Splatoon 3 launches with a brand-new single-player story mode, Return of the Mammalians. Though the Splatoon series is known more for its multiplayer, its various campaigns offer uniquely fun (if sometimes underwhelming) little journeys without the stress of battling other players. Splatoon 3 offers the biggest single-player story yet, far exceeding the quality of past Hero Modes, with a wide variety of levels and the ability to skip frustrating missions.
Splatoon‘s narrative generally focuses on a post-apocalyptic war between two of Earth’s intelligent mollusk-based species, the Inklings and the Octarians. The player takes control of different Inkling Agents in each game, where they must often engage in a rescue mission to retrieve the power-generating Zapfish. Though most of Splatoon 3‘s story and plot are still unknown at the time of writing, the title suggests a new mammalian species will be introduced despite humanity’s extinction thousands of years before the story begins.
Assigning a definite length to the main story is complicated because players don’t actually need to beat every one of its dozens of missions. With every mission the player completes, they gain in-game currency, Salmon Eggs, which can be used to open up new hub areas with collectibles or shortcuts – or even access paths that bypass entire areas of the game. Very few missions are mandatory, so each player decides how many missions they want to play before facing the final challenge. Generally, completing the story for Nintendo’s multiplayer-centric Splatoon 3 while skipping a few levels here and there has taken reviewers four to six hours, with the lower end coming from those who are already familiar with Splatoon‘s gameplay.
Splatoon 3’s Hero Mode Takes About 8 Hours To 100% Complete
Predicting completion time is dubious considering how many factors are at play, but given Nintendo’s penchant for games that cater toward players off all skill levels, four to six hours seems like a reasonable estimate. Seasoned players who want to speedrun Hero Mode will likely be able to finish it in well under four hours. However, beating every mission and getting to 100% completion takes a while longer, an extension that will depend on the player’s capabilities and efficiency. A couple reviewers (from TechRadar and IGN) fully completed the story in around eight hours, so a safe estimate for seeing everything Hero Mode has to offer would be seven to 10 hours.
Screen Rant‘s own Splatoon 3 review notes that Return of the Mammalians isn’t necessarily the game’s primary focus, with its levels serving well as occasional warm-ups prior to a foray into the multiplayer modes. That said, the campaign can be played straight through rather quickly, and these estimates can also change based on extra time needed to examine lore-filled collectibles or marvel at the new environments. Return of the Mammalians appears to be by far the most ambitious and rewarding Hero Mode yet, and since Splatoon 3 gives players complete agency to choose which levels they want to complete, the length of the story is largely up to the observer.
Sources: TechRadar, IGN
