Just when you think you could know all there is to know about the Splatoon series, Nogami takes to GDC to do a panel and prove us all wrong. To say a handful of new details was divulged, would be an understatement. Plenty of details were revealed and with the likes of both @MysticDistance and @frozenpandaman in attendance, here’s a collection of their tweets, with regards to what was revealed:
Pics from the conference before it starts. Will be covering it on here. pic.twitter.com/NBwAKKRyrC
— Mystic (@MysticDistance) March 21, 2018
At Hisashi Nogami's GDC session! "'Splatoon' and 'Splatoon 2': How to Invent a Stylish Franchise with Global Appeal." Starts in 15 minutes. Will be livetweeting a bit. #GDC18 pic.twitter.com/joZ6Wsabte
— eli fessler⚡not at A MAZE. 😭 (@frozenpandaman) March 21, 2018
Starting now! pic.twitter.com/8Bf8MfrdoN
— eli fessler⚡not at A MAZE. 😭 (@frozenpandaman) March 21, 2018
Introduced himself as Hisashi Nogami for the Squid Research Lab, then re-introduced himself as from Nintendo. Nogami joined Nintendo in 1994 and worked as artist for the NES and Yoshi's Island. pic.twitter.com/LMK3dC41tW
— eli fessler⚡not at A MAZE. 😭 (@frozenpandaman) March 21, 2018
Nogami discusses his tenure at Nintendo, which spans over 24 years. His first project was Yoshi's Island. Also discussing his involvement with Animal Crossing. pic.twitter.com/0QQnzXjoxB
— Mystic (@MysticDistance) March 21, 2018
"Today, I'd like to delve into how Splatoon came to be." pic.twitter.com/I5TN1NFMQ3
— Mystic (@MysticDistance) March 21, 2018
After discussing ideas for half a year, his team came up with a prototype: cubes that could shoot black and white ink, which came to be known as tofu. Linking together multiple Wii Us, they held team battles and tried to cover as much of the ground with their team's ink. pic.twitter.com/AdIIkkHNKY
— eli fessler⚡not at A MAZE. 😭 (@frozenpandaman) March 21, 2018
"In 2013, we formed a team based around developing a new type of game." Now showing the Tofu Prototype. pic.twitter.com/2QF8VFRmf4
— Mystic (@MysticDistance) March 21, 2018
Showcasing the Tofu Prototype pic.twitter.com/hlfrypRfFU
— Mystic (@MysticDistance) March 21, 2018
Discussing the desire to make a "Nintendo-style action game"; concept art and dev images shown. pic.twitter.com/HF20BwB5PO
— Mystic (@MysticDistance) March 21, 2018
This became the game's core mechanic. They explored ways to leverage the Wii U's unique features like motion control and the GamePad. While his team didn't set out to create a shooting game from the start, it involved into this. pic.twitter.com/fdgn3M3wTP
— eli fessler⚡not at A MAZE. 😭 (@frozenpandaman) March 21, 2018
Yoshi was originally considered for Splatoon alongside other Nintendo characters, not just Mario. pic.twitter.com/aig0Inc9MF
— Mystic (@MysticDistance) March 21, 2018
With a new world, you need new characters. The characters in Splatoon are squids that can transform into humans. People are often surprised when hesring this, so why is this? pic.twitter.com/2GIIUbwvmo
— eli fessler⚡not at A MAZE. 😭 (@frozenpandaman) March 21, 2018
The first prototype was with rabbits. They're both black and white, and also highly territorial. Their neutral colors would also contrast well with bright ink colors. But why would they shoot or hide in ink? There was a disconnect between the idea and mechanics. pic.twitter.com/Q5o2R9RUkl
— eli fessler⚡not at A MAZE. 😭 (@frozenpandaman) March 21, 2018
Astronauts and regular human were once considered for Splatoon. pic.twitter.com/LvLqopK2Xn
— Mystic (@MysticDistance) March 21, 2018
To help solidify direction, Mr. Sakaguchi helped identify the core mechanics with shooting, swimming in ink, etc. There were all sorts of character design ideas. But when they discovered a core idea of "moving quickly through ink as swimming," the idea of a squid stood out. pic.twitter.com/hXmF8UIfhj
— eli fessler⚡not at A MAZE. 😭 (@frozenpandaman) March 21, 2018
The E3 2014 trailer was put together by Mr. Amano which showed off the key points of the game: gameplay, sound, artstyle. After this, individual team members proposed their own ideas to help flesh our the world, and it began to take shape. Weapons, fashion, graffiti… pic.twitter.com/RFk72fE5FZ
— eli fessler⚡not at A MAZE. 😭 (@frozenpandaman) March 21, 2018
Ideas such as popular music that squid kids listen to during battle helped prop up the world, and made it more convincing by creating content not directly related to the game's core concepts. pic.twitter.com/fZpVtL6zoh
— eli fessler⚡not at A MAZE. 😭 (@frozenpandaman) March 21, 2018
There were a number of challenges to prepare it for release as a new IP. How popular would it be? etc. Releasing stages, weapons, modes, as time went on would help people become intricately familiar with all parts. Balance adjustments were also key to keeping players engaged.
— eli fessler⚡not at A MAZE. 😭 (@frozenpandaman) March 21, 2018
Splatoon is very popular on weekends; weekday metrics are good but are even better during summer break. However, the game took a dip during the release of Super Mario Odyssey. Everyone laughed, including Nogami. pic.twitter.com/UxH4LOzFME
— Mystic (@MysticDistance) March 21, 2018
They hope Splatfests help flesh our the world and make family and friends engage in "seriously silly" debates, such as Ketchup vs. Mayo. pic.twitter.com/82C5T9W26t
— eli fessler⚡not at A MAZE. 😭 (@frozenpandaman) March 21, 2018
Splatoon 2 began development during the update period for Splatoon 1; was in the works before the Switch was announced.
— Mystic (@MysticDistance) March 21, 2018
The most important things to Nogami with Spatoon 2:
-Screen layout
-Player base
-Giving new players a special experience
Many challenges were encountered with developing this game. They also had no idea how much the Switch would even sell or if it would be successful.— Mystic (@MysticDistance) March 21, 2018
The Switch's core "mobile console" idea fit Splatoon's concept well, but it came w/challenges, e.g. to adapt the game to this new hardware. One hurdle was screen layout, another was player base (they didn't know how Switch would sell). pic.twitter.com/ZhKLW7phjN
— eli fessler⚡not at A MAZE. 😭 (@frozenpandaman) March 21, 2018
They also wanted both newcomers an veterans alike to have the same exact experience in Splatoon 2. One way to do this was by adding content in real time.
— Mystic (@MysticDistance) March 21, 2018
Nogami wanted Splatoon 2 to have a way to get newcomers into the series with the story mode, internally known as "Hero Mode." They also wanted fans to be able to connect with the characters they love. pic.twitter.com/jlf6l1FAAo
— Mystic (@MysticDistance) March 21, 2018
The single player campaign, or "Hero Mode," serves as a training mode for new players to help them to become familiar with controls, but also to delve into the world and helps them learn and love the characters. Salmon Run helped continue this in a new way in Splatoon 2 as well. pic.twitter.com/7f1cXiDocd
— eli fessler⚡not at A MAZE. 😭 (@frozenpandaman) March 21, 2018
Multiplayer, single player, and Salmon Run are separate but part of the same game cycle: skills learned in each mode will transfer and rewards from one can be used in others. The young squid who comes to the city to play in Turf War battles also has a part time job (Salmon Run)… pic.twitter.com/Z4QhI08aqv
— eli fessler⚡not at A MAZE. 😭 (@frozenpandaman) March 21, 2018
In the Octo Expansion, Nogami says they will explore things they didn't have time/ability to do the 1st time around—Octolings will join the Inkling world! It is designed for the player who wants to explore the world on an even deeper level. pic.twitter.com/FA48nnxUO1
— eli fessler⚡not at A MAZE. 😭 (@frozenpandaman) March 21, 2018
Nogami teases a Squid Sisters concert in the US; "The Squid Sisters are hoping an opportunity like that can come around." Mentions the concerts in Japan, France and soon Switzerland. We were shown clips of concerts.
— Mystic (@MysticDistance) March 21, 2018
And of course free updates to multiplayer will still continue.
They hadn't originally planned on changing the game so much over time, but were driven to do so by the overwhelming response & support from fans. For example, fans latched on to Squid Sisters way more than imagined! pic.twitter.com/pVy9QO3iwJ
— eli fessler⚡not at A MAZE. 😭 (@frozenpandaman) March 21, 2018
Time passing in our world passed in the Splatoon world as well, and player feedback was taken into account, e.g. the influence of the final Splatoon 1 Splatfest on the Splatoon 2 story. The world & characters, like Off The Hook, will also continue to evolve and expand. pic.twitter.com/2Hh1toGfJV
— eli fessler⚡not at A MAZE. 😭 (@frozenpandaman) March 21, 2018
Nogami says he enjoyed playing games himself as a kid, but some of his best memories are from discussing games and game worlds with friends. In his mind, fanart and attending events go hand-in-hand with enjoying games like this. pic.twitter.com/YoNX5wPgxH
— eli fessler⚡not at A MAZE. 😭 (@frozenpandaman) March 21, 2018
Recently, there have been international tournaments as well, such as in the European Championship, which was held across 9 countries. There are also many grassroots tournaments which are great to see. pic.twitter.com/ODShTWP1sE
— eli fessler⚡not at A MAZE. 😭 (@frozenpandaman) March 21, 2018
For Nogami and the Splatoon team, their goal is to allow as many people as possible from across the world to enjoy the game. They want to do everything they can to enable this. pic.twitter.com/SjTTIelrAo
— eli fessler⚡not at A MAZE. 😭 (@frozenpandaman) March 21, 2018
Source: @MysticDistance (Twitter) & @frozenpandaman (Twitter)
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Categorised in: Splatoon 2, News, Nintendo Switch, Wii U
This post was written by Solid Jack
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