How Splatfests work in Splatoon 3

The fan-favorite Splatfest events are returning in Splatoon 3. However, rather than divide the playerbase up between two thematic teams, these new Splatfests will take one step further, adding a third team for players to choose from. These expanded Splatfests will culminate in a new and unique game mode that pits all three teams against each other at once. Here’s how Splatfests have evolved in Splatoon 3.

What’s new in Splatoon 3’s Splatfests – Tricolor Turf Wars explained

Central to the new Splatfest events are a new match style known as Tricolor Turf War. Similarly to standard Turf War matches, teams of players compete to cover as much of the map’s surface area as possible with their own team’s color of ink. Only this time, instead of two teams of four players, Tricolor Turf War features one team of four players staving off two smaller squads of two players each.

Each in-game team in Tricolor Turf War will represent one of the Splatfest’s three teams. Winning in a Tricolor match will earn the winning team points toward their Splatfest standing. This scoring system, coupled with the four-versus-two-versus-two dynamic, can encourage a bit of opportunistic, enemy-of-my-enemy alliance between Splatfest teams that can play out in Tricolor Turf War.

Related: How Tableturf Battle works in Splatoon 3

Fans of the scoring systems of previous Splatfests can rest easy, as Tricolor Turf War won’t fully replace standard Turf War as the event’s only game mode. The first half of all upcoming Splatfests will focus on four-versus-four turf war, with the second half expanding to Tricolor to round out the event. If you’re excited to experience this new style of Splatfests, you can try out a playable demo of Splatoon 3 and its new systems on August 27.