Splatoon 3’s Side Order DLC shows that the series can do it all

When I reviewedSplatoon 3 in 2022, I found myself impressed by what a robust suite of content it offered at launch. It had a solid single-player campaign, great competitive multiplayer, a killer PVE mode in Salmon Run, and even a fun card minigame. All of those disparate modes meshed together perfectly to makeSplatoon 3 the kind of game you could pick away at for hundreds of hours. And with its latest DLC, called Side Order, that’s more true than ever.

The narrative-focused roguelite brings an entirely new experience to Splatoon. It has players trying to clear randomized runs through a 30-floor tower full of challenges. While that task can initially be cleared in a few hours, a robust postgame turns Side Order into a full-on game within a game. If Splatoon 3 wasn’t already the Switch game that offered the most bang for your buck, it is now. And that’s all thanks to an ingenious gameplay hook that’s proven to be Nintendo’s most valuable creation of the past decade.

Order in chaos

In the shooter’s latest DLC, players find themselves in a dystopian version of Inkopolis Square that’s devoid of color. At the center of it all is the ominous Spire of Order, which is ruled by a rogue machine that’s hell-bent on ridding the world of chaos. For those who remember Splatoon 2‘s final, world-changing Order versus Chaos Splatfest, it’s an excellent bit of narrative payoff that shows how players are tangibly shaping Nintendo’s inky world.

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As a roguelite, Side Order offers some repetitive, but perfectly serviceable fun. Players pick a “Palette” before heading into the Spire, which gives them a specific weapon loadout. Each floor contains a micro challenge that has players destroying enemy spawn orbs, pushing giant eight-balls into slots, an more. Multiplayer modes