Splatoon Raiders Is The Most Relaxing Looter Shooter Ever Made

I Wish All Looter Shooters Were As Chill As Splatoon Raiders Published Aug 1, 2026, 12:01 PM EDT Jade King is Lead Features Editor at The Gamer and University of Sussex journalism graduate with 10+ years covering the video game industry. She has been seen in outlets such as Trusted Reviews, Kotaku UK, VICE, and more over the years covering everything from the latest releases to major events to in-depth interviews. She loves nothing more than speaking with devs, creatives, voice actors, and so many others about the passion behind their craft and bringing that into the hearts of readers everywhere. Splatoon is easily Nintendo’s most successful new IP of the 21st century. A bold, stylish, and experimental take on the shooter formula that gave young talent at the company a chance to show exactly what they were made of. And boy did they do just that. We’re three games into the mainline series now, and each one has been a massive global success, with the franchise making a particularly large cultural impact in Japan as it consistently sells millions of copies and becomes a merchandise mover like nothing else. It combines a contemporary knowledge of street fashion, incredibly varied music, and gameplay you can’t find anywhere else to great effect. Bullets are replaced with ink, while hardened space marines are hurled out in favour of cool squid kids ready to cause chaos and have fun. The focus has primarily been on the multiplayer, with three-minute matches that inspire fierce aggression and endless creativity in equal measure. They’re so short and sweet that I rarely want to stop playing, while the progression lends itself to remaining invested for hundreds of hours. Putting that aside though, I’ve always had a soft spot for the single-player campaigns and how they flesh out Splatoon’s weird post-apocalyptic world and also challenge you more than most veteran Call of Duty missions do. They do not mess about, and neither does the recently released Splatoon Raiders. Splatoon Raiders Isn’t The Game You Think It Is I don’t mean this as a negative, but I expected Splatoon Raiders to be more of the same. It launched at a reduced retail price, so surely it was just another Splatoon campaign boasting a few unique mechanics to tide us over for the fourth mainline instalment? While it certainly is that in a number of ways, it’s also a surprisingly deep and approachable loot shooter that takes inspiration from the likes of Diablo and Destiny. It also taught me this genre does not need to demand multiple playthroughs and characters to feel truly satisfying. For those who aren’t familiar with how Splatoon Raiders works, it wastes no time throwing you into the thick of things. You play as a nameless pilot/mechanic escorting massive pop group Deep Cut to the tropical Spirhalite Islands in search of hidden treasure. The story is delightfully charming, with the band being sent to find untold riches after the Grand Festival all but bankrupted Inkopolis and Splatsville. They partied way too hard and must sadly pay the price. I love that even once the party crash lands and finds a way home, they still don’t want to go back because it would be super awkward and embarrassing if they do so empty-handed. Cue endless adventures onto the islands in search of goodies. You embark on short missions that have you doing everything from defeating hostile waves of baddies to collecting valuable eggs to navigating obstacle courses to testing out your new gadgets. My personal favourites have you diving deep underground and fighting across each floor before finally reaching a deadly boss encounter. Oh, and one member of Deep Cut will always accompany you in a cute little mech that both attacks enemies and assists with some platforming challenges. With most early missions only taking a couple of minutes, you’ll never be left wanting for rewards or a reason to keep on going. Note: I don’t want to go too deep into combat here, but you can select from three different tank types that determine the sort of gadgets you can equip in the form of Power, Speed, and Tactical. I’m a Power gal, because some of the abilities are super overpowered. In Fact, It Might Be Even Better I quickly fell in love with the consistent routine of doing a stage and returning to your floating fortress to upgrade weapons, make new gadgets, and build new rooms, each with intentions all their own. Time will tell how large this base becomes, but I hope it comes to reflect all the personalities aboard Shiver, Frye, and Big Man are always up for a chat as well, even if you wish they would help out with the treasure hunting business once in a while. One of my big complaints so far is that the fashion offerings, compared to the mainline games at least, are lacking. I’m down to put on some cool overalls and crop tops, but the lack of merchants to visit or an online battleground to show off my super-cool character is a little disappointing. But this could only be the beginning if Raiders proves to be a success, which it seemingly is after moving 500,000 physical copies in Japan alone in its first few days of release. Nintendo could update this game with new biomes, new outfits, new gadgets, or even a full expansion some months down the line. Without the multiplayer component or need for multiple avatars or playthroughs in something like Diablo or Destiny, I fall in love with the loot grind that is offered up here because there is no pressure to chase legendaries or ensure I’m ready for an inevitable raid or high-level dungeon to drop. Raiders is tough, but never tough enough to make you walk away convinced you aren’t good enough. It’s cute, satisfying, and filled with more than enough variety to keep you going deep into the late game. It also makes me excited about the future of Splatoon and the other forms it could take with future adventures. A shooter with a deeper story, an open world, or even a more nuanced take on co-op not limited to simply tackling different stages together. Splatoon 4 is no doubt in development for the Switch 2 right now, and who knows, maybe it takes way more inspiration from Raiders than players are expecting. Either way, if you’re after a terrific time on Switch 2 right now, look no further than this. Splatoon Raiders Systems Released July 23, 2026 ESRB Everyone 10+ / Fantasy Violence Developer(s) Nintendo EPD Publisher(s) Nintendo Genre(s) Action, Adventure