As with the games before it, Splatoon 3’s Splatfests are a limited-time event where players duke it out in turf war to fight over a theme. In the past, it’s been a two-team event, but Splatoon 3 introduced a third team and added tri-color battles, which have had a mixed reception thus far.
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Splatoon 3 dataminers InternalLoss and OatmealDome have shared the discovery that data has been added to the game for a new global Splatfest. However, this Splatfest isn’t due to occur until early January. According to the data, the Splatfest will be officially announced in-game on December 30. Given that Splatoon 3 just received its 2.0 update, it would be extremely unlikely for December Splatfest data to be added before the end of the month. Even if such a thing were to happen, it would likely induce Splatfest fatigue with another set for January, further adding to the improbability.
Fan response to this has been somewhat mixed, though most seem to be responding with disappointment. A Halloween Splatfest was also expected, but didn’t happen. Reducing the frequency of Splatfests not only comes as a surprise, but also limits the number of sea snails that players can acquire. These are a necessity for fine-tuning equipment, and there are no other opportunities to get them at this time. Players may want to be cautious with their usage of super sea snails in the event that bi-monthly Splatfests remain a constant in Splatoon 3.
Another possible reason for the omission is that Splatoon 3 is getting its first Big Run event this month. While the event will likely be a smaller scale than Splatfests, as it won’t have a noticeable impact on turf wars and ranked battles being played, it’s still something that many players have been excited for and eager to partake in. Putting two Splatfests and a Big Run over the course of December and January would likely exhaust many players.
However, the winter season may still play a role in the next Splatfest. Splatoon 2 held a special Splatfest dubbed Frosty Fest during January of 2019. Considering that players won’t get a December Splatfest, which has sometimes tied into the holiday season, it’s possible that a new Frosty Fest could occur. But for now, players will just have to wait and see, as the next Splatfest’s details are still encrypted and thus unknown.
Splatoon 3 is available now for Nintendo Switch.
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