Splatoon 2 similar games & best alternatives

Splatoon 2

Nintendo Switch • 2017

Should you play it?

Splatoon 2 is a multiplayer third-person shooter in which players control characters known as Inklings and use colored ink to attack opponents and clear goals. Inklings can alternate between humanoid form, during which they can fire ink with their weapons, and squid form, which allows them to swim through ink of their own color in order to move quickly and replenish ink supplies.

What works

  • Unique and addictive multiplayer gameplay
  • Engaging cooperative salmon run mode
  • Extensive character customization
  • Vibrant and imaginative art style
  • Short, intense matches suitable for quick sessions

Things to keep in mind

  • Limited map rotation and modes at launch
  • Clunky voice chat implementation
  • Inability to change loadouts during matchmaking
  • Single-player campaign less engaging than multiplayer
  • Occasional connectivity issues

What to play next

Top picks

Games that feels the closest overall

More violent

Games that feels like Splatoon 2 but with more combat and destruction

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Similarity map

How to compare these games

Compare nearby games

Each card is a nearby game on the similarity map, compared with Splatoon 2. Swipe sideways to move between games. Titles already listed in What to play next are left out.

  • Cover and title: open that game’s page.
  • What works / keep in mind: the same highlights as the desktop comparison panel.
  • Bars: the main motivational differences versus this game.
How to use the graph

Similarity map

Each dot is a game placed from its motivation profile relative to this page’s game. Direction shows which motivation differs most; distance along that axis shows how large the gap is.

  • Purple star: this page’s game at the centre — everything is relative to it.
  • Direction: each axis is a main motivational difference vs this game (e.g. more / less competitive).
  • Distance on an axis: how large that difference is (ring scales show +/− points).
  • Coloured chips: click to highlight games that mainly differ on that motivation; click again to reset.
  • Dotted line: link between this page’s game and the one selected for comparison.
  • Hover a dot to preview that game in the panel on the right; click to keep that comparison.
  • Scroll or double-click the chart to zoom.

How to read the map This is a polar difference map: direction = which motivation differs, and distance = how much (same units as the sidebar deltas).

Swipe to compare nearby games with Splatoon 2. These titles are not in What to play next.

Splatoon 2: Broadly representative of its motivational profile, with a few distinct shifts. Motivations that often define this kind of title include Cooperation, Fellowship, Intimacy, Leadership. Here, the score leans higher than usual among comparable games on Competition, Status. It leans lower than usual among comparable games on Violence.

Last update: 02/09/2026