Region and localization
redirects region regions localization localizations localisation localisations
In the context of the Splatoon series, region refers to an internal setting present in each game which is tied to each player's assumed general geographical location in real life. The region system aims to match on a worldwide scale players located on the same continent as often as possible to maximize gameplay stability. This system is also sometimes used to define localization-exclusive content, such as pieces of gear or Splatfest events.
In Splatoon and Splatoon 2 the available region options are tied to the broadly-defined real-life geographical location the copies of the games were bought in from approved vendors, as different versions of both games are distributed by Nintendo in different continents. The setting cannot be changed. In Splatoon 3, players are prompted to choose their region setting, allowing for mismatched real-life and in-game region choices. Players may subsequently change the setting. Copies of Splatoon and Splatoon 2 feature varying degrees of region-lock restrictions, while Splatoon 3 does not.
Localization refers to the individual different languages that games in the Splatoon series are available in; the term in general refers to the ways in which content is altered to suit its geographically different target demographic in a marketing sense, usually accompanied by translation. For Splatoon and Splatoon 2, the region system heavily affects which localization options are available.
- how to swap languages per game
List of localizations
| Localization | Games | Other | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|
Official social media | |
 Chinese (Simplified)
|
✓ | |||
 German
|
✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ As of |
 English (United Kingdom)
|
✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ As of S |
 Spanish (Europe)
|
✓ | ✓ | ✓ As of | |
 French (Europe)
|
✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ As of |
 Italian
|
✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ As of |
 Dutch
|
✓ | ✓ | ✓ As of | |
 Russian
|
✓ | ✓ | ✓ As of S2[note 1] | |
 Japanese
|
✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ As of S |
 Korean
|
✓ | ✓ As of S3 | ||
 Chinese (Traditional)
|
✓ | ✓ As of S3 | ||
 Spanish (Latin America)
|
✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ As of |
 English (United States)
|
✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ As of S |
 French (Canada)
|
✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ As of |
 Portuguese (Portugal)
|
✓ As of S3? | |||
Official social media includes Nintendo-owned Youtube, Twitter, Tumblr, Instagram and Facebook accounts, several of which cover more than one language at a time, which at any point has covered Splatoon media. Certain social media accounts post localized content despite the lack of in-game equivalent (e.g. the Russian social media posts for Splatoon 2, and Portuguese social media posts for Splatoon 3).
Splatoon regions
Both the Wii U system and its game discs were region-locked. The Wii U system can only run games with regions that match its internal region setting; the different regional copies of consoles and games were distributed according to their real-life geographical region. Mismatched region-locked hardware and software are not compatible. For example, a Wii U bought in Japan (NTSC-J) will not run a copy of Splatoon bought in the United States (NTSC-U).
The Wii U's internal region setting nor its region-lock restrictions may not be changed without use of hacking.
| Region code[note 2] | Equivalent real-life region |
|---|---|
| NTSC-J | Asia |
| NTSC-U | Americas |
| PAL | Europe, Oceania, Africa, Middle East |
Different localizations are present depending on which type of Splatoon disc; certain gear and Splatfest events were exclusive to certain regions.
| Region name | In-game region | Available localizations |
|---|---|---|
| JPN (NTSC-J) | Asia region | Japanese
|
| USA (NTSC-U) | Americas region | English (United States), Spanish (Latin America), French (Canada)
|
| EU (PAL) | Europe, Oceania region | English (United Kingdom), French (France), German, Italian
|
List of region-locked content in Splatoon
The following Splatfests were only available in certain regions:
Splatoon 2 regions
The Nintendo Switch system removed the region-locked restrictions present in the Wii U (except Nintendo Switch systems officially sold in Mainland China); as such, any Switch game cartridge or E-shop purchase is compatible with any Switch system.
The system's region setting may be freely changed in its settings, though this does not affect Splatoon 2 reigons.
Despite the removal of region-lock restrictions, individual cartridges of certain games contain region-lock information; Splatoon 2 is one of the affected titles. Unlike the Wii U's region-lock system, Splatoon 2 mismatched region-locked hardware and software are compatible; the region-lock restriction serves to limit the amount of localization data available to the player per regional copy of the game. As such, certain gear and Splatfest events were locked per region, similar to Splatoon's system.
Oceania was notably "moved" to be a part of the Americas region.
| Region name | In-game region | Available localizations |
|---|---|---|
| JPN (NTSC-J) | Asia region | Japanese
|
| USA (NTSC-U) | Americas, Oceania region | English (United States), Spanish (Latin America), French (Canada)
|
| EU (PAL) | Europe region | English (United Kingdom), Spanish (Spain), French (France), German, Italian, Dutch, Russian
|
In order to swap localizations in Splatoon 2``
List of region-locked content in Splatoon 2
The following pieces of gear were only available on Japanese copies of the game:
Koshien Bandana
Mecha Head - HTR
Mecha Body - AKM
Mecha Legs - LBS
Eminence Cuff
Milky Eminence Jacket
Milky Enperrials
Octo Support Hoodie
Sennyu Bon Bon Beanie
Sennyu Goggles
Sennyu Headphones
Sennyu Specs
Sennyu Suit
Sennyu Inksoles
All copies of the game can view other players wearing this gear + localized names of the gear, but the codes required to unlock them are incompatible with all but JPN region cartridges
Splatoon 3 regions
- ! the swapping limitations
Splatoon 3 removes the region-lock restrictions present in the previous games, but still contains two sets of region options.
All localization options are available in any copy of the game, regardless of region option. Only in instances of region-exclusive Splatfests is there ever missing text, which is typically replaced with the other region's text by default.
Oceania was notably "moved" once again.
Referred to as "Splatfest regions" , the regions are split into:
- Japan
- The Americas, Australia, New Zealand
- Europe
- Hong Kong, S. Korea
In Splatoon 3 Splatfest World Premiere, the regions are instead split into:
- Japan
- The Americas
- Europe
- Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, S. Korea
This regional choice affects which regional players the player is more likely to get matched with in all online gameplay modes except X Battle.
X Battle offers a separate region choice, referred to as "divisions":
Takoroka Division covering players from Japan, Hong Kong, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand
Tentatek Division covering players from United States, South America, and Europe
This regional choice affects which regional players the player is more likely to get matched with exclusively in X Battle; additionally scores are measured separately between the two divisions, and as such three sets of badges become available depending on the player's choice of division
List of region-locked content in Splatoon 3
screenshot of the region choosing screens (tutorial + terminal) The following Splatfest was only available in certain regions:
| Americas/Europe/Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, S. Korea region theme | Japan region theme | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Handshake vs. Fist Bump vs. Hug | Kaiten-yaki vs. Oban-yaki vs. Imagawa-yaki | Both events occured concurrently |
Notes
- ↑ The Russian language official social media accounts documented S2 and S3 related information until February 2022.
- ↑ Note that the region codes "NTSC" and "PAL" originally referred to differences in irl regional television frequencies, but within the context of video games, over time evolved to primarily are used to refer to regional release variants.
[[Category:Mechanics]]
