History YMMV / Splatoon3

** [[VideoGame/Splatoon2 The last time]] players had to fight a BrainwashedAndCrazy idol didn't play well with fans for several reasons, chief among them being that the choice to make Callie a DamselInDistress stripped a popular character of her agency for [[DistressBall contrived reasons]]. It didn't help that before version 3.0.0, the FinalBoss and its refight were Callie's only appearances in the entire game if a player didn't own her amiibo. In ''Side Order'', while Marina is also brainwashed and turns into a boss fight, this is one of the ''first'' things that happens in the story instead of the final fight, and it happens because of outside factors she couldn't have predicted. After you save her, Marina joins your team and is a constant presence from then on, never endangered or falling out of the limelight for the rest of the campaign.

*** Splash Radius and Splash Damage color chips. As it says on the tin, they respectively increase the size of explosions and their damage. What puts it into game break tear, however, is just how much qualifies as an explosion in the mode. Outside of your standard bombs, it can affect several specials like Triple Splashdown and Inkstrike, the explosions from Blasters and Tri-Stringer bullets, the enemy spawning Portals, Lucky Bombs, Springing Spiccato pedestals, Spawning Accordo and Towering Nobilmentes when they're beaten. They're beneficial to have several chips of regardles of weapon.

* ThatOneAttack: The removal of [[HighTierScrappy Sting Ray]] from player-accessible kits won't stop the Special from ruining players when used by non-playable foes. Not only does the ever-annoying Stinger make a return in ''Salmon Run: Next Wave'', but several bosses in ''Side Order'' also have it, most notably the FinalBoss, who ''will'' make short work of you if it decides to cast it and you are stuck between a rock and a hard place with no inked route to escape.

** Following their introduction in Chill Season 2023, the Enperry Splat Dualies ''immediately'' became one of the most used weapons across all modes, due to their high fire rate and DPS which effectively ''double'' following a dodge roll, paired with versatile Curling Bombs that allow the wielder to reach the frontlines in a flash, while the Triple Splashdown is a panic-button special that can kill targets in an extremely vast area, and can also be popped out in a ''flash'' upon being fully charged. The above-average fire rate and ink coverage guarantee frequent usage of this special, making them especially formidable to go up against when there's two or more players using these on the opposing team.

* SelfImposedChallenge: Beating Side Order with every weapon ''without'' using any of Marina's hacks quickly became a common challenge run for many shortly after Side-Order came out. While [[spoiler:completing a run of Eight's Palette with four or fewer hacks active gets you a special badge]], there is no reward for completing a run with a weapon with zero hacks other than being able to say you've done it. Depending on the weapon, the runs can either being relatively easy to nightmarishly difficult.

* SelfImposedChallenge: Beating Side Order with every weapon ''without'' using any of Marina's hacks quickly became a common challenge run for many shortly after Side-Order came out. [[spoiler:With one exception]] there is no reward for completing a run with a weapon with zero hacks, other than being able to say you've done it. Depending on the weapon, the runs can either being relatively easy to nightmarishly difficult.

* ContestedSequel: Some people feel the game lived up to its predecessors and enjoyed the new secondary editions such as Tableturf Battle, Lockers, Tricolor Turf War, and an excellent campaign. Others felt it was a step down due to a lack of changes from ''Splatoon 2'', bad map design, poor weapon balance, taking on a seasonal update model, the campaign borrowing too much from Octo Expansion, and Deep Cut being underdeveloped while Off the Hook was saved for paid DLC. This has died down due to post launch content addressing many fan complaints and Side Order being released to acclaim from fans, but the game remains quite divisive.

** ''Side Order'' encourages minimalist runs with [[spoiler:Agent 8's Palette, which gains more Color Chip slots the fewer [[SkillScoresAndPerks hacks]] you have active]]. You can earn a special badge for your Splashtag by [[spoiler:successfully completing an Agent 8's Palette run with no hacks active]].

* ContestedSequel: Some people feel the game lived up to its predecessors and enjoyed the new secondary editions such as Tableturf Battle, Lockers, Tricolor Turf War, and an excellent campaign. Others felt it was a step down due to a lack of changes from ''Splatoon 2'', bad map design, poor weapon balance, taking on a seasonal update model, the campaign borrowing too much from Octo Expansion, and Deep Cut being underdeveloped while Off the Hook was saved for paid DLC. This has died down due to post launch content addressing many fan complaints and Side Order being released to acclaim from fans, the game still remains quite divisive.

* ContestedSequel: ''Splatoon 3'' is viewed as a good game in its own right, but there's much debate over whether it lives up to the high standards the first two set. Some fans view it as a massive improvement due to new features like Tableturf Battle, Tricolor Turf War, Big Run (alongside Boss Salmonids), and Challenges, a ''much'' better single-player mode after the relatively poor showing ''Splatoon 2'' gave before the addition of ''Octo Expansion'', an always-available Salmon Run, movement techniques like Squid Roll and Squid Surge that enhance gameplay depth while only introducing a minimal execution barrier, and fun bonus content like Splashtags and emotes, the locker room, the catalog system, and Battle Replays; while other fans feel it's an equally significant letdown due to a perceived lack of progress from previous games stemming from its similarities to them in certain areas, relatively poor multiplayer stage design, ''Return of the Mammalians''' significant similarity to ''Octo Expansion'', slower update and Splatfest cycle, numerous balance and connectivity problems that remain unaddressed from the previous game alongside newly introduced ones, divisive handling of characters old and new, still missing certain notable additions that its predecessors had such as a new Ranked Battle mode, and a general feeling of cut corners and lack of polish compared to previous ''Splatoon'' games, also thinking that while the additions and [=QoL=] features are nice, they leave the core game with the issues and lack of features mentioned before and don't make up for them. Balancing changes, new weapons, much better new maps and map reworks have made up for some of the above issues, and while the metagame still has issues (the meta has gone from Crab Tank dominance to at least one Tacticooler required), it's also much less stagnant than it was previously (to the point where some competitive players believe there currently ''isn't'' a stable metagame at all right now), the special weapon design is regarded overall as a ''huge'' step up from ''Splatoon 2'', and the long-awaited ''Side Order'' DLC provides an addicting roguelite campaign to run through if you're getting tired of PVP and Grizzco, continuation of an undeveloped theme from the ''Octo Expansion'', and characterization far above that of the base game.

** ''Return of the Mammalians'' suffered greatly from having to follow up the ''Octo Expansion'', highly lauded amongst the ''Splatoon'' community as possibly the best single-player campaign in the series due to its challenging nature, DarkerAndEdgier tone, expansive world-building and character development for the ''Splatoon'' setting, a jaw-dropping finale, and a ludicrously hard but satisfying final challenge. ''Splatoon 3'' decided not to mess with an obvious winning formula and brought it back for its own base-game Story Mode, but various factors -- its lower difficulty, [[RecycledScript uncannily familiar plot]], more traditional methods of storytelling, [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter widely agreed failure to capitalize on its cast]], shorter length, and still-challenging-but-much-less-intense BrutalBonusLevel -- combined to make it a much more contentious experience overall than the ''OE''. While it still has its fans, and many Splatheads agree that the finale still holds a candle to its big brother in spectacle if nothing else, those who have played both campaigns will often make a point of how ''Return of the Mammalians'' is "[[ItsTheSameNowItSucks just the]] ''[[ItsTheSameNowItSucks Octo Expansion]]'' [[ItsTheSameNowItSucks again but worse]]."

*** The Order Charger's long range, high damage, and enemy piercing capabilities absolutely kill in this mode. Other weapons need a Color Chip to pierce enemies; the Order Charger's charged shots have no such limitation and will always pierce as many enemies as you can line up. Despite this massively potent crowd control capability, its above-average range and high damage still make it top-of-the-list for precisely targeting distant enemies. In case that weren't enough, its Triple Inkstrike is perfect for nuking large crowds, eliminating Portals, or creating breathing room. The only downsides might be that it's [[DifficultButAwesome not easy to use]], but homing shots and ink attack size (incidentally, both will appear more often with the Order Charger) will easily alleviate this issue - homing shots in particular will ''trivialize'' the Parallel Canon fight. Oh, and for some extra fun, maximum charge speed basically turns the Charger into the Grizzco Charger, which is as comically overpowered as it sounds.

** ''Return of the Mammalians'' suffered greatly from having to follow up the ''Octo Expansion'', highly lauded amongst the ''Splatoon'' community as possibly the best single-player campaign in the series due to its challenging nature, DarkerAndEdgier tone, expansive world-building and character development for the ''Splatoon'' setting, a jaw-dropping finale, and a ludicrously hard but satisfying final challenge. ''Splatoon 3'' decided not to mess with an obvious winning formula and brought it back for its own base-game Story Mode, but various factors -- its lower difficulty, [[RecycledScript uncannily familiar plot]], more traditional methods of storytelling, [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter widely agreed failure to capitalize on its cast]], shorter length, and still-challenging-but-much-less-intense BrutalBonusLevel -- combined to make it a much more contentious experience overall than the ''OE''. While it still has its fans, and most will agree the finale still holds a candle to its big brother in spectacle if nothing else, most Splatheads who have played both campaigns won't hesitate to point out how ''Return of the Mammalians'' is "just the ''Octo Expansion'' again but worse."
** ''Splatoon 3''[='s=] own DLC campaign, ''Side Order'', is generally considered great in its own right, with many praising its experimental mix of the basic {{roguelike}} formula and ''Splatoon''[='s=] core gameplay and having fun discovering just how broken you can make your Palette, and at worst it's still viewed as a huge step up from ''Return of the Mammalians''. That said, many ''Splatoon'' fans believe it still languishes in ''Octo Expansion''[='s=] shadow somewhat, due in part to common criticisms such as lacking the difficulty, gameplay and story depth, and variety that made ''Octo Expansion'' and/or other roguelikes so good. The overall consensus seems to be that it's (fittingly) an 8/10 campaign that comes frustratingly close to standing alongside ''OE'' as one of the series' all-time greats, but doesn't quite hack it.

** ''Splatoon 3''[='s=] own DLC campaign, ''Side Order'', is generally considered great in its own right, with many praising its experimental mix of the basic {{roguelike}} formula and ''Splatoon''[='s=] core gameplay and having fun discovering just how broken you can make your Palette, and at worst it's still considered a huge step up from ''Return of the Mammalians''. That said, many ''Splatoon'' fans believe it still languishes in ''Octo Expansion''[='s=] shadow somewhat, due in part to common criticisms such as lacking the difficulty, gameplay and story depth, and variety that made ''Octo Expansion'' and/or other roguelikes so good. The overall consensus seems to be that it's (fittingly) an 8/10 campaign that comes frustratingly close to standing alongside ''OE'' as one of the series' all-time greats, but doesn't quite hack it.

* ToughActToFollow: ''Side Order'' comes hot off the heels of the previous DLC single-player campaign, ''Octo Expansion'', highly lauded amongst the community as possibly the best campaign in the series due to its challenging nature, DarkerAndEdgier tone, expansive world-building and character development for the ''Splatoon'' setting, a jaw-dropping finale, and a ludicrously hard but satisfying final challenge. ''Side Order'', while considered a great campaign in its own right, is generally considered a step down from ''Octo Expansion'', due in part to common criticisms such as lacking difficulty, depth, variety and story that made ''Octo Expansion'' and/or {{Roguelike}} games so good.

* ToughActToFollow: ''Side Order'' comes hot off the heels of the previous DLC single-player campaign, ''Octo Expansion'', highly lauded amongst the community as possibly the best campaign in the series due to its challenging nature, DarkerAndEdgier tone, expansive world-building and character development for the ''Splatoon'' setting, a jaw-dropping finale, and a ludicrously hard but satisfying challenge. ''Side Order'', while considered a great campaign in its own right, is generally considered a step down from ''Octo Expansion'', due in part to common criticisms such as lacking difficulty, depth, variety and story that made ''Octo Expansion'' and/or {{Roguelike}} games so good.

*** Cruel_Sisyphean_Eight-Shaped.floor, a name that is especially appropriate on Splat Zones. Two zones on a figure-eight-shaped narrow pathway, with Drizzling Capricciosos constantly spawning in to paint them with impunity. The zones are far apart so you'll constantly be running back and forth to splat the Capricciosos and retake each zone, only to leave the other one wide open to be captured again. Enemies spawn en masse from gushers at the bottom (where {{Mook Maker}}s are hard to reach) and at the top (right in your way on the best path between the zones). If you have the misfortune of running into a "Danger!" modifier, this stage can turn from merely tedious and frustrating to downright virtually impossible.

** When Inkopolis Plaza returned to the game as an alternate hub world in the DLC, quite a few players called Inkopolis Square subsequently being unlocked after completing ''Side Order''. There were many clues pointing at this reveal that savvy players could pick up on, from the focus of Side Order being a twisted monochromatic version of the Square, to the menu listing for returning to the hub being changed from "Square" to "City" after Wave 1 debuted, to the confirmation dialogue for traveling to Inkopolis Square reading "Go to this city?" instead of just "Go to Inkopolis Square" (almost as if it were skipping past a menu due to there being only one destination at the time) -- but one of the biggest was when Tableturf Battle cards of the ''Splatoon 2'' shopkeepers were revealed for Fresh Season 2024 shortly before ''Side Order'' released.

** When Inkopolis Plaza returned to the game as an alternate hub world in the DLC, quite a few players called [[spoiler:Inkopolis Square subsequently being unlocked after completing ''Side Order'']], especially once [[spoiler:Tableturf Battle cards of the ''Splatoon 2'' shopkeepers were revealed]].