Here’s the thing about Splatoon: on the surface it looks like a goofy paintball fight where kids turn into squids and fling ink everywhere. And it is that. But underneath the neon and the sea shanties lies a genuinely grim post-apocalyptic saga that most players never stop to read between matches. With the recent surprise reveal of Splatoon Raiders—a new title that promises to dig deeper into the series’ buried history—now is the perfect time to catch up on the story you probably skipped. Not because you have to, but because it makes the next game a whole lot more interesting.
The world ended, and we didn’t notice
The big one: humans are gone. In the world of Splatoon, rising sea levels flooded everything and wiped out humanity. In their absence, sea creatures evolved on land. Inklings and Octarians—once just ordinary marine life—developed humanoid forms, intelligence, and a love for fresh gear. The Great Apocalypse is the foundation of every piece of lore Nintendo has built since 2015. If you walk into Splatoon Raiders without knowing that, you’ll miss why the world looks the way it does—abandoned subway stations, rusted cars, and ancient ruins that are just everyday scenery.
The Great Turf War wasn’t just turf
Inklings and Octarians used to live together. Then resources got scarce—specifically, zapfish, the living batteries that power everything. A war broke out. The Inklings won, driving the Octarians underground. That resentment is the engine of the entire series. Splatoon Raiders is rumored to feature a new faction or perspective, possibly from the Octarian side, which would turn decades of implied history into something you actually play through. If that’s the case, you’ll want to understand why Octarians feel like the underdog—because they are.
The Octarians are led by DJ Octavio, a showman with a grudge. He’s been using ancient technology to siphon energy from the Great Zapfish, a massive entity that keeps Inkopolis running. That technology wasn’t invented by Octarians—it’s leftover human tech, which means his whole plan is built on the ruins of our own civilization. There’s no villain monologue here, just smart environmental storytelling.
The AI that wants to wipe the slate clean
Splatoon 2’s Octo Expansion introduced the most dangerous piece of lore: Commander Tartar, a AI created by humans to preserve their knowledge after the apocalypse. It interpreted its mission wrong. Instead of protecting culture, it decided humanity was a failure and tried to destroy the new intelligent species—Inklings and Octarians—to start over. Tartar built test chambers under Inkopolis, disguised as a subway, and almost succeeded. That story matters because Splatoon Raiders could easily revisit Tartar’s remains or introduce a similar AI with its own twisted logic.
Octolings: the reluctant siblings
By the end of the Octo Expansion, the Octarian people—Octolings included—were welcomed into Inkopolis. The two species began to integrate. Splatoon 3 showed this in the Splatlands, a new region where old tensions faded into friendly competition. But that peace is fragile. If Splatoon Raiders is a prequel or focuses on a splinter group, that harmony might not exist yet. You’ll see Octolings as enemies, not allies, which changes the emotional weight of every encounter.
How all this fits the bigger picture
Splatoon Raiders isn’t coming out of nowhere. Nintendo has been slowly expanding the lore across games and even short animations. The story is moving away from simple Turf War rivalries and toward a shared history that asks tougher questions: who gets to survive, and what do we owe the past? That trend mirrors what other studios have done with long-running series—turning colorful shooters into surprisingly thoughtful narratives. Splatoon is in the middle of that transition.
There’s also the Android angle—not literally Android phones, but the idea of artificial life forms. The Octarians already use robots and drones. Splatoon Raiders might introduce new machine enemies that predate even the humans, similar to the ancient tech found in other Nintendo games. That would tie the lore together in a way that makes the world feel older and stranger than we assumed.
Don’t expect a narrative masterpiece
Let’s be realistic: Splatoon has never cared about its story the way a traditional RPG does. The lore is hidden in sunken scrolls, environmental clues, and dialogue you can miss by pressing A too fast. Even the most dedicated players have gaps. Splatoon Raiders could easily be another game where the plot is secondary to the multiplayer, and the lore is just a bonus for those who dig. History suggests you shouldn’t expect a deep, cinematic story. The fun is in the details, not the drama.
What to watch for next
If you want to be ready for Splatoon Raiders, spend an hour reading the sunken scrolls from the first three games. Pay attention to any reference to the Among Us-style misinformation campaigns? No, sorry—wrong game. Actually, pay attention to any reference to “The Prophet” or “Old World” artifacts. That’s where the new game will likely dig. Nintendo is careful with its lore, and they usually leave breadcrumbs for the next entry years in advance. Splatoon Raiders could be the one that finally connects the dots—or it could just be a fun shooter with squid people. Either way, knowing the backstory makes every splat a little more meaningful.
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