Splatoon Raiders launched exclusively on Nintendo Switch 2 on July 23, 2026. It is a single-player-focused Splatoon spin-off: a mechanic teams with Deep Cut, raids the Spirhalite Islands for loot, and fights waves of Salmonids with weapons, gadgets, and an Exploration Bot. Up to four players can join online or over local wireless.
What Raiders does with the hardware
Raiders is not trying to look photoreal. The art stays in Splatoon's saturated cartoon lane. The hardware ask shows up in density: endgame raids stack Salmonid crowds, ink spray, gadgets, and bot assists in the same frame. Nintendo's pitch for the game is treasure hunting plus stylish chaos. That chaos is the load test.
Compared with Splatoon 3, the visual language is familiar. The difference is how much of it the game can keep active at once while remaining a Switch 2 exclusive. Raiders is built around horde pressure and loot loops that lean on that headroom.
The Switch 2 first-party pattern
Across early Switch 2 exclusives, Nintendo keeps returning to the same idea: keep the house art style, raise how much can happen on screen without the frame falling apart.
Donkey Kong Bananza: destructible terrain and particle-heavy co-op set pieces
Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment: large enemy crowds without the slowdowns associated with Age of Calamity on the original Switch
Kirby Air Riders: dense City Trial traffic and effects while keeping high speed readable
Mario Tennis Fever: multiple Fever Racket effects active on court at the same time
Splatoon Raiders: Salmonid waves, ink volume, gadgets, and bot assists layered in PvE raids
That is a different generation story than chasing higher fidelity alone. The original Switch library often optimized for short handheld sessions and dual-mode play. Early Switch 2 first-party games more often spend the extra silicon on simultaneous action, particle count, and crowd size.
What Raiders is, in plain terms
Platform: Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive
Release: July 23, 2026
Loop: raid islands, loot Salmonid gear and Spirhalite Shards, craft gadgets, upgrade weapons