Player Settings

Upon starting the Splatoon games for the first time or selecting "Player Settings" from the Options menu, the player is given a variety of options to customize their Inkling or Octoling.

Splatoon
The player has the option to change the following:

Splatoon 2
Splatoon 2 added the ability to change the player character's hairstyle and legwear, as well as additional options for eye color. Four new options for hairstyle and four for legwear, two for each gender, were added in Version. Hairstyles and legwear can also be changed in the Equip screen. The Octo Expansion added the ability to play as an Octoling after beating the campaign. The introduction of the Splatfest team names in Version also revealed official names for the different hairstyles for the first time.

Splatoon 3
removes the explicit gender option, letting the player choose between two options per species referred to as styles. It seems to remove any gender locks on customization features, now allowing both styles to access any hairstyle and legwear and adds more customization options, including customizing the hairstyle of the player's little buddy (a Smallfry). also allows the player to play as both Inklings and Octolings from the beginning of the game.

While not explicitly confirmed, it is apparent that the player will be able to to customize their character's eyebrows. In previous games, there were only 4 different sets of eyebrows to match with gender and species; so far, it is unclear whether eyebrow options in Splatoon 3 will depend on the chosen style.

There also appear to be additional legwear options that do not appear in the customization screen shown in the February 2021 Direct and various known legwear have been seen with rips in their fabric. Currently it is unclear whether these options will be available from the start or if they must be gained through progression.

Trivia



 * There is a separate player customization screen in the Octo Expansion, having the playable Octolings floating naked in a test tube full of green liquid with lime-green stains across their bodies. It is functionally identical to the normal one, except that Inklings and the legwear option are omitted. As such, if the player uses this screen to customize their Octoling, then they will always have the default legwear outside of the Octo Expansion.
 * As an added detail, the selected Octoling will appear to "wake up" more and more as they are customized, going from having their eyes shut and being completely still when picking gender, to progressively opening their eyes and looking around as more options are selected, to finally looking at the camera and crossing their arms with a determined expression once their appearance is finalized.
 * In the Octo Expansion, it is possible to choose Agent 3's appearance, using the same limited options as the player customization in Splatoon.
 * In Splatoon, when changing the player customization, both gender Inklings have the same skin tone and eye color as the player's most recent choice. However, if it is the first time picking a character, then the default Inklings have the girl with the second lightest skin tone and orange eyes, while the boy has the third lightest skin tone and blue eyes. Both of these are based on the main Inklings often featured in promotional material.
 * In Splatoon 2, one of the Inklings and Octolings corresponds to the most recent Inkling and Octoling the player used, while the other assumes their default look. The default Inklings and Octolings have both girls with the middle skin tone and orange eyes, while boys have the third lightest skin tone and blue eyes. This is again based on the main Inklings and Octolings featured in promotional materials.
 * Additionally, when switching from an Inkling to an Octoling or vice-versa, the game will save the player's most recently used appearance as the opposite species, which is used for the single-player modes: Octo Canyon always uses the player's Inkling, while the Octo Expansion always uses the player's Octoling.
 * In Splatoon 2, the player's character animates differently for each stage of customization, such as looking down when deciding on legwear or hunching over towards the camera when picking an eye color. These animations are the same between both Inkling genders, but have slight variations for the female Octoling, who has a 'shy' demeanor.