a love letter (well, rambles) to splatoon ｡ﾟ( ﾟ^∀^ﾟ)ﾟ｡

so, i suppose i'll start by saying i first started playing splatoon in 2016-- pokémon red v. blue was my first splatfest. for the next six years of my life, it was the main game i played. seeing how far this franchise has come, realizing how much time has passed since i first got the game on a disc in its blue case... if i think about it all too hard, i become tearful. 

the wii u was the first console that was really mine, yeah? all the other consoles i had were shared or originally my family's. thus, it was more so that i was sharing an experience with them, rather than creating memories all of my own. and this isn't a bad thing-- i love those consoles and the history they hold always warms my heart-- but the rush and joy of having a console of my own was something new. 

not to mention splatoon was a totally new franchise! humanoids descended from squids, octopi, and other sea creatures engaging in paintball-esque battles for fun and glory??? a whole new world spawned from the destruction of our own, new societies and a rich history and culture, the power of music and self-expression-- all of it was insane. 

when i look back on earlier years, so many of my memories are related to splatoon in some way. creating characters and stories with my best friend, earning the amiibo gear (the hero roller was the only one i was able to get in s1 lol), even down to the smallest details of playing during splatfest on a summer night-- my bedroom was too hot and fans would never work, so i sat in the darkness and chugged apple juice, focused on only the screen and victory, and not the fact that my pupils were probably frying.

as i continued through high school, though, i found that i played splatoon less often. at first it was because i was genuinely very busy trying to adjust to it, and doing homework and stuff... but now, i find that it's because there's other things i want to do and explore. i got super into dynasty warriors as well, lol, but i digress.

the release and rookie days of splatoon 3 were thrilling. it was the first game in the series in which i actually got the game on the day of (pre-ordered it); both s1 and s2 i got about a year after their release. i truly anticipated the return of some great s1 stages (except for hammerhead bridge *cough* what have they done *cough*), which, in hindsight...makes me feel old...

however, as i soon found out, i just couldn't keep up. my friend and i liked to categorize the games in such ways: s1 had aggressive weapons but big stages, s2 had weak(er) weapons and big stages, then s3 had aggressive weapons and small stages (MAHI MAHI IS THAT YOU?!?!?!) and while i definitely could take on the same position i always did-- support with an aggressive main, gear set around speed and ink conversation with a bit of special and respawn boosts-- nothing felt right. 

and then i realized. playing didn't feel right anymore, even though i could win and do well. i wanted to play, i really did, but... even now, it's still hard to put into words.

...

the story mode of each game was always one i enjoyed watching unfold. the very first one was a lovely introduction to the world, the depths of its past and darker parts of inkopolis society. the second main mode was a treat, not very substantial but satisfying in terms of what happened after s1 finalfest. octo expansion was a true upgrade though, in terms of layout, greater insight into octolings and how they enter inkopolis, and being able to support (or at the very least provide justice for) all octolings wanting to enter inkopolis society was...

ah, and then the third... as someone who was on team order, the story mode in the third game was perfect. vindicating, almost. it was a complete tonal shift from all the past story modes, and the franchise entirely. it gave the sense that this was splatoon's ultimate potential, connecting everything from the fall of humanity to the beginning of cephalopodic humanoid society. despite the fact that life and society as we know it is gone, it lives on in the pop culture and music-- lives on in freshness. 

such really made me think-- if it were pure, this is what connects us. i believe that art originates from how people capture and record life itself, in a time. one's experiences, nature, abstract concepts such as love and connection. and humanity's recordings of life live on way past our destruction. our self-made destruction, by the way. even though we caused our own downfall, we prompted the rise of an entirely new world, shaped by our creative and emotional captures of life.

i could go way deeper into this, talk about calamari inkantation and the final battle in s3-- i haven't even talked about the concept of moving on and change in this world-- but i think i've rambled enough.

so, to summarize. i love splatoon. i will always love splatoon, even though i may be starting to outgrow it. the appeal of battle and strategy was what pulled me in and what the basis of many memories are... but ultimately, i find such connection nowadays because of how it portrays the power of art and expression in a completely new world. its growth is something i have truly enjoyed watching, and i'm glad to have been a part of it from the beginning.

thank you for reading. sorry it's so long, haha! and perhaps it is a stretch, hm...

- eugene

(p.s - 

I MISS THESEEEEEEE HIVEMIND ANTENNA MY BELOVEDDDDDD *LOUD CRYING*)