Nintendo explains why it’s coming out with Splatoon Raiders instead of Splatoon 4
Posted on July 21, 2026 by Brian(@NE_Brian)
in News, Switch 2
Rather than releasing Splatoon 4, the next entry in the series is Splatoon Raiders. Nintendo recently explained why it chose to release that title now.
After more than a decade or core Splatoon gameplay, producer Seita Inoue explained in a new interview that the team “thought it might be interesting to create something with a slightly different approach to gameplay, where you can really savor the action on your own.”
Director Yoshihiko Ito chimed in on this as well. As Nintendo was winding down its work on Splatoon 3, it explored potentially making a single-player Splatoon game, “leveraging the gameplay of Salmon Run.” The team also thought it could take advantage of Nintendo Switch 2’s power. Following some experiments, we eventually ended up with Splatoon Raiders.
The full comments from Inoue and Ito are as follows:
Inoue: We’ve been going full speed ahead for over 11 years since the series’ launch, developing and updating three titles along the way. We thought it might be interesting to create something with a slightly different approach to gameplay, where you can really savor the action on your own. Splatoon isn’t just about competitive play; it also includes cooperative modes like Salmon Run and a single-player Story Mode. So, one of our motivations for developing this game was our desire to create a new entry point into the series by releasing these non-competitive elements not just as a secondary feature, but as a standalone spin-off. That said, we will continue to develop competitive gameplay going forward. That’s why we developed this game as a spin-off and not as “Splatoon 4.”
Ito: Originally, around the time our work on updates to Splatoon 3 was winding down, we were exploring whether we could develop a single-player experience that players could dive into to their heart’s content, leveraging the gameplay of Salmon Run. Salmon Run is a part-time gig for squids, where four players* team up to take down Salmonids and collect Golden Eggs. We thought that if we could adapt it for single-player, it might result in something hectic yet exhilarating. We’d discussed developing the next Splatoon game for Nintendo Switch 2, and that being the case, we thought we could really take advantage of the system’s performance. This prompted various experiments, such as ramping up the number of Salmonids for the “ultimate multitasker” experience, where a single player battles them all.
While we’re just getting Splatoon Raiders, it’s really only a matter of time until we see Splatoon 4. For now though, fans can experience the franchise’s first single-player-focused entry.
Reviews for Splatoon Raiders just dropped today. We’ve rounded up the early verdicts here.
More: interview, Seita Inoue, Splatoon Raiders, Yoshihiko Ito
