News

Early this morning, the Japanese Splatoon Twitter (@SplatoonJP) unveiled the new gear mechanics for Splatoon 2. Reinventing the gear abilities system in Splatoon 2 so that players don't have to rely on random chance to get their desired abilities is at the top of many squids' wish lists for changes in Splatoon 2. It seems that the Splatoon Dev Team has once again delivered a change that will make everyone happy. Strange Approach's Rocket (@PG_Rocketek on Twitter) posted a video earlier today summing up what the change brings to the new game. Below is a written summary of the changes and a bit about how this helps competitive Splatoon. The Changes From a translation by Tictac (@Thicctac on Twitter) in the Inkademy Discord server, These tweets showed the changes made to the gear system: 1) Spyke still exists, and you can reroll your gear just like in Splatoon 1. 2) A young Spyke-looking kid, known in NA as "Murch," serves as a new option for gear. You can take your gear to Murch...

"From the people that brought you the Bleck n Spoon Tournament (BnS), it is time for a new organization designed for the highest quality in Splatoon 2 coverage! We would like to introduce InkTV, the central hub for all your essential content in Splatoon 2, from a tournament that comes as the next form of BnS to a new interview series where we will go one on one with some of the stars and notable members of the community. But perhaps one of our biggest items will be our podcast, called Ink Radio, where we will discuss pertinent topics in the game, the meta, the community, or whatever else has to revolve around the game we all know and love!"

The Squid Research Lab has shared with us video footage of four weapons, a sub weapon and four specials today on the Splatoon US blog. Check out a playlist of all the videos below!

The Splatoon 2 Global Testfire is now available for download on the Switch eShop! If you've got a Nintendo Switch, be sure to download it so you're ready to go on March 24th when the Global Testfire begins!

Time to kick things up a notch! Splatoon 2 will be here before you know it. In our continued quest to make Squidboards your best resource for all things Splatoon, we're looking to get more hands on deck and strengthen our staff. Why don't you join us by applying for a Squidboards staff position?! We're looking for: Moderators, to keep the site clean and maintain healthy discussion; Writers, to provide coverage on current events, the competitive scene, community updates, and more; Content Creators, to produce original video/audio content and even promote their own content or channels on our site; Event Organizers, to help us run tournaments and fun community events; and Community Ambassadors, to lead and encourage discussion on the forums, work with our social media, and promote Squidboards and the Splatoon community at large. There's certainly something for everybody. Although these are volunteer positions, you'll get the opportunity to join a great team and do awesome work for...

Sometimes it felt like yelling into the void. Ever since launch, the Splatoon community has clamored for a true, dedicated spectator mode and a LAN mode for 4v4 multiplayer. These features never materialized in the original game. Although hope was not lost, it was hard not to wonder if they would ever come.

Today we're proud to announce a visual overhaul to Squidboards! To prepare the site for the freshness of Splatoon 2, we've given the whole site a fresh coat of ink. We hope you enjoy the new look! Read on to learn more about all the new changes.

Nintendo's heavily anticipated console presentation last night featured a slew of new games, as well as a couple of familiar titles with some new twists.

Splatoon doesn't often get a heavy spotlight in the world of eSports but with the announcement of Nintendo Switch, minds have been buzzing with the possibility of pro Splatoon. Red Bull eSports dove into the community at large to talk about what competitive play has been like since the game's release, and what it might look like in the future.

Time flies doesn't it? Just over a year ago Splatoon launched on the Wii U in May of 2015. The game itself became an instant hit and was an incredibly popular addition to the Nintendo family even for a fresh new IP. The game opened the door for many new players at home and overseas, as well as new opportunities for artists and content creators. With the Wii U not doing so well and the "previously named NX" just around the corner the stage was set for something new.

Nintendo surprised the world yesterday with the announcement of a preview trailer for their upcoming home console, the NX. This morning, that trailer has finally come -- our first look at the Nintendo Switch.

Welcome to another installment of Squidbeats, our series of features on the music made by Splatoon fans! This time around, we'll be listening to Splarrange!, an album by all Japanese artists released in December 2015. Japan, being the game's country of origin, has a considerably more intense Splatoon fandom than in other parts of the world, and this is only the first of several Japanese releases this series will cover. Splarrange! is an example of “doujin” music, which is the term in Japanese that refers to independently published and distributed works, such as those sold at the famous bi-annual Comic Market (or “Comiket”). While the word “doujin” is typically associated with drawn fan art, especially comics, music is also covered by the term. Certain artists and groups within the scene, such as IOSYS, have gained some recognition outside the Comiket circuit, but most remain quite obscure. The artists covered in this feature are among that number, but this release...

Surviving two best of 7 sets in Grand Finals, Extermination are your Splatoon Anniversary Invitational champions![/CENTER] The Splatoon Anniversary Invitational main event consisted of teams that competed in the official SAI community qualifiers, which ran in the two weekends prior to the main event

The Splatoon Anniversary Invitational (SAI) is an online, double-elimination event on Saturday, May 28th. Sixteen teams invited from four community qualifier tournaments will battle it out to be crowned a new Splatoon champion! [Event Page] Main Event Bracket After four qualifiers and two weeks of competition, sixteen teams have qualified for the SAI double-elimination, main event! Here are your qualified teams and their Winner's Round 1 match-ups: [Full Challonge Bracket Page] Seeding was determined by qualifier points obtained and TO discretion. The bracket page will be updated throughout the duration of the event. Gametype/Map Rotation Each round of the event will follow the official Gametype/Map rotation list provided below. This list was created by randomization and TO discretion. Gametypes/maps are available for possible games in best of 5 and best of 7 sets, as well as a second Grand Finals if the bracket is reset. Winner's Round 1 1) Arowana Mall (Rainmaker) 2)...

The Splatoon Anniversary Invitational (SAI) is an online, double-elimination event on Saturday, May 28th. Sixteen teams invited from four community qualifier tournaments will battle it out to be crowned a new Splatoon champion! [Event Page] Event Update: Change to distribution of qualifying points: We have changed the points distribution system for the four SAI qualifier events this weekend and next: Teams can still enter as many qualifier events as they want. However, only their two best finishes will be added together to determine a team's point total. Initially, every event that a team entered would count towards a team's point total. This would have given teams who entered more tournaments a better chance of qualifying, even if they may not have finished farther in a given qualifier compared to another team. Teams that only enter one qualifier will receive points from the one event they did enter and a "0" for not entering a second event. Teams that entered two qualifiers...

There's nothing quite like a celebration, and there's no celebration quite like a tournament of the best teams competitive Splatoon has to offer! For the one-year anniversary of the launch of Splatoon on Nintendo Wii U, Squidboards is proud to present: The Splatoon Anniversary Invitational (SAI), an online, double-elimination event on Saturday, May 28th. Sixteen teams invited from four official qualifier tournaments will battle it out to be crowned a new Splatoon champion! [EVENT PAGE] To qualify for the main event, you must earn qualifying points. To earn qualifying points, you must play in the official qualifying events. Out of all the teams that earn points, only the top sixteen teams with the most points will be invited. There's no minimum or maximum to the number of events you can join or points you can earn. Head to each tournament's event page to sign-up. If you do acquire any qualifying points, they'll be tracked and featured on the Invitational event page...

Today Nintendo announced a new wave of Splatoon Amiibos hitting stores in North America on July 8th. Alongside brand new Callie and Marie Amiibos, we'll also be getting recolours of the original three Splatoon Amiibos. The original Splatoon Amiibos unlocked special challenges for the single player missions, and the recolours will function the very same. The Squid Sisters Amiibo however will instead allow you to listen to various Squid Sisters songs, including a couple from the Chogaki concert in Japan! Alongside those songs, you'll also be able to change Inkopolis Plaza to it's night time appearance featured during Splatfests, and unlock new dance animations for the Squid Sisters from their live concert performance.

The official Splatoon Tumblr has announced the next Splatfest and they couldn't be more correct in calling it a doozy! It's going to be Team Spongebob vs Team Patrick Check your calendars because it's not April 1st anymore, it's the 14th, and this is the real deal! You'll be able to place your vote tomorrow for #TeamSpongeBob or #TeamPatrick. We can only assume Squidward is sitting out from the fun as he often does. Which team will you be playing for this weekend squids?

Welcome to Squidbeats, a new series of feature articles exploring the fanmade music of the Splatoon community. There's no doubt that fans of Splatoon are a creative bunch, as you'll find fanart of folks' inksonas everywhere. It's not all just visual, though; there's a number of rather good albums of fanmade music out there. From album releases on Bandcamp and Soundcloud to doujin music made by Japanese fans, it will be covered here. This inaugural feature in the series is a track-by-track review of Splatunes!, an album off the Gamechops record label. Featuring tracks from the likes of DJ CUTMAN (who also mastered the album), Grimecraft, and Mega Flare, this collection of remixes and covers has been steadily growing in fan appreciation since its release in June 2015. For the opening track, DJ CUTMAN treats us to “Kid Now, Squid Now!” to a thumping remix of the song used in Splatoon's US television spots. In CUTMAN's hands, the infamously cheesy “squid”/”kid” refrain actually...

Nintendo has just announced two new events for fans of Splatoon in Japan! This April, there will both be a second Squid Sisters concert as well as the brand-new Gachibon Festival. It's going to be an exciting month! The first announcement is a new Squid Sisters live performance. Following up on their wildly successful first concert, the pop duo will be at Nico Nico Choukaigi, a conference for Japan's streaming site Nico Nico Douga, taking place April 29th and 30th. Like the last concert, it will feature hologram projections of Callie and Marie accompanied by a live band. Further details have not yet been announced.