a lucky find with an ability attached viable for longer. We can pick how our tank upgrade investments go, letting each person prioritize their builds. For example, my Tactical tank turns me into something of a glass cannon where my gadgets are significantly buffed, while my Power tank prioritizes my weapon damage and HP. The actual gadget tinkering also feels really great and offers a lot of customization, due to us being able to unlock additional tiers for types of abilities either via crafting or happening upon the items as stage rewards. The pacing is also quite good for unlocking these updates, as well as building up the main hub that means more customization, crafting, and leisurely activities appear.
Splatoon Raiders builds upon the Salmon Run modes from Splatoon 2 and 3 in a clever way, resulting in a looter-shooter with varying objectives. It can 100% be played and enjoyed solo, but I had the most fun playing with others and suspect that will prove a highlight once folks get their bearings and start perfecting their weapon, tank, and gadget loadouts. However, I will note that because it is primarily focused on taking on Salmonid hordes with things like time limitations and egg requirements, it may not have the broader appeal of the mainline games’ campaigns.
Splatoon Raiders will come to the Switch 2 on July 23, 2026.
