Our guide for beginners to Splatoon 3 will give you the best tips and tricks for starting out in the game. Read on to learn more about the game's controls and mechanics, and to see some tips and strategies for winning matches, including tier lists and useful techniques.

Beginner's Guide to Splatoon 3

Tips for Beginner Players
Create and customize your character Learn the basic controls of the game Familiarize with motion controls to improve your aim. Change your settings for optimal gameplay Battle with friends in Private Battles to practice Explore the different stages with Recon Mode Play Hero Mode to familiarize with mechanics.

Create and Customize Your Character

The first step to playing Splatoon 3 is customizing your character. There are several hairstyles, skin tones, eye colors, and legwear to choose from, so it is best to pick the options that best suit you! In Splatoon 3, you can even choose to play either as an Inkling or Octoling from the start of the game.

Character Customization Guide

Learn the Basic Controls of the Game

Before entering a match, it is important to learn about all the essential controls in the game to move you character, use you weapons, and interact with the world. You can also remap the controls on your Nintendo Switch based on your preferences.

Button	Action
	Move Character
	Move Camera
	Jump
	Reset Camera
	Use Sub Weapon
	Change into Squid Form
	Use Main Weapon
(While in Squid Form) Tilt in opposite direction +	Squid Roll
(While on a wall in Squid Form) Hold +	Squid Surge
	Open Menu
	↑ "This Way!" ↓ "Booyah!"

List of Controls and How to Change Mapping

Familiarize with the Motions Controls

Motion Controls are essential in Splatoon 3 as it gives players a competitive advantage in matches. When starting out in Splatoon, it is important to familiarize yourself with these controls to improve your aim and be at par with your competition.

Motion Controls or Stick Controls?

Change and Customize Your Settings

Aside from Motions Controls, there are other setting options that you can tweak. Beginners should start off with lower Motion Control senstivity for more control and gradually work their way up.

Best Control Settings

Recommended Settings
Motion Controls	On (This is the recommended control settings!)
Motion-Control Sensitivity	Start with -2.5 and adjust sensitivity accordingly
Sensitivity	3.0-5.0
Up/Down	Normal (Disabled when motion controls are on)
Left/Right	Normal

Best Other Settings

Best Gameplay Settings

Battle with Friends to Practice

Since Splatoon 3 is the third game in the franchise, much of the playerbase consists of experienced veterans from Splatoon and Splatoon 2. Playing only with friends in Private Battles allows you to experience competitive play without the pressure of playing with highly experienced players.

How to Play With Friends

Explore the Different Stages with Recon Mode

The stage that you are playing in is just as vital to your strategy as your weapons and gear, so it is best to familiarize yourself with all the stages in the game. You can freely explore each stage of the game with Recon Mode.

Play Hero Mode to Familiarize with the Mechanics

The best place to familiarize yourself with the mechanics of Splatoon 3 is in Story Mode. The campaign lets you try out a variety of weapons against non-player opponents with no set time limit, allowing you to learn at your own pace.

Hero Mode Walkthrough

Beginner Weapons and Gear

Best Beginner Weapons

The best weapons for beginners are easy to handle, keep you out of the line of fire, and are great at both dealing damage and supporting allies. Ranged Weapons like Sloshers or Shooters are what you should look for when finding beginner weapons.

Weapon	Features
Splattershot Lv. Unlocked: 2	Great range for inking and combat Easy to get kills with its Suction Bomb and Trizooka
Heavy Splatling Lv. Unlocked: 4	Has massively long range Support your team with its Wave Breaker Special move
Aerospray MG Lv. Unlocked: 5	For players who want to concentrate on inking turf You can use its Fizzy Bomb to kill enemies from afar, while it's special, Reefslider can ink turf and kill enemies
N-ZAP '85 Lv. Unlocked: 6	High fire rate great on close to medium combat. Its Tacticooler is great for supporting allies
Sloshing Machine Lv. Unlocked: 14	Consistent at killing opponents Its Booyah Bomb also deals massive damage

Best Beginner Weapons

Best Weapons and Gear Abilities

After trying out some of the weapons recommended for beginners, you can start playing around with some of the harder to use weapons available in the game. Our tier lists can help you pick which weapons and gear are best to use!

Try Out Weapons in the Test Range

If you are unsure about how to use a weapon effectively, you can try them out at the Test Range inside the Lobby. Inside the test range is a small practice arena with some dummy target, which also display the amount of damage they receive from a weapon.

At one side of the Test Range is the Copy Machine, a new device that mimics your actions, allowing you to practice moves against a player-like opponent.

Test Range Features

All Basic Moves and Techniques

There are a variety of different moves and techniques in the game that beginners must learn in order to become more effective at combat.

Super Jump

View Full Image
1	Press the Button to open the map.
2	Choose the player you want to super jump to with the D-Pad buttons ( ).
3	Press the Button to super jump to the player.

How to Super Jump Effectively

Squid Roll

Squid Roll Guide: How to Do a Squid Roll

Squid Surge

Squid Surge Guide: How to Do a Squid Surge

All Tips and Tricks Guide

Splatoon 3 Related Guides

Splatoon 3 Wiki Front

All Categories
Latest News and Events	Main Weapons
Sub Weapons	Special Weapons
Gear Abilities	Tips and Tricks
Stages	Characters
Game Modes	Gear Brands
Hero Mode	Bosses
Salmon Run	Gear and Equipment
Updates and Patch Notes	Message Boards