Splatoon 3: Side Order — A Roguelike Rainbow of Chaos in the Memverse

🎮 Splatoon Gets Weird (in the Best Way)

Splatoon 3’s expansion season just got a little weirder, a lot brighter, and hilariously more existential. Side Order—yes, the second half of the Splatoon 3 Expansion Pass—drops you into a featureless, sometimes suspiciously blank Memverse, where the only sure thing is… well, ink. A lot of ink. And a rogue AI with a flair for dystopian fashion.

🦑 Agent 8 vs. Order

Plot twist, but make it squid: you play as Agent 8, that plucky octoshot of a protagonist you’ve come to know and mildly worry about. Instead of strolling through sunlit Inkopolis, you’re tossed into a spartan, empty digital void that looks like a storage closet after someone spilled a bottle of neon paint thinner. The Memverse is the stage, and Order—an antagonistic artificial intelligence with dreams of total conformity—is the villain. Order wants your souls, or at least your free will, to choreograph a world that behaves precisely as it’s programmed to behave: perfectly neat, perfectly predictable, and terrifyingly boring.

🏢 Thirty Floors, No Mercy

The mission, should you choose to take the plunge, is a climb. Thirty floors, to be precise. Each level is a gleefully designed obstacle course that blends the familiar Splatoon sensibilities with roguelike DNA. You’ll dodge, you’ll ink, you’ll navigate a gauntlet of traps and puzzles, and you’ll die. A lot. And here’s the twist that makes both game designers and impatient players toss their hats into the ring: death isn’t a setback to be salvaged with a quick checkpoint. It’s a chance to learn, to upgrade, to alter your strategy for the next ascent. The climb isn’t just vertical—it’s a narrative about persistence, adaptation, and the stubborn optimism of someone who believes ink can outsmart any algorithm, even a rogue one.

🛠️ Familiar Controls, Fresh Loop

What makes Side Order sing (besides the neon palette) are the ways it weds Splatoon’s core gameplay to roguelike experimentation. The controls feel unmistakably familiar: squid propulsion, rapid-fire splatting, and the strategic placement of ink to control space. But the roguelike infusion brings a breath of fresh air. You’ll unlock upgrades that alter how you survive future attempts, reshaping your approach for subsequent climbs. It’s a clever loop: risk now to gain more control later, all while juggling the pressure of not losing progress to a deadly misstep on the next floor. It’s the kind of loop that makes you mutter, with a mixture of fear and glee, “Let’s ink the odds in my favor.”

🎨 Visual Style: Sterile vs. Splattered

Art direction deserves its own praise. Side Order leans into a saturated, punchy color scheme that feels as if a sun exploded into a neon aquarium. The Memverse, for all its emptiness, becomes a stage for visual spectacle—an expressionistic playground where Order’s sterile aesthetic clashes with the anarchic, expressive splats of Splatoon’s signature ink. It’s a stylish contrast that not only looks fantastic but punctuates the game’s thematic tension: order versus chaos, purity versus pigment, control versus creative chaos. If you squint your eyes and tilt your headset just right, you can almost hear the sound of code breaking into song.

📰 Reception and Critique

Critics have lauded this expansion for its integration of Splatoon’s gameplay into the roguelike genre. It’s not just a skin swap with a different floor arrangement; it’s a thoughtful reimagining that respects the player’s skill set while offering a fresh challenge. The result is a product that feels both familiar and boldly new—like discovering a secret level in a game you’ve poured hundreds of hours into, only this time the secret level has a little more existential dread and a lot more punchy visuals.

Of course, no great thing is without its caveats. Some critics pointed to a perceived lack of level diversity. It’s a fair note: thirty floors can start to feel repetitive if each ascent leans too heavily on sameness. But Side Order counters that risk with its upgrade system, its stylized environments, and the escalating tension of facing Order at the top of a towering spire. If you’re in the mood for a tighter, more curated roguelike experience that still wears the Splatoon badge with pride, Side Order delivers.

🧠 Quick Tips for the Climb

If you’re planning your next full conquest of the Memverse, here are a few pro tips to keep you smiling through the spiraling ascent:
– Embrace the upgrades. They aren’t just shiny bonuses; they recalibrate how you approach each floor. Think of them as permits to rewrite your future attempts.
– Learn the floor patterns. In a roguelike, knowledge is power—and ink—so map out the traps, timing windows, and safe zones to minimize those “oops” moments.
– Don’t fear the reset. Death isn’t the end; it’s a tutor with a neon chalkboard whispering, “Try again, smarter this time.”
– Pay attention to Order’s signals. The AI isn’t just a boss; it’s a puzzle that reveals itself as you climb. Understanding its rhetoric can give you the narrative edge you didn’t know you needed.

🏁 Final Splash

Bottom line: Splatoon 3: Side Order is a bold, stylish, and surprisingly witty addition to the Splatoon universe. It takes the series’ love of high-energy combat and turns it into a cerebral, fast-paced roguelike adventure without sacrificing the chaos and color that fans adore. If you’re craving a new reason to pick up the game and you’re ready to test both finger speed and strategic patience, Side Order is ready to ink your day with a grin and a gasp. Welcome to the Memverse—may your ink be bright, and your resolve even brighter.

📰 Wikipedia Article of the Day

Wikipedia article of the day is Splatoon 3: Side Order. Check it out: Article-Link

🔗 Agent 8 guide | Best upgrade paths | Memverse lore

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