Games like Kirby and the Forgotten Land have made early 2022 a strong period for Nintendo. Even more is on the horizon with games like Nintendo Switch Sports, Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, and Xenoblade Chronicles 3 - which moved its release date up to July. A number of releases are scheduled for the summer, from Koei Tecmo's Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes to the Sunbreak expansion for Capcom's Monster Hunter Rise, and Switch owners can also sink their teeth into Splatoon 3.
The September 9 release date for Splatoon 3 was unveiled Friday with a trailer featuring its returning Turf Wars - utilizing a handful of new weapons and abilities coming in this third installment. However, another surprise announcement dropped alongside this; Nintendo confirmed Splatoon 2's Octo Expansion DLC is joining Animal Crossing: New Horizons' Happy Home Paradise and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe's Booster Course Pass as a benefit for subscribing to Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pass. This incentive for the more expensive subscription tier could set a pattern for numerous games like The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild to follow.
Why NSO Access to Splatoon 2's Octo Expansion is a Big Deal
Despite launching in 2015 as a system-seller for the underperforming Wii U, Splatoon established a brand that has become one of the most popular among Nintendo's lineup - especially in Japan. Splatoon 2 followed shortly thereafter in 2017, and while the Switch's stronger sales numbers gave it more of a leg-up, many felt the base experience wasn't too different from its predecessor. Octo Expansion had a much stronger impact.
Rather than following another Inkling who joins the ranks of Cap'n Cuttlefish's New Squidbeak Splatoon, Octo Expansion gives players control over Agent 8: an Octoling who served the antagonistic Octarian army before having their heart changed by Callie and Marie's "Calamari Inkantation" at the end of the original Splatoon. They wake up in a mysterious metro station alongside Cap'n Cuttlefish and are recruited to help him escape, taking on a series of difficult test levels for a mysterious benefactor.
The $20 buy-in for Octo Expansion may have been steep for those who weren't impressed by the $60 base game, so there's undoubtedly people to take advantage of Octo Expansion joining Switch Online's Expansion Pack. As this benefit requires players to own the original Splatoon 2, it also means there may be new Switch owners looking to catch up on the story before Splatoon 3 drops. Given Octo Expansion ends with heightened stakes that could inform its sequel's Rise of the Mammalians campaign, Nintendo was smart to make the DLC more available.
Zelda: Breath of the Wild's Champions' Ballad, More Could Follow
Some will undoubtedly complain about having spent the $20 in 2018 before Octo Expansion's free release through Nintendo Switch Online, and there is merit to the question of what extra benefits early adopters could expect for their brand loyalty. However, this shouldn't stop Nintendo from extending the program to numerous DLC expansions as preparation for future releases.
The obvious example is Breath of the Wild's Champions' Ballad DLC, which offered up a unique set of challenges and more in-depth examinations of the four Champions of Hyrule. Breath of the Wild 2 saw its release date pushed to spring 2023, so giving Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack subscribers access to Champions' Ballad could be a smart way to hold their attention.
Zelda isn't the only franchise that may benefit from a Splatoon-style DLC tie-in. If Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes includes the Ashen Wolves, Fire Emblem: Three Houses' Cindered Shadows DLC may be beneficial context. Xenoblade Chronicles 2's The Golden Country DLC is in a similar position given the third game will combine plot elements from both its predecessors. Ultimately, this would also bolster the Nintendo Switch Online service, helping to justify Expansion Pack's price tag as more DLC packs for current and future games are added.
Splatoon 3 releases September 9, 2022 for Nintendo Switch.
