Splatoon 3's first Splatfest announced, has players choose between Rock, Paper, or Scissors

Splatoon 3 Deep Cut idols
(Image credit: Nintendo)

What you need to know:

  • Today, Nintendo held a Splatoon 3 Direct. 
  • During this presentation, we got to see several new aspects of the upcoming turf-war game. 
  • The first Splatfest takes place August 27 at 9:00 a.m.PT to 9:00 p.m. PT.
  • Players can choose between three sides: Rock, Paper, or Scissors.

During today's Splatoon 3 Direct, which lasted 30 minutes and showcased several new and returning features for this highly anticipated game, we learned when the game's first official Splatfest will be. Splatfest is a special competitive mode where players are given a question and choose to compete in turf war battles online for the answer of their choice. 

For this first Splatoon 3 Splatfest, players decide if they will compete on team rock (blue), team paper (pink), or team scissors (yellow). It takes place on August 27 at 9:00 a.m.PT to 9:00 p.m. PT.

Each team is led by one of the members of Deep Cut, the new idols that have been introduced for Splatoon 3. There's Shiver the blue-haired Octoling, Big Man the stingray, or Frye the yellow-haired Inkling. This marks the first time ever that Splatfest offers three teams competing against each other as previous iterations only had two teams to choose from.

Splatfest games will consist of two parts. In the first part, two teams compete in 4 v 4 turf battles. In the second part, a tricolor turf war has the leading team of four players start at the center of the arena with two members from the second team and two members from the third team on the far sides of the stage. The lower-ranking teams will work in tandem to attack the leading team at the center in an attempt to overthrow them. 

Splatoon 3 releases September 9 and is currently available for preorder. Historically, Splatfest information has also been available on the Nintendo Switch Online app. We've been told that the Splatoon 3 services on this app will be known SplatNet 3. So you might want to download the app and have it ready to go when the game launches. This will likely be one of the best Nintendo Switch games ever made. 

The game file only requires 6GB of space, but you'll still want to make sure you have enough room on your microSD card before it releases. 

Splatoon 3

Splatoon 3

Compete with friends and others online as you prove your turf-war prowess. There are new modes, characters, and weapons at your disposal. 

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Rebecca Spear
Gaming Editor

Gaming aficionado Rebecca Spear is iMore's dedicated gaming editor with a focus on Nintendo Switch and iOS gaming. You’ll never catch her without her Switch or her iPad Air handy. If you’ve got a question about Pokémon, The Legend of Zelda, or just about any other Nintendo series check out her guides to help you out. Rebecca has written thousands of articles in the last six years including hundreds of extensive gaming guides, previews, and reviews for both Switch and Apple Arcade. She also loves checking out new gaming accessories like iPhone controllers and has her ear to the ground when it comes to covering the next big trend.