The next Splatoon 3 Splatfest has been announced and will have players in teams named after cryptids. This will be the fifth Splatfest since the launch of Splatoon 3 and is the first in-game event following this month's Big Run.Splatoon 3's in-game events thus far have consisted of either Big Runs or Splatfests. While the most recent Splatoon 3 Big Run had players working together in the game's Salmon Run mode, Splatfests have players joining one of three teams and competing against each other in Turf War battles over the course of 48 hours. Each Splatfest has had a theme to determine the names of each team, usually revolving around the players' preferences or responses to certain prompts such as the Pokemon crossover Splatfest which had players choosing their teams based on their favorite Pokemon starter type.The Splatoon North America Twitter account announced the next Splatfest earlier today with the theme based on the prompt, "which of these is real," in reference to three cryptids: Nessie, Aliens, and Bigfoot. Cryptids are creatures that are believed to be real but not scientifically confirmed to exist, often falling under the umbrella of folklore or mythology. The Splatfest will begin on March 31 at 5 pm PT and will conclude on April 2 at 5 pm PT. This will be the first Splatfest to launch since the release of the Splatoon 3 Fresh Season update which added the new map Um'ami Ruins as well as weapons like the Super Chump.
Players can begin contributing to their teams by earning conch shells in the game when the Splatfest Sneak Peak starts on March 24 at 1 am PT. This will also be the first Splatfest to happen since the release of Wave 1 of the Splatoon 3 Expansion Pass which gives players access to Inkopolis from the original Splatoon. During this Splatfest, those who own the Expansion Pass will have access to a Splatfest performance by the Squid Sisters as seen in the original Splatoon.
Splatoon 3 Splatfests have been a regular event for players to look forward to but have remained mostly the same in terms of presentation. This is thankfully getting shaken up with Wave 1 of the Expansion Pass, but there is still potential to bring back Splatoon 2's idols Off the Hook who are expected to be the focus of the Side Order DLC for Splatoon 3. The developers of Splatoon 3 clearly see the value of highlighting past idols, so bringing in Off the Hook could do wonders in making Splatfests even more special.
Splatoon 3 is available now for the Nintendo Switch.