Splatoon 3 Direct is happening sometime in early-ish August. It mostly focuses on changes to multiplayer while retreading stuff we already know about the story.
The stage presenters for this game is a has-been comedy duo named Nautical Nyuks trying to appeal to a younger audience. They're both men. Their lines judging from the footage are very cringeworthy. Yes, you can skip this sequence now. You'll want to.
You can now play alongside friends in Ranked Battles without having to be in a Squad/League together.
While shops are still in the game, some gear items are exclusive to an in-game "battle pass" system. It's not really a battle pass, it functions instead like the outfit collections in Nintendo Switch Sports. You earn XP and then once you meet certain criteria, you can roll to get an item from the current gear collection, which rotates on a three week basis. This is solely for outfits and not weapons.
As you level up, you'll earn rewards like wallpapers and decorations you can use in your Inkling's apartment in Splatsville, which is a fancy interface for your equip menu.
There's a new mode called "Fresh Frenzy" which is pretty much their take on a battle royale formula. Rounds of up to 50 players play on one of three huge maps looking for loot. Only one of your abilities per gear item can be active during this mode. You spawn with no weapon and can swim only for a limited time. Last one standing is crowned "The Freshest" and nets you a Super Sea Snail along with coins/exp.
Splatnet 3 is very similar to Splatnet 2, except now, except now you can order more gear at one time through the app, check your in-game missions, and Fresh Frenzy schedule. You can also view the plaza’s faux-Miiverse posts through the app if you want, in addition to drawing your own directly on your phone.
No testfire. Confirmation of free updates a la Splatoon 2, Splatfests will start in November but they didn’t detail what the first one would be.
One last announcement that will be there but is only tangentially related; Splatoon is getting a TV anime in 2023 based off of the CoroCoro manga. Japanese cast and staff were revealed. It's releasing worldwide although it will be streaming exclusive in the west.
