Why I hate Ranked

[techton]

Edited the title and added other gamemodes. Focusing this thread onto ranked all together now.

 

[Dark Sage Walker]

I haven't had the pleasure of going into League with VC yet. I look forward to my opportunity, but for now I will continue to make due with what I have, which is essentially organized chaos.

Since the thread is being opened up to other ranked game modes, I am curious as to which mode is your favorite. I think it goes without saying that I really like Clam Blitz. What about everyone else? Which mode do you like the most?

 

[Elecmaw]

Rainmaker is my favorite. While Zones is a lot more stable of an experience, RM is fun because it's so chaotic. Freak accidents or lucky pushes can easily lead to crack victories/defeats, and with the frantic struggling of inching that RM just a little further makes it a very enjoyable mode.

Zones is probably next, mostly because you have so much influence on it individually. It also gives defensive weapons weapons some much-needed presence, because the object is static and can be defended rather than having to push deep inside the enemy base.

Then is Tower Control. I don't have any strong feelings about this gamemode. It's chaotic, but not too much to catch my interest. Really wish Stingray wouldn't be able to block the entire tower, though.

Probably my least favorite is Clam Blitz, but this is mostly because this mode really doesn't work in solo. Nothing's stopping from your resident G&K player to snag 8 to 9 clams and then immediately die deep in the enemy base giving your enemy a free PC. Deaths hurt your team a lot more because any clams lost will likely get passed to the enemy, and unfortunately in solo queue your teammates can be very hit-and-miss.
It probably would be way better in League/PB, but i haven't tried that yet.

 

[J'Wiz]

From my experience, you get through ranked by just by keeping at it. Keep banging your head against the wall and your horrible ranked-induced migraine will lead you to progress.....eventually. Even better is that you can't always tell if you did something wrong, or if things just aren't working out due to things outside your control.

Sadly as frustrating as it is, it's probably the best way to be self-sufficient. It might be a good idea to do ranked in small sessions at a time.

As far as my individual experiences with the modes:

Splat Zones - This one is strange. It often feels like I'm doing nothing in this mode. I'm one of those players who chose a long range shooter for this mode. I had some matches where it seemed like I did nothing, and as I was apologizing to my teammates, it turned out I did just as much as everyone else on my team. What I "love" about this mode is that I'm always close to ranking up, but as my meter is about to fill, it ends up breaking.

Tower Control - In a huge slump with this mode. Constantly de-ranking and ranking back up. One issue I seem to have is that I keep getting in teams where no-one can paint. I ended up giving up on using a Blaster because of this, and went to Dualies. Yesterday I kept getting two Charger teams with a Blaster or Splatling. Fun fun fun! I don't think comp is why I keep de-ranking though. Something vital I'm missing obviously.

Rainmaker - This one seems to get easier as you rank up. Teamwork ends up getting much better. This mode can be the most frustrating, since an unlucky wipe can turn an entire match domination into a sudden loss. A was a nightmare to go through, when S turned out pretty easy in comparison.

Clam Blitz - I'm using this mode as an opportunity to learn a new playstyle. It's difficult as well. I still haven't figured out how to approach with a Roller. I try following my brush teammate and playing bodyguard, but it doesn't always work out. Trust me, 90% of the time you will have a brush teammate. I rely too much on my team with a Roller. I often end up playing bodyguard for my teammates with the power clam, and try to clear out the enemy goal when we're trying to score. If no-one pushes....we've lost.

 

[Goont]

Alright, I'ma give my two cents here:

Splat Zones- Always my favorite. The perfect KOTH type mode that takes turf to a competitive level. Everything's about turf here. Spray the floor, and take control. Spray the walls, and hide in them! Also, attention is always brought into the Spat Zone, that's the "blood bath" of the mode. So you can really easily slip through the sidelines and flank the enemy. (Octobrush Nouveau anyone?) All in all a really solid gamemode and easily one of my favorite takes on King Of the Hill I have ever had the pleasure of playing in a shooter. This is also the gamemode I have the highest rank on. When it's running, I'm always sure to play a match or two.

Tower Control- Hey, this is the "Payload" of Splatoon essentially. A Giant tug of war over a moving cart that spans the whole map. This gamemode is always moving and always exciting, so the battle's always flipping back and forth and back and forth rapidly. This tug-of-war lasts a while too, it never feels like a perfect push to the end. I've played a lot of games where the match goes into Overtime. It's tough and always keeps you on-edge, but there's doubting it, this gamemode is a hell of a lot of fun.

Rainmaker- Eh....I'm still not in love with it. I've never been a fan of "Capture the Flag" in shooters, so there's a lot this mode has to improve over the traditional formula. Having the "flag" be a weapon sounds like a great balance: In a game without voice chat, being able to support yourself with the flag seems like a perfect solution. However, it's still not enough. The rainmaker is very weak and has a long charge time. This thing was better when I was knocking Octavio with this. You really have to count on your team, and when you get the rainmaker, they never defend you. Even worse? Teammates won't even pick up the Rainmaker! They all stand around it, shouting "Over Here!" until one unlucky player picks up out of obligation. And yes, that unlucky player is always me. I'm a C- here, fittingly.

Clam Blitz- Oh man. This mode was a nightmare at first. A true, messy, unclear nightmare. But after a week of playing it, it started to click, and now I can say this is one of the most satisfying modes Splatoon has to offer. It's complex, but different enough to offer something unique. It's also very independent, which is perfect for Ranked. You can support your own by running around, grabbin' clams, and blasting the enemy. Teamwork makes for a great push towards the enemy, but it isn't necessary. Whether the map is inked your hue or not, whether your team is lousy or pro, as long as you can quickly strafe around the map and get to the goal, you're golden. I'm still C Rank, but hopefully I can rank up soon as I'm really enjoy Clam Blitz. I personally think Mako Mart is where the gamemode shines. if you haven't played Blitz on Mako yet, you owe yourself some more matches!

All in all, Ranked is alright. The gamemodes are all fun and unique, the only real true downside is the lack of voice chat. Personally I will always play these modes on League or through Private Battles, since those allow for VC. But with the exception of Rainmaker and some TC matches, you can usually support yourself to a decent level, if your team's lousy. Out of everything Splatoon has to offer, being Octo Canyon, Salmon, PBs, Turf, League, etc, Ranked is actually at the bottom of my list. It's not that it's bad. It's just flawed, and the lack of communication makes the matches a tad messy. Still, if you can get around a sometimes bad team, there's still some truly unique and fantastic gamemodes to play.

 

[Sifu]

Nothing's stopping from your resident G&K player to snag 8 to 9 clams and then immediately die deep in the enemy base giving your enemy a free PC.

You only drop 4 clams max when you die, so it's not exactly a free football

 

[Elecmaw]

You only drop 4 clams max when you die, so it's not exactly a free football

Well i learned something new today!

 

[Ansible]

However that's still almost half a power clam, which can be more than enough if you're support, defensive, some form of slow, hunting, or baiting.

 

[Dark Sage Walker]

All this talk about ranked modes has me thinking. Let's put some of those thoughts in a tangible form so I can share them! These are some of my thoughts on the ranked modes.

Splat Zones - The OG ranked mode. This is likely the ranked mode that everyone played first. The set up is simple. Make it so only one zone needs to be painted and hold it for as long as you can. There are no moving objectives so this is like an advancement on the premise of Turf Wars. By gathering everyone near one point it encourages fighting by making one or two spots on the map highly contested. I like this mode because it is quick to understand and allows for some interesting tactics. Ignore the zone and spend your time splaying to keep the enemy away from the zones? You can do that! Wanna be sneaky and drop some hidden beacons to allow your team to keep up constant pressure? Go for it! Wanna stay in the back with your favorite rotating, multi-barreled siege weapon and support your team while they takes the zones? You got it! It's a good place to see what works for you while still supporting your team in some way.

Tower Control - Another way of saying Tug of War. Ride a moving platform along a set and oftentimes winding route in order to park it in the enemy base in order to...I dunno, make them pay for parking? I don't have any huge issues with this mode, but it does have some things about it that I am not a huge fan of. Such as Sting Rays. I know that this is basically the same thing as being forced off of the Tower by a Killer Wail, but I feel that the Sting Ray is more dangerous here due to the ability to control your aim, even if only slightly, with it. Well-placed Splashdowns are no fun either. Lastly, the way the mode is set up makes Blasters and Sloshers the prime choice for most runs of Tower Control. Weapons that I find myself being rather down on for one reason or another. It is true that this mode is more chaotic, but it isn't for good reasons IMHO.

Rainmaker - Capture the Flag if the flag was a golden fish idol that fires technicolor grenades. I have to agree with @Goont on this one. The idea is somewhat sound, but often devolves into your teammates making you take the Rainmaker and then letting you fend for yourself. Yeah, thanks guys! This is really what was intended for the person carrying the really slow firing statue that also happens to glow...did I mention that it glows? Yeah, it glows! Like a miniature sun under the water...er, ink. And Y'all want me to run it by myself? Perfect plan! I don't see anything wrong with that! When everything comes together into that magical push then the mode can be fun! Otherwise it's like trying to corral a family of hungry, crazed weasels. Frantic, difficult, frustrating, and often leaving you with way more claw marks on your face than you really intended.

Clam Blitz - The new kid on the block. Like a new kid in school, he will tend to either make friends quickly or get his books dumped and have milk poured all over his head. I will admit, Clam managed to make friends with me awfully quickly! It allows for you to takes matters into your own hands if things go wrong while at the same time offering your team support through gathering clams, throwing them, and protecting your football all the way to the goal. Because there are more steps involved in scoring points in this mode, it can often be easy to figure out what went wrong and correct that for the next match. I do agree that the mode could do with some voice chat to make it easier to communicate, but when you are solo that just means that you need to make good use of your "This Way!" shout and even better use of your map. The map displays it all. The locations of clams, power clams, what color those power clams are, and whether or not they are moving. I praise this mode for giving me a reason to super jump every now and again and for giving me a sense of pride and accomplishment (the real kind this time) when I do something that wins the game for us. It could be that my bias is showing, but I love this mode! It isn't without its faults, but it's faults are something that I can deal with and enjoy finding other solutions for.

Overall, ranked has something for every squid. It gets crazy competitive at times, but that's what ranked mode is all about. If I had one major complaint about ranked, it would be the stage cycling. I know that this is Splatoon's way of differentiating itself from the crowd of multiplayer shooters out there, but here me out! What if instead of the maps and the mode changing every two hours, just the maps changed and you could choose what ranked mode you wanted to play? Furthermore, what if every cycle had different maps for every game mode? This would make a lot more sense with the idea that every mode has its own rank now and allow us to choose how we want to have our fun! Feel like challenging yourself with Rainmaker? Maybe you want to chill on Splat Zones? Perhaps the siren call of Clam Blitz has you going? I think that this is an update that Nintendo should be working on!