Does Splatoon 3 have split screen multiplayer? Answered

Splatoon is an odd situation for Nintendo games, being more well known for its multiplayer rather than its single player campaign. Participating in Salmon Run, Splatfests, and the usual Turf War battle will be how you spend your time in this game, either jumping into matchmaking on your own or with a friend. However, what if you have a friend that doesn’t have their own Nintendo Switch? Can you play Splatoon 3 in split screen multiplayer?

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Does Splatoon 3 have split screen multiplayer?

Unfortunately, there is no split screen multiplayer functionality in Splatoon 3. Like many other online multiplayer shooters, if you want to play with any friends, they will need to be playing on a separate console. This was the same case with Splatoon 2, so it is not entirely surprising not to see it available here.

While there is always the potential for Nintendo to work in split screen play for Splatoon 3, it is very unlikely to happen. Especially when you consider having two people play on the same Switch in handheld or tabletop mode, there is not a lot of room for two people to share screen real estate. Of course, that is a different case when you consider playing on a television, but it is no secret that the Nintendo Switch is already an underpowered console in today’s current climate. Making it use up resources to facilitate two people playing on the same console could cause problems for the people playing on that console and anyone else in the matchmade game.

With all of the above to think about, we would be shocked if Splatoon 3 ever received split screen functionality. While many past Nintendo games have used split screen, even on the Switch, none of them share Splatoon’s focus as an online multiplayer game.