Splatoon Raiders launches today exclusively on Nintendo Switch 2

Splatoon Raiders, a new single-player-focused spin-off in Nintendo's long-running ink-shooter franchise, is officially available to buy today — Thursday 23 July 2026 — exclusively on Nintendo Switch 2. Physical copies are in shops now at £49.99, while the digital version on the Nintendo eShop is priced at £41.99. There is no Deluxe or Collector's Edition.

Developed by Nintendo EPD and published by Nintendo, Raiders marks a deliberate departure for a series that has historically centred competitive multiplayer. It is the fourth entry in the Splatoon franchise and the first in its 11-year history to put single-player front and centre — a franchise that has sold more than 30 million copies across three mainline entries since 2015.

What is Splatoon Raiders actually about?

Players take on the role of a mechanic — the Mechanic — who can be customised as either an Inkling or an Octoling. The setup: a helicopter carrying Deep Cut, the trio of characters who appeared in Splatoon 3, is forced into an emergency landing on the remote Spirhalite Islands during a strange storm. After a month spent cobbling together a hideout ship, the Mechanic and crew set out to raid nearby islands for rumoured treasure — and to find a way home.

The shift from urban environments to wild, organic island landscapes was a deliberate choice. According to Nintendo, the development team made the decision specifically to take advantage of the Switch 2's improved ability to render natural environments — a contrast to the city settings the series is known for.

Gameplay: raids, upgrades and your base of operations

Splatoon Raiders is a third-person shooter at its core, but the structure is closer to a loot-and-upgrade loop than a traditional linear campaign. Gear collected on raids carries over into subsequent missions, and the Hideout Ship — the player's base between expeditions — accumulates upgrades throughout the campaign.

Weapons are levelled up at Frye's Weapon Stash using Spirhalite Shards gathered in the field. Gadgets, the game's equivalent of subweapons, are crafted from Salmonid parts at Shiver's Gadget Workshop. Unwanted weapons can be scrapped for materials rather than simply discarded. One Deep Cut member accompanies the Mechanic on each raid inside a powered construct called the Exploration Bot, providing AI combat support and helping locate hidden treasure caches.

Three difficulty settings — Tourist, Raider, and Survivalist — are available, and players can switch between them at any point. Crucially, changing difficulty only affects how hard enemies hit; it has no bearing on the loot available.

Co-op mode and the day-one patch

Alongside the single-player campaign, Raiders includes a cooperative mode for up to four players, either locally or online. The game's difficulty scales automatically depending on how many players are present.

UK players planning to jump straight into co-op should note that Update 1.1.0 — the game's day-one patch, released on 22 July 2026 ahead of launch — is required to access online features. The update adjusts music in some scenes and addresses several bugs. It is described as relatively small compared to other day-one patches, but downloading it disables local communication and LAN play with previous versions of the software.

HDR and Nintendo Music

Splatoon Raiders is the first title in the series to support HDR output on Nintendo Switch 2. High Dynamic Range expands the displayable colour range from the 8-bit standard dynamic range of all previous Splatoon hardware to 10-bit or higher, supporting over one billion colours. Players using the Switch 2 in handheld mode, or connected to a non-HDR display, will see standard output. HDR affects visual presentation only — not gameplay.

Nintendo has also added nine tracks from the Splatoon Raiders original soundtrack to its Nintendo Music service, timed to coincide with the game's launch.

Amiibo, Joy-Con 2 colours and UK retailer bonuses

Three new Deep Cut amiibo — Shiver, Frye, and Big Man in Splatoon Raiders-specific designs — launched alongside the game. In the UK, Nintendo lists these as a triple-pack priced at £49.99. The bases of all three figures clip together to form a unified display stand. The amiibo unlock outfit options for the Mechanic in-game.

Special Joy-Con 2 controller colours also launched today to coincide with the game's release. UK buyers who purchased the physical edition from the Nintendo UK Store received a free Splatoon Raiders-design small towel as a pre-order bonus, with bundles including a plush or keyrings also available to purchase.

Why Nintendo made a spin-off rather than Splatoon 4

Nintendo addressed the question directly in its official Ask the Developer interview (Vol. 22). Producer Seita Inoue explained the reasoning:

"We thought it might be interesting to create something with a slightly different approach to gameplay, where you can really savour the action on your own. Splatoon isn't just about competitive play; it also includes co-operative modes like Salmon Run and a single-player Story Mode. So, one of our motivations for developing this game was our desire to create a new entry point into the series by releasing these non-competitive elements not just as a secondary feature, but as a standalone spin-off. That said, we will continue to develop competitive gameplay going forward."

Inoue also reflected on the series' longevity: "The protagonist of the original Splatoon game was portrayed as a teenager, and now some of the people who were teenagers when they first played it have joined the development team and worked on this new game alongside us. It really makes me feel that this series has grown alongside its players more than I ever expected."

• Splatoon Raiders is available now on Nintendo Switch 2
• Digital: £41.99 via the Nintendo eShop | Physical: £49.99
• Co-op requires Update 1.1.0 — download it before you play online
• Deep Cut amiibo triple-pack: £49.99 from the Nintendo UK Store