ManySplatoon 3players were disappointed by the lack of Halloween festivities last month. Even if the development team wanted to save its resources forNovember’sPokemon ScarletandViolet-themed Splatfest, there was a missed opportunity to introduce Big Run; an event in which Salmon Run’s zombie horde-like Salmonid enemies are set to invade multiplayer maps. Big Run also could have alleviated one of the PvE mode’s bigger issues by introducing map variety, though Nintendo can also rectify this by bringing back older stages like Ruins of Ark Polaris.
Salmon Run Next Wave, the official title ofSplatoon 3’s game mode, launched with just three maps: Sockeye Station, Gone Fission Hydroplanet, and Spawning Grounds. While this is inherently better thanSplatoon 2’s starting roster, Next Wave is immediately available 24/7 rather than with varying availability to reflect a real-world work schedule. This means players are more likely to burn out, necessitating more additions to shake things up. Ruins of Ark Polaris was a Salmon Run stage introduced late inSplatoon 2’s life with direct ties toSplatoon 3’s story, so it’s a clear candidate.Spoilers forSplatoon 3ahead.
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Salmon Run’s Lifespan in Splatoon 2
When the Salmon Run mode was being showcased at E3 2017,Splatoonseries producer Hisashi Nogami said its cooperative bent was designed to showcase the Switch’s portability and local play - something that couldn’t be done with2015’sSplatoonon Wii U. Even without this technical component, Salmon Run added depth by giving players an opportunity to work together and overcoming challenges rather than forming a competitive team to stomp out other players in Turf Wars and Ranked matches.
Splatoon 2launched with just two Salmon Run maps: Spawning Grounds (seemingly the default stage) and Marooner’s Bay. Some variance was introduced thanks to Salmon Run’s focus on different shift rotations using loaned weapons, as opposed to multiplayer letting players use whatever gear they prefer. Some rotations also featured completely random sets with the chance to obtain an exclusive Grizzco weapon, but each round still featured the same waves of basic and Boss Salmonids.Rare events like Mothership or Griller waveswere the only activities that truly broke up the monotony.
Over the course of 2017,Splatoon 2introduced new Salmon Run maps: Lost Outpost on August 23, and Salmonid Smokeyard on November 24. From that point on it was mostly quiet, but more content kept the game alive following theOcto Expansion DLC in June 2018. That November, Salmon Run added the Ruins of Ark Polaris map, which stood out for being set around the wreckage of an old-world space shuttle (complete with signs in human text) at a perpetual dusk hour. It also made good use of design elements typically exclusive to story content, such as ride rails.
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Why Ruins of Ark Polaris is a Perfect Addition for Splatoon 3
Beyond being a unique Salmon Run map, in hindsight it seems Ruins of Ark Polaris was one of the first hints towardSplatoon 3’s overarching narrative. The Salmon Run game mode has always been shepherded by amysterious benefactor named Mr. Grizz- though he never appears on-screen inSplatoon 2,so it was unclear whether his grizzly bear aesthetic was just a reference to salmon’s natural predator.
Splatoon 3’s Return of the Mammalians reveals Mr. Grizz is an actual bear, one of the few mammals who survived a global climate disaster brought on by human activity. He serves as the game’s final boss, whereMr. Grizz reveals Salmon Run has been a way to stockpile the Golden Eggshe needs to create fuzzy ooze. He plans to dump that ooze across the globe using a rocket left in the underground settlement of Alterna, thereby replacing marine life with mammals once again, but a coalition of Inklings, Octolings, and Salmonid (led by the player character) brings this scheme to an end.
Completing thepost-story mission “After Alterna"unlocks a log entry that elaborates upon the backstory of Mr. Grizz, the only animal to survive a Noah’s Ark-style mission. This mission utilized the shuttle Ark Polaris, which crashed back onto Earth after unforeseen complications. Mr. Grizz gained sentience from centuries hibernating in deep space before the crash, and Salmon Run’s Ruins of Ark Polaris map offered a glimpse at his journey by leaving bear tracks in the sand near this wreckage, only visible at low tide.
Reintroducing the Ruins of Ark Polaris forSplatoon 3is a sound decision for mechanical and narrative reasons. It’s one of the more unique Salmon Run maps overall, and more Easter eggs could be thrown into an updated design now that players have all the context afforded by Return of the Mammalians. HopefullySplatoon 3begins introducing new content to keep players engaged with multiplayer and Salmon Runsoon.
Splatoon 3is available now on Nintendo Switch.
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