This week marks the fifth anniversary of Nintendo's unique take on the third-person shooter genre, Splatoon. Despite releasing on the Wii U, a console that failed to meet expectations and faded into obscurity following the release of the Nintendo Switch, the game managed to take fans by surprise with it's unique take on a genre many thought Nintendo would never take on. Since its release on May 28, 2015, Splatoon has become a major Nintendo property, spawning two games and one expansion so far, as well as appearances in other games.

Splatoon was developed by Nintendo Entertainment Analysis & Development, a now defunct division of Nintendo that helped develop several classic franchises like Mario and Donkey Kong, with the intention to create a new franchise for the Wii U. The game was headed by several younger developers who had worked under Super Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto, most of whom helped develop the Animal Crossing games.

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The team had come up with the concept of a four-versus-four multiplayer game that centers around territory control with ink, but they did not have a central character for players to gravitate too. After several different ideas, including potentially making it a Mario game, co-directors Tsubasa Sakaguchi and Yusuke Amano came up with the idea of putting a squid character into the game.

An Inkling causes chaos in Splatoon 2 multiplayer

Unfortunately, Nintendo didn't think that squids simply shooting ink at each other would catch on with gamers, with even Miyamoto stating that the game has "no appeal." Eventually, the team came up the concept of the Squid Kid, which would later be called the Inkling, a playable character that can transform into a squid and swim in its own ink but can also transform into a human to shoot ink at opponents, with the concept of taking damage and getting splatted by enemy ink coming later.

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Once the designs of the Squid Kids were finalized, the weapons, outfits, game modes and overall tone of the game were developed. The team played popular shooters like Call of Duty and Battlefield to get a better feel for the genre, but incorporated unique weapons such as paint buckets and brushes in order to keep things fresh. Since it was a Wii U exclusive, the game took advantage of the GamePad by giving the player a full overview of the map in real-time to make ink coverage easier. Unlike most shooters, the game didn't include voice chat, as the co-director Amano was turned off by the negativity of other online shooters and wanted the game to be accessible to all.

After two years in development, Splatoon was released, and Nintendo heavily promoted the game as its next big franchise. It held several special events in various countries featuring playable demos, obstacle courses and third-party tie-ins with other companies. The game also kept players invested with free DLC in the form of new weapons and stages, a robust single-player campaign and several special events called Splatfests that pit players against each other in themed competitions for special prizes.

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Octolings in splatoon 2

All of Nintendo's efforts paid off, as Splatoon received positive reviews for its unique art style gameplay mechanics in comparison to other shooters. The game also won several awards and became the sixth bestselling game for the Wii U. The game also spawned a small but passionate eSports community, with Nintendo hosting several tournaments over the years.

It was clear that Splatoon was a big hit for Nintendo, but the Wii U's lackluster sales stopped it from becoming even bigger. With the Nintendo Switch on the horizon, a sequel quickly went into development, and Splatoon 2 was released two years later. Releasing just months into the new console's life, the sequel expanded on the original's gameplay by adding new weapons, modes and Splatfests. It even received a DLC expansion the following year.

Like the original, Splatoon 2 received positive reviews and sold twice as many copies as its predecessor. By this point, Splatoon had already become a major franchise with crossovers in Mario Kart and Super Mario Maker, and the Inklings were teased as playable characters for Super Smash Bros. in the same Direct that announced the Octo Expansion. While news on the franchise has been quiet since the final monthly Splatfest in July 2019, an encore Splatfest was held just this weekend (perhaps in part to celebrate the original game's anniversary), reviving hopes that something new is in store for the beloved Nintendo franchise.

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