Video summary
The video centers on *Splatoon Raiders*, presented as the first major title for the Nintendo Switch 2 era that diverges significantly from traditional turf war gameplay to focus instead on cooperative raiding and loot collection. The speaker initially expresses excitement over the game's visual fidelity, particularly praising the realistic water physics and lighting in open sea environments, though they clarify that aesthetic perfection is secondary to pure fun. They draw a strong parallel between their love for *Splatoon Raiders* and Ubisoft's *Assassin's Creed Black Flag*, noting how both games successfully capture the essence of piracy through sailing mechanics, ship combat, and an addictive progression loop where players upgrade vessels like the Jackdaw or Edward Kenway's ship to tackle increasingly difficult missions.
A core argument made in the transcript is that while some fans view *Splatoon Raiders* as a departure from the main series due to its spin-off nature similar to how *Black Flag* was seen as distinct within the Assassin's Creed franchise, this shift allows for deep immersion into pirate life without the stress of competitive multiplayer. The speaker compares the game's structure to titles like *Destiny*, highlighting a satisfying cycle where players select missions, defeat enemies, collect random loot drops and currency from treasure chests at home base, and use those resources to upgrade gear and abilities. This design choice removes the pressure of constant competition while maintaining high engagement through meaningful character progression and an expanding fleet that serves as both transportation and a symbol of personal ambition.
The narrative also touches on thematic elements, with the speaker appreciating how Edward Kenway's backstory in *Black Flag* mirrors their own connection to pirate lore, describing his journey from shipwrecked survivor to master assassin as embodying a "fake-it-till-you-make-it" grindset that feels authentic for someone raised at sea. The video concludes by emphasizing the social aspect of the game; while solo play is possible and functional, the experience truly shines when played with friends or online allies who help manage ship sails and crew duties during chaotic battles against men-of-war and forts. Ultimately, the speaker positions *Splatoon Raiders* as a highly addictive looter-shooter that offers hundreds of unique weapons and abilities, providing enough post-game content to keep players returning for years while celebrating the nostalgic joy of sailing, pillaging, and finding treasure in an open world.
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So, Splatoon Raiders, here it is. You're
looking at it. The first Switch 2 era
Splatoon game. And you know, when I Oh,
sorry, you can't see me, can you? Oh,
hold on a second. There you go. Hey. Hi.
Sorry about that. Here I am in the muck.
I'm even wearing my Splatoon shirt. I
was really hoping this game would look
Nintendo next gen. And I mean, it looks
good. It looks really good. I mean, it
doesn't look like Assassin's Creed Black
Flag re-synced or anything, but of
course it's not going to. Have you guys
seen that game? It's gorgeous. I mean,
look at the water. I've spent so long
just staring at the water in this game
that I feel like I'm actually getting
vitamin D deficiency. The way that the
water flows and glistens out here on the
open sea, or the way that it crashes
against the shoreline of these lonely
islands out here in the Isles of
Tortuga.
>> Tortuga.
Tortuga.
>> God, I'm just I'm I'm so happy with this
remake. I'm sorry. I know I I'm I'm I'm
feel like I'm getting off track. And I
And I know that it's Ubisoft, right? And
of course they're trying to
cram in microtransactions now because
it's the big year of 2026. But to be
honest, it's really not all that in your
face. I kind of forgot that that stuff
was even there, and I'm just enjoying
playing the game again. You got to
understand, back in 2013, I already
loved Assassin's Creed. When Black Flag
came out, I'd already played the other
three games. I even liked Assassin's
Creed 3. And apparently nobody else did.
But part of the reason why I liked
Assassin's Creed 3 is because it
introduced a very light ship mechanic.
And as well as Assassin's Creed back in
2013, there was something else that I
really liked, and that's you probably
could have guessed it, pirates. Between
the years of 1990 and 2010, pirates had
a stranglehold
on my personality. When I was a kid, we
only had a few options. We had
dinosaurs, ninjas, and pirates. So, I
picked the coolest one. My favorite
movies were Muppets Treasure Island and
Pirates of the Caribbean and my favorite
video games were also Muppets Treasure
Island and Pirates of the Caribbean.
But, I mean, I loved Monkey Island. I
liked Port Royale. I liked the movie
Goonies and Hook. I mean, who didn't?
But, it really was the pirate's life for
me. Yoho. It was just bred into my veins
from an early age. Of course, this was
all before games like Sea of Thieves was
even a twinkle in Xbox's iPad. Although,
that game also has
really nice water. Sure beats Port
Royale that I played back in 2002. If
you haven't played it, it's essentially
an Excel spreadsheet with cannons. It's
so hard to explain to people that
weren't there at the time what it was
like when Assassin's Creed just seemed
to accidentally make what is at the time
and probably to this day one of the best
pirate video games ever made. I mean,
just look at the this is not this is
Splatoon.
Raiders.
Right.
Uh I see what I've done. Earlier, when I
said that this game doesn't necessarily
look Nintendo next gen to me, don't get
me wrong when I say that. There are a
lot about this experience that's
fantastic. Like the solid 60 FPS. Some
of these missions, as you progress
through the story, get so chaotically
out of control. I just I have no idea
what is happening. If you're wondering
why this game is only on Switch, too,
that's why. But, to be honest, at the
end of the day, it doesn't really even
matter how the game looked. The game
could look bad. It doesn't, but it
could. As long as it was fun, I would
still enjoy it. It's the same thing for
Assassin's Creed. You know, I talked
about how gorgeous the game was, but it
was never really even about that for me.
Fun, fast-paced ship action combat. You
got the main cannons, the front cannons,
the barrels that you can put out the
back. You got a mortar that you can just
shoot a mortar in the middle of the
ship. You can just ram little ones if
you want. The ship mechanics and the
battling were just like what my dreams
were made of growing up. But speaking of
dreams, more than anything, it was the
ability to just let go of the wheel.
Grab a rope, swing to another ship,
board it, assassinate a guy, kill the
whole crew, take the ship, steal the
ship, and add it to your fleet, and then
send it out on missions to earn you gold
and rewards. The pirate life FOR ME, YO
HO. AGAIN, remember for 12-year-old me
playing this game back on his big,
square, 2000s cheesy, yellow PC where
everything was like top-down in Port
Royale. As I said, Ubisoft had
accidentally made one of the best pirate
games ever. And then somehow they said
they just seemed to forget how they did
it and spent a decade after that making
one of the worst ones. I was way too
excited for Skull and Bones considering
it failed to live up to Black Flag in
every single way. And you know what
else? Actually, now that I'm thinking
about it. You know why Wind Waker is my
favorite Zelda, or at least one of? I
get asked this all the time. It's
because when you think about it, Wind
Waker is essentially a pirate game.
Sailing around, finding islands with
secrets on them, treasure chests,
treasure maps, never knowing what was
next over that horizon every time you
raised the sail. I repeat one more time,
it's a pirate's life for me.
So to grow up with that game and then to
get Black Flag, it was
just so nostalgic
while at the same time being something
brand new. These games are so much more
alike than people realize.
Right, yes. Sorry, uh
Splatoon. Look, it's no secret that I'm
not a big Splatoon guy. I started my
splatting back on the second game and I
liked it. Then I played the third game
and it just felt like the second game
and it didn't really hold my attention
for too long. But the one mode in that
game I did really like was Salmon Run. I
liked the fact that it was co-op and
multiplayer objective base and it just
didn't feel so stressful and it was
addictive. So Raeders, taking that
concept of Salmon Run but fleshing it
out in its own game and completely
dropping turf war actually appealed to
me. I like it. It's pretty much a looter
shooter. A lot of people have compared
it to Borderlands which I don't I mean I
can't I guess.
Random weapons, I guess. For me it's
more like Destiny except I actually know
kind of what's going on most of the
time. As I said,
huh? You pick a mission, you jump in on
your own or with friends, you just splat
all the fish you see, you pick up random
loot drops and weapons and currency and
a treasure chest at the end. Once you
get that treasure chest, you all haul it
back to home base, you all crack it open
and see what you got. And then you use
all of the things that you found to
upgrade your gear, Jack. I don't know
why I said that. Upgrade your gear,
Jack.
Upgrade your Upgrade your Jack. Upgrade
your Jack door. Oh, I didn't even talk
about upgrading the Jack door. Sorry,
real quick cuz that's just where Black
Flag completely gets me.
You know, it's like just I want to do
one more pillage, one more plunder. You
have to take one more ship, do one more
mission so that I can go back and
upgrade my ship. Extra hull armor, more
cannons. It's the gameplay loop. I mean,
kind of kind of kind of just like
Splatoon Raiders that you guys love so
much, you know? It's that loop, that
addictive feeling of just wanting to
play one more time. And the Jackdaw, by
the way, it isn't just transportation to
get from A to B. The Jackdaw to Edward
Kenway is like the Black Pearl to Jack
Sparrow. It's an extension of his
personality. It represents his ambition,
his independence, his freedom. And
watching the ship get upgraded alongside
Kenway is so satisfying. I love the
story in this game. I mean, I love
Edward Kenway as a protagonist. I think
he's the best assassin. And I the reason
why I think that is cuz he's not
actually even an assassin. I mean, I
loved Adéwalé. I loved Ezio. I liked
Connor. But all of them became assassins
the hard way, which, you know, which
which which was actually becoming an
assassin. Edward's story is he just so
happened to shipwreck with an assassin
on a random island, killed him, took his
robes, and then just pretended to be one
until he essentially was one. And he
quite literally embodied the
fake-it-till-you-make-it grindset. And
what is more piraty than that? And for
me, it actually was even more believable
that he was able to do all these crazy
assassin things, like climbing buildings
and walking tightropes, because he grew
up on the sea, on a ship, up the mast.
He even says himself early in the game,
when you're climbing a church tower,
that every one of his fingers is a fish
hook.
>> That's how you tell a true sailor.
>> I got to tell you, this game has to be
in my top 10 favorite games of all time.
I know I I say that a lot. I'm like,
"This is in my top 10 favorite." I want
to sit down one day and actually do my
top 10 favorite games, but it I'm
telling you it has a spot in the list.
It's funny to me to think back in the
day I I I mean a lot of people loved it.
Here, there you go. Go across the poop
deck. Just don't poop on the deck.
Otherwise, I'm going to have to get
Charlie to scrub it again.
Yeah, back in the day some fans felt
like this was a departure from the main
series of Assassin's Creed, which I get
cuz it's very much a pirate game first
and an assassin's game second. But you
can't tell me when you get out on that
open sea and your crew starts singing a
sea shanty like leave her, Johnny or
what do we do with a drunken sailor?
What do we do with a
You just get fully immersed. It's the
one time in a video game where I will
gladly listen to public domain music.
Just realized me hat is uh green.
What do we do with a drunken sailor?
We could do this all day. Pillaging,
finding treasure, going on raids,
treasure and raids. Treasure and
treasure and raids. Treasure raiders.
And I said all of this about Black Flag
to prove a point. And that point is that
uh just like Black Flag and how fans
felt like it was a departure of the
Assassin's Creed series, a lot of fans
Splatoon fans
feel like
raiders is a departure of the series.
Yeah, you know, because it's it's like a
spin-off. I even saw a review that said
that the game was lacking turf war,
which yeah, it's a spin-off. What did
you expect? That's like playing Luigi's
Mansion and saying that it's lacking
Mario. You ain't going to believe this.
I actually just found a treasure chest.
I'm going to keep talking about Splatoon
raiders, but this is my Red Dead 2
treasure chest
collector's edition and it actually has
a red bandana in it. I feel like I got
to do it. It's in a treasure chest.
>> But there be something else in this
treasure chest, let it be Splatoon
Raiders.
>> [laughter]
>> By focusing entirely on the Salmon Run
formula and just fleshing it out allowed
them to have hundreds of unique weapons,
loads of different abilities and
power-ups, passive upgrades, ink tank
upgrades, loot,
crafting.
I don't really craft as a pirate, but
the loot is good. The loop is really
satisfying and there's actually a lot
more content here than I expected. With
a satisfying amount of post-game stuff,
a difficulty that ramps up quickly and
then you can go back through and play on
the spicy levels. It's a really fun
game. I mean it's it's it's fun with
friends. I tried playing solo on stream
a lot and it was it was not as fun. But
as soon as I got some buddies in there
or even you can ask for help and have
people online join your game and it's
just it actually ramps up the difficulty
but in a good way. A pirate has his
crew, you know, it's not really about
going out. I can't
steer a ship on my own. Who's going to
raise the main sails? Anyway, it's fun.
It has a progression loop that keeps
pulling you back in. Every raid makes
you a little bit stronger. Like for
example, I've been using Shiver a lot as
my ultimate ability and it's not because
of the reason the internet likes her. I
got my eye on you guys. I don't know
what's happening out there. Don't tell
me she's 24. I don't want [laughter] to
Anyway,
changing conversation. I have been using
Shiver with the shock ability is cool
and I just upgraded the shock ability so
now that it does even more damage which
is
actually
kind of ironic because in Assassin's
Creed: Black Flag, I just upgraded my
harpooning ability so now I do even more
damage to sharks because you can you can
attack sharks. You can you can like hunt
sharks, I guess. There's a lot of stuff
you you do in this game. I really only
scratched the surface here. I could go
down all the different story lines and
the fact that you can get all these
different ship captains and each one of
those captains have their own questions,
story lines, but really I just get
addicted to the ship mechanics and like
trying to make my ship even better so
that I can go and attack those
men-of-war. There's like two of them up
in the top right hand corner and I can't
get them. But then I'm also trying to go
around and do all of the forts cuz if I
do the forts, then I'll be able to send
my fleet out into those areas and make
even more money and then I'll be able to
get like a whole hometown. Did I talk
about the the hometown? I mean, I know
in Splatoon you get a little raft, but
in this game you literally get a whole
hometown.