Nintendo somehow managed to make the Ink Mine worse

[Nintendoer]

In Splatoon 1 the Ink Mine was almost universally seen as the worst sub weapon, but had some uses, and made for some awesome stealth kills. However, it still could have been buffed, maybe by reducing its time to detonate. So what did Nintendo do with it in Spla2n? They made it always visible and just a worse Point Sensor. Why? Can anyone give me a reason why they changed it?

 

[ThatBerkawitzSquid]

They probably did it because simply shortening the detonation time could've potentially made it too powerful, so instead, they repurposed it entirely.

Personally, I never got any good use out of Ink Mines in the first game, except by leaving one on the tower in Tower Control, but now, I actually think they're pretty decent. They're nearly inescapable, so you can place one in any choke point to automatically alert your team to when someone is trying to make a push. I don't think I'm all that good with them myself, but I've encountered some very good Ink Mine users online, and they're scary. Multiple Ink Mine users can be even more troublesome. I was skeptical of the Ink Mine changes at first, but now I think it's actually one of the more effective changes they've made to weapons in this game.

As for the comparison to Point Sensors, I like to think of it like this: Point Sensors are more active, while Ink Mines are more passive. To make good use of a Point Sensor, you have to have already seen your target once, however it also takes less time to properly use. With Ink Mines, it takes more effort to find the exact spots you want to place them, but if you put them in good spots, you can tag enemies that you never would've seen coming otherwise, which can't be done with Point Sensors.

 

[Elecmaw]

This was one of the changes i wanted an Ink Mine to have in Splatoon 1, and I'm glad they went through with it in the sequel. While the sub itself is still not perfect by any means it's a lot more useful than in Splatoon 1, the fact that it no longer goes off on it's own after 10 seconds is a major improvement on it's own.

As it is, it feels more like a defensive option whereas the sensor is a more offensive one. You can't do much with mines while you're pushing but you can put them for good use when you are preparing a defense.

By probably having you and a teammate park 4 mines in close vicinity you could have it become lethal, but that's a bit of a waste anyway.

 

[Zelda4Prez]

I really like them in the sniper kit. If there was no sound activation I think it would be a real dud, but especially since you can hear the beep go off really nice to alert of flanks. Use them in choke points. Like on Hump Back , if facing out from your spawn, put one on the left flank entrance that gets to the mid level on either side left of the ink rail. I sometimes go just around the wall there so by the time I hear the beep I can be re-positioning.

On RM there are usually only 2 or 3 routes to the goal and all usually go through chokes. I find them more useful than point sensor bombs.

 

[MindWanderer]

I really like the new Ink Mine, as I've mentioned before. It's fantastic in Splat Zones when your team is in control: you can put two of them down along alternate routes to the center, and when an opponent goes that way, you're immediately notified. Even if the mine doesn't hit them, it's a perimeter alarm.

It's useful in Tower Control, too. It's not the instant kill it was, but it does pinpoint whoever gets up there, and it's harder to avoid. Makes picking them off the tower a whole lot easier.

Rainmaker, depends on the map. It's a useful little speedbump at worst (and the damage is especially handy on the Rapid Blaster; Slosher buddies like it, too). But it can also ID when someone starts turfing ahead, so you can avoid nasty surprises. "Oh crap, when did they get a clear path inked?"

 

[Dessgeega]

Like many have said, they're fantastic in their new role as an early warning and notification device. The developers realized that their killing power couldn't be enhanced without making them a little unbalanced, and this is probably what the OP was expecting. There's plenty of other explosives for taking people out, I quite like the new utility and versatility these mines have.

 

[mercenariez]

Funny thing is, I'm pretty sure they did reduce the detonating time lul

 

[Kaze]

Do you enjoy the new Ink Mine?: YES, but where is the ''Yes Option'' :(

 

[Nuddlmaus]

Well its definitely not an IR Mine from Call of Duty or MGO but its not that worse. I use it as defense tool in Tower Control or as Anti Flank tool, when roaming.

 

[Cullen]

I'm surprised no one mentioned the one major thing the Ink mine has over the point sensor, the Ink mine actually does damage. Not a ton, but it does roughly ~30 damage when hit by the blast, which in most cases shaves a hit to kill off. I'd say it's definitely more usable in this game, even if it isn't a consistent killer. In Splatoon 1, the ink mine has such a small radius and long detonation time, the only times I've ever been killed by it were when it was placed at the base of a drop off or someone dropped it as I killed them in close quarters. In Splatoon 2, not only does it go off much faster, it hits a wider area which makes the thing almost unavoidable if you set it off. With the absence of Echolocater in this game, being one of the few ways to track enemy position is also a boon in its favor.

 

[Spaceswitchmars]

Yup, I agree with almost everyone else here. The ink mine is perfect now. Given that there's two of them and they have point sensors AND they stay where you put them forever (until activated), I wouldn't even complain if they did zero damage... If they were just point sensors that stay there. But they do damage, too! As Cullen points out above, it's awesome!

I LOVE INK MINES!

 

[NBSink]

I actually made some awesome kills with it... Like with the E-liter 4K: I missed my shot to kill someone and right before I got splatted I placed an Ink mine that exploded right after and splatted the person who splatted me... I like the ink more than I did it in Splatoon1...

Ohh: Please don't make polls like that again: There is no "Yes" option. Instead 5 "No" options.

 

[MissingNumbers]

Yeah, regardless of my opinion of the Ink Mine, this is the most useless poll ever.

But now regarding said opinion, Ink Mines only had one niche in the first game on Tower Control, and that was only when the Luna Blaster made it attractive. This time around, it actually has an understood purpose revolving around defense, which is really what a mine should be for anyway.

 

[MindWanderer]

I'm surprised no one mentioned the one major thing the Ink mine has over the point sensor, the Ink mine actually does damage. Not a ton, but it does roughly ~30 damage when hit by the blast, which in most cases shaves a hit to kill off.

It does 35 damage, which makes it a perfect companion for the Rapid Blaster, one reason I like it so much. It takes out Ink Armor immediately, too, which is always handy. And as a small bonus for the E-Liters, it goes a long way towards making an Ink Storm lethal. Not sure how much of a partial charge it takes to deal 65 damage, but that's always a boon for E-Liters as well.

 

[SillySocks]

This sub weapon makes me giddy, lol. Not sure what it is about the crisp tone it makes before setting off, but it's almost therapeutic to hear. Thanks for the tips on how to properly use them; I enjoyed setting a pair of them on high perches in turf wars, like the very center of the academy stage, and snicker when an opponent swims up and triggers them, and panickedly dives off right after before attempting it again (perhaps with an increased heart rate, lol). Also somehow managed to get a double splat doing that once.. guess they were previously damaged?

 

[ThatOneGuy]

I wouldn't say the mine got a "nerf" It's more of a "rework" if anything.

The splat 2 devs just made the mine have a different purpose than before. This mine focuses a lot more on utility and assisting your team, not so much straight damage. I think this is better than splat 1's mine just because that mine was outclassed by other subs like suction bomb and splat bomb. And it really didn't kill anything because the time to explode took a while.

I already hear someone saying "But they were the best on the tower"
I really wouldn't say that as you would have to get on the tower yourself first to do this. Which is pretty risky. Where as putting a suction bomb on the tower is simple and can be repeated often. Not to mention some weapons could simply suction rush the tower anyway, pretty much halting the push and gaining massive turf. And the mine could be avoided if you just got off the tower for a brief moment. It's not like they can put another on there so easily.

 

[Luminario]

I find the Ink Mines very useful for when I'm using the E-Liter in close quarters. A single mine lets me kill an enemy with around half charge and 2 lets me kill with an uncharged. I can put them down while being followed to stop an approach, the point sensor effect helps my team if anyone tries to sneak around, and they work well with Ink Storm if someone tries to hide after setting a mine off or approach after going through the rain. Splatoon 1 mines were terrible, and I'm glad they were changed.