Reviews say Nintendo’s latest is as much Diablo and Doom as it is Donkey Kong

Splatoon Raiders, the latest exclusive title for the Nintendo Switch 2, has garnered a warm reception from the critical community. The prevailing sentiment is that the game successfully fuses the chaotic, ink-splattered PvP formula synonymous with the Splatoon franchise with a surprisingly deep action-RPG and looter-shooter progression system, resulting in a compelling experience for both solo play and cooperative sessions.

Positioned as an accessible, mid-tier release, the game is priced at $49.99 on the eShop, a status echoed by its respectable performance on review aggregators. At the time of writing, Splatoon Raiders holds an 81 on Metacritic and an 80 on OpenCritic.

Leading the chorus of praise is IGN’s Logan Plant, who awarded the game a 9/10, labeling it an “incredibly well-designed action RPG.” Like many of his peers, Plant found himself enthralled by the core loop of combat, loot acquisition, and tactical build experimentation. “It’s all about the iterative process: I love refining my build to gain an edge, testing it across varied, challenging stages, and then combing through the rewards to see what inventive combinations I can forge next,” Plant notes. “When you layer that classic, polished feedback loop onto Splatoon’s already robust foundation, you get the most compelling campaign in the series’ history and one of the finest Switch 2 titles to date.”

Image: Nintendo EPD/Nintendo

While players can expect to wrap up the main campaign in roughly 15 hours, reviewers note that the game truly hits its stride afterward, as the demanding endgame requires significant build optimization. For Polygon’s Giovanni Colantonio, the progression mechanics evoked unexpected comparisons for a Nintendo project. “Splatoon Raiders’ closest spiritual peers are, surprisingly, Borderlands and Diablo,” Colantonio observes. While the early hours may seem simplistic, the deeper you venture into the “shockingly robust endgame gear systems,” the more rewarding the experience becomes. “By the time I reached the punishing post-game missions, the intensity felt akin to Vampire Survivors.”

For Eurogamer’s Christian Donlan, the game evokes the “apocalyptic simplicity” of Donkey Kong Bananza alongside the relentless momentum found in modern Doom titles. “Much like with Bananza, I was left with a genuine sense of astonishment,” Donlan remarks in his four-star appraisal. “The game’s approach to mayhem is so carefree and its design so uncluttered that it exudes a palpable, youthful confidence.”

GamesRadar’s Luke Kemp agrees with the critical consensus that the game reaches its peak during cooperative play, particularly in the later, more difficult stages. While you can invite friends or summon random players—reminiscent of the Dark Souls approach—Kemp suggests the matchmaking system could use some refinement. “It’s a bit of a gamble,” he writes. “Regardless of your stance on skill-based matchmaking, it would certainly benefit Splatoon Raiders. I’ve frequently been paired with players significantly below the skill level required for the high-tier content I was tackling.”

Conversely, a segment of reviewers feels that moving away from competitive multiplayer strips the franchise of its inherent charm. “The most surprising revelation about Splatoon Raiders is how pedestrian it feels,” writes The Guardian’s Joshua Rivera in a two-star review. “If you’ve experienced any of the numerous cooperative action games released in recent years, you’ve essentially played this before. The loop of upgrading gear, crunching stats, and optimizing synergies to survive a meat grinder becomes a monotonous routine. There is only so much that Splatoon’s ink-based weaponry and DIY aesthetic can do to elevate such a formulaic experience.”

You can form your own opinion when Splatoon Raiders officially launches on the Nintendo Switch 2 this Thursday, July 23.

Source: Polygon