Cuttlefish
Species | Inkling |
Hair color | Off-white/Faded orange |
Age | Over a century (see age) |
Gender | Male |
Relations | Callie and Marie (granddaughters) |
Location | Inkopolis Plaza, Octo Valley, Deepsea Metro, Splatsville, The Crater, Alterna |
“ | AHOY! OCTOLING! Up and at 'em, ya lazy whiffle-whaffle! This fight ain't over! Prepare for a royal whoopin'! | ” |
— Cap'n Cuttlefish, Octo Expansion
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Craig Cuttlefish, originally titled Cap'n Cuttlefish and commonly referred to as simply Cuttlefish, is a major character in the Splatoon series. As a veteran of the Great Turf War and former captain of the Squidbeak Splatoon and New Squidbeak Splatoon, he often acts as a guide for the protagonist. He is also the grandfather of Callie and Marie. He issues the player with the Hero Suit and title of Agent 3 in Splatoon's Octo Valley and similarly gives Agent 8 their nickname and helps them through the Deepsea Metro in Splatoon 2's Octo Expansion. As of Splatoon 3, he has passed his title as captain on to the former Agent 3 and instead acts as the New Squidbeak Splatoon's "senior advisor", but is still the one to give the new Agent 3 their Hero Suit and title and assists them throughout the Crater in Return of the Mammalians.
He is voiced by Mahito Yokota.[1]
Appearance
Craig Cuttlefish is the only seen elderly Inkling and therefore has several notable differences from the playable ones: he is visibly skinnier with a bonier look (despite Inklings having no bones) and has thinner, drooping ears and bulging brown eyes—a trait that he regularly comments on. He is almost entirely bald except for a white ponytail with faded orange tips, while also uniquely has a bushy white beard that fully covers his mouth and equally bushy eyebrows. Additionally, his squid form retains his beard, as seen in the credits artwork for Splatoon.
In Splatoon, Cap'n Cuttlefish is seen wearing a very loose patchwork rag over his shoulders comprised of several hastily stitched-together colors of fabric, to which he has pinned four war medals on the left-hand side. On his head, he wears the Legendary Cap: a blue peaked captain's hat with a golden brim and Cuttlegear logo on the front and a sewn-on patch and hole for his ponytail on the back. He also wears blue jean shorts with a brown belt and worn-out brown boots with holes in the toes, altogether giving the appearance of an elderly hero down on his luck. Finally, he is always seen leaning on an old Bamboozler with a red ribbon tied around it, using it as a makeshift cane. Although Bamboozlers were largely used by Inkling soldiers in the Great Turf War, Cuttlefish has only ever been seen using it for its original purpose in credits art.
In the Octo Expansion, Cap'n Cuttlefish radically changes his look to reflect his more casual attitude and a newfound penchant for rapping. He wears the Old-Timey Clothes: a bright green Zink tracksuit jacket with white trim, still with his badges attached, and large silver Forge headphones resting around his neck. His Old-Timey Hat is his regular cap in white, without the patch and hole, turned backwards and twinned with a pair of Retro Specs, while he wears matching green tracksuit bottoms and black slip-on shoes with white trim and high white socks, known as the Old-Timey Shoes, and still rests on his cane.
In Splatoon 3, Cuttlefish has retired, and his new look reflects this. He no longer wears any headgear and returns to his shorts and shoes from Splatoon while still using his cane. His clothing, however, has changed to a red short-sleeved Hawaiian shirt with black and white palm trees and a cyan coral pattern around the bottom, still with his signature badges attached. His clothing and cap from the first game are instead worn by the new Captain.
After being forcibly dried out by Mr. Grizz, Cuttlefish's appearance resembles that of a dried squid seafood product with the ability to float. Apart from his body being flat, his large eyes and bushy beard are still visible. He initially appears fully gray, but upon being revived, he turns brown, with his beard returning to its regular white.[2]
Personality and traits
Cap'n Cuttlefish is a decorated hero who fought in the Great Turf War between the Inklings and Octarians as the leader of the Squidbeak Splatoon. He was originally a good friend of DJ Octavio but became his nemesis due to the Great Turf War. After winning the war, he began watching over the Octarians in Octo Valley, but failed to prevent them from stealing the Great Zapfish.
Cap'n Cuttlefish's favorite food, as pointed out both by himself and Agents 1 and 2, is botamochi (a type of traditional Japanese sweets) in the Japanese version and crabby cakes in the English version. A plate of botamochi is present in Cuttlefish Cabin in Octo Canyon, alluding to this. He is often distracted by his favorite food, giving DJ Octavio the chance to escape from his snow globe prison. In the Commonwealth English version of Splatoon, his favorite food is biscuits instead of crabby cakes, but in later games, it is consistently crabby cakes due to most differences between the two English versions being removed.
Cap'n Cuttlefish is fond of rapping, something made explicit during the Octo Expansion. Sometime after the events, during the Low Water Party, he and Pearl participated in a rap battle with language so vulgar it could not be put on the airwaves nor on paper.
Age
Cuttlefish is the oldest known Inkling character in the Splatoon series, confirmed to be over 100 years old due to being present and fighting during the Great Turf War. This was backed up further by Seita Inoue, who stated in an interview with Famitsu that Cuttlefish is around 120 years old by the events of Splatoon.[3] However, in Splatoon 2: Octo Expansion, he mentions in a rap that he is 130 years old. Characters in the Splatoon series are known to age in real time, suggesting he would have been 127 years old in the first game.
History
Before Splatoon
Cap'n Cuttle hails from Calamari County,[4] and around one hundred years before the events of Splatoon, he was a member of the Inkling military. He personally knew DJ Octavio, and the two of them were on good terms until the rise of the sea levels. This crisis, leading up to the Great Turf War, has forced Cap'n Cuttlefish to battle the Octarians, where he served as leader of an Inkling army division called the Squidbeak Splatoon. Sunken Scroll 15 features contains a historical photograph showing that he fought alongside Ammoses Shellendorf, Judd, an unidentified male Inkling soldier, and an unidentified female Inkling soldier.
In Session 5 of Marina's chat room, it is revealed that while he was still a second lieutenant, Cuttlefish battled Octavio during the siege of Arowana Castle. Thanks to Cuttlefish's efforts, he was subsequently promoted to the rank of captain and the Inklings eventually won the war. At some point before the beginning of Splatoon, Cuttlefish reforms the Squidbeak Splatoon under the name of New Squidbeak Splatoon by recruiting his granddaughter Callie (known as Agent 1), who in turn recruits her cousin Marie (known as Agent 2), in order to retrieve the stolen Great Zapfish. It is unknown what else he did between the end of the Great Turf War and the beginning of Splatoon, but he seems to have changed little.
Splatoon
By the time of Splatoon, Cap'n Cuttlefish could be found poking his head out of a manhole in the corner of Inkopolis Plaza. Upon being met by a young Inkling at his shack in Octo Valley, he explained to them how the Octarians had returned and stolen the Great Zapfish before recruiting them as Agent 3 of the New Squidbeak Splatoon to help take the Great Zapfish back. He assisted Agent 3 during the levels until the Octowhirl was defeated, after which he got kidnapped by DJ Octavio. His former protégés and granddaughters, Agents 1 and 2, took over his role until the final mission, in which Agent 3 battled DJ Octavio to rescue Cuttlefish and the Great Zapfish. During the final phase of the battle, the two agents revealed themselves as the Squid Sisters and overrode the boss music, allowing Cuttlefish to set himself free while Octavio was defeated.
Replaying the final mission results in new dialogue, describing how DJ Octavio escaped from his snow globe and briefly recaptured Cuttlefish while he was distracted.
It is heavily implied that Cap'n Cuttlefish sang the rap section of the Squid Sisters song Maritime Memory. In the booklet contained in Splatune, it is stated that the rap portion of the song was performed by an old man who stumbled into the recording session, saying "though my clothes may be tattered, my heart is pure and my charming voice will never fade away" (a quote extremely similar to a self-written description of Cuttlefish from Squid Research Lab[5][6]); the staff hurried him out but realized that they liked his addition to the song and kept it. The old man being Cuttlefish is further suggested in the Octotune booklet, which contains a report from Cuttlefish in which he mentions that he once rapped in a song for the Squid Sisters.
Splatoon 2
After the events of Splatoon, Cap'n Cuttlefish disappeared from Octo Valley. While the Squid Sisters initially believed there to be no cause for concern, his disappearance led Marie to discover that DJ Octavio was able to escape. As a result, in Splatoon 2, she took over Cuttlefish's role as guide and mentor to the newly-recruited Agent 4. It was later revealed that Cuttlefish went off traveling with Agent 3 for "a research trip to the cape", and as a result, was not seen in person. However, an unused dialogue icon for Cap'n Cuttlefish appears in The Art of Splatoon 2.
Octo Expansion
Cap'n Cuttlefish reappeared in the Octo Expansion. He and Agent 3 briefly clashed with an Octoling before the three of them were attacked, leaving Cuttlefish and the amnesiac Octoling trapped in the Deepsea Metro. Teaming up, Cuttlefish eventually nicknamed the Octoling as Agent 8 and decided to help them retrieve the four thangs and escape to Inkopolis. He also acted as a guide for Agent 8 throughout the tests, remaining on the metro train to give help alongside Pearl and Marina.
During this time, Cuttlefish took part in Marina's chat room under the username of 'CraigCuttlefish'. After learning how the chat room worked, Cuttlefish learned about Pearl and Marina's respective pasts. He was the first to realize that Marina was an Octoling but continued to support her after learning of her defecting from the Octarian military, alongside the other Octolings that escaped to Inkopolis.
Once Agent 8 collected the four thangs, Cuttlefish joined them walking into the contraption the Telephone created to escape to the surface. However, the device turned out to be a blender intended to purify the pair. Agent 3 saved them, knocking themselves out, and Cuttlefish stayed behind to care for Agent 3 while Agent 8 escaped. However, the Telephone eventually awoke again, capturing Cuttlefish and brainwashing Agent 3 and forcing them to try to kill Agent 8. After Agent 8 saved Agent 3, they joined up in escaping to the surface, as well as meeting Off the Hook in person. As the Telephone revealed itself as Commander Tartar, using the NILS Statue to destroy Inkopolis, Cuttlefish stayed behind on Marina's helicopter as the "hype man", looking after Agent 3 as the rest of the group defeated Tartar by using Pearl's Princess Cannon. With the threat neutralized, he eventually joined Agent 8, Agent 3, and Off the Hook and returned to Inkopolis.
Cuttlefish later returned to the Deepsea Metro train, wanting to check on everyone there, and continued to help Agent 8 during their tests. He also briefly encountered Marie in Marina's chat room. Despite not telling her exactly where he was, he promised to return for her soon.
Splatoon 3
Craig Cuttlefish makes a reappearance in Return of the Mammalians in Splatoon 3. He has retired and handed over his title of captain of the New Squidbeak Splatoon to Agent 3. He can be seen in Splatsville popping his head out of a manhole and bounces to the music during Splatfests, like in the first game. After the player follows him into the Crater, he recruits them as the new Agent 3. In the Crater, he helps the player out like in the previous games. After the player defeats DJ Octavio, the ground falls, and Smallfry, Cuttlefish, and Agent 3 fall into Alterna. Agent 3 and Cuttlefish get separated during the fall. After this point, Cuttlefish no longer appears in the manhole in Splatsville.
Upon defeating the first boss, Cuttlefish contacts the new Agent 3 and reveals he had been kidnapped. Subsequent calls reveal the perpetrator to be Mr. Grizz. While Agent 3 is heading up the rocket, Mr. Grizz explains that he needs Cuttlefish's brain as part of his plan and steals it moments before reuniting with the new Agent 3. When the New Squidbeak Splatoon arrives, he is left a dry husk and is assumed dead. Captain holds him in their arms and sheds a tear, which provides enough moisture to revitalize Cuttlefish, albeit in a withered state similar in appearance to a dried squid. Cuttlefish then continues to assist Agent 3 in the final boss as mission control.
After Mr. Grizz's defeat, Cuttlefish remains in the New Squidbeak Splatoon camp in Future Utopia Island with Callie and Marie, floating in his withered state, and can be talked to freely.
Cuttlefish later attends the Grand Festival, running a merchandise stand with DJ Octavio.
Tableturf Battle
Cuttlefish's Deck | ||
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12 Hero Shot
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7 Bamboozler 14 Mk I
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12 Ink Vac
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3 Smallfry
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14 Cuttlefish
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16 Captain
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8 Octotrooper
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11 Shielded Octotrooper
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11 Twintacle Octotrooper
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4 Octocopter
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2 Octopod
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8 Squee-G
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11 Octoling
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17 DJ Octavio
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9 Zapfish
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Quotes
View the quotation page. |
Gallery
➤ View the gallery |
Trivia
- In the first trailer for Octo Valley, Cap'n Cuttlefish appeared to be found in a walled-in area of Inkopolis Plaza, similar in appearance to the alley Spyke is found in.
- In the main hub of Octo Valley, the player can ink Cap'n Cuttlefish; he will eventually shake off the ink. However, it takes a considerable amount of ink to completely cover him, suggesting that he may be more resilient than the average Inkling, despite his age and frail appearance.
- Cap'n Cuttlefish's shack in Splatoon appears to be filled with books and Zapfish dolls, along with pictures of Octarians in the front. On the corner, he has taped up two small photographs of his grandchildren, one of Callie and one of Marie.
- At the beginning of the Octo Expansion, he is seen saying "I'll take your stunned silence as a YES!" to Agent 8. This mirrors Marie's "I'll take your awkward silence as a yes" to Agent 4, which in turn mirrors Cuttlefish's own "I'm gonna take your silence as a yes" to Agent 3.
- According to The Art of Splatoon, Inklings can preserve their bodies by sun-drying, which explains Cap'n Cuttlefish's long lifespan. In the Octo Expansion, it is confirmed that Inklings lose ink and become drier with age.
- This is later explored during the events of Splatoon 3, where Cap'n Cuttlefish is seen in a withered state. However, this is suggested to be a consequence of Mr. Grizz's actions and not because he wants to preserve his body.
- Cap'n Cuttlefish states that he has cuttlebones in the Octo Expansion. However, this may just be a figure of speech, since Inklings are supposed to have no bones, and Cap'n Cuttlefish himself is shown to be an Inkling and not an actual cuttlefish.
- When Cap'n Cuttlefish is kidnapped in Octo Valley, replaying previous missions also has his dialogue missing.
- He also does not peek out of the manhole cover in Inkopolis Plaza when this happens.
- In the Russian localization of the Octo Expansion, he is called Трилобит (Trilobite) by Pearl. This is a reference to the extinct arthropod trilobites and has the same meaning as his English nickname, "Old Dude".
- Inside the Deepsea Metro subway car, Cap'n Cuttlefish's phone screen shows young Callie and Marie, identical to Sunken Scroll 17.
Names in other languages
Language | Name | Meaning |
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Japanese | アタリメヨシオ Atarime Yoshio |
From atarime (slang for dried shredded squid) and shio ("tide" or "salt").[note 1] "Shio" might also be a pun on "Shiokarazu," the Japanese name of the Squid Sisters |
Dutch | Karel Kraak | Carl Kraken |
French (NOA) | Anastase MacAlmar | Anastase MacAlmar[note 2] |
French (NOE) | Anastase Macalamar | Anastase Macalamar[note 3] |
German | Karl Kuttelfisch | Carl Cuttlefish |
Italian | Sergio Seppia | Sergius Cuttlefish[note 4] |
Russian | Каракатий Кальмостар (Splatoon 2) Karakatiy Kal'mostar |
Cuttlefish Oldsquid[note 5] |
Крэг Кальмостар (Splatoon 3)[note 6] Kreg Kal'mostar |
Craig Oldsquid[note 7] | |
Spanish | Jerónimo Jibión | Jerónimo Cuttlebone |
Chinese (Simplified) | 鱼干义男 Yúgān Yìnán |
From 鱼干 ("Dried Squid") and 义男 ("Yoshio", from the Japanese name) |
Korean | 마르징오 요시오 Mareujingo Yosio |
From Mareunojinge ("Dried Squid"), and the last name is from its Japanese name |
Internal | Atarime AtarimeHimono[7] |
From the Japanese name. First for normal and second for dried form |
Language | Name | Meaning |
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Japanese | アタリメ司令 Atarime-Shirei |
Commander Atarime[note 8] |
Dutch | Kaptein Kraak | Captain Kraken[note 9] |
French (NOA) | Amiral MacAlmar | Admiral MacAlmar |
French (NOE) | Amiral Macalamar | Admiral Macalamar |
German | Käpt'n Kuttelfisch | Cap'n Cuttlefish |
Italian | Capitan Seppia | Captain Cuttlefish |
Russian | Капитан Кальмостар Kapitan Kal'mostar |
From кальмар kal'mar ("squid") and старый staryy ("old"), with the title капитан kapitan ("captain") added |
Капитан Каракатица[8] Kapitan Karakatitsa |
Captain Cuttlefish | |
Spanish | Capitán Jibión | Captain Cuttlebone |
Chinese (Simplified) | 墨鱼丝令[9] Mòyú Sīlìng |
From 墨鱼丝 ("dried shredded cuttlefish") and 司令 ("commander") |
鱼干 Yú Gān |
Dried Squid | |
Chinese (Traditional) | 魚乾 Yú Gān |
Dried Squid |
Korean | 마르징오 사령관 Mareujingo Saryenggwan |
Commander Mareujingo |
Translation notes
- ↑ Follows Japanese naming - "Atarime" is surname, "Yoshio" is given name
- ↑ From calmar ("squid") and the scottish noble prefix mac-
- ↑ From calamar ("squid") and the scottish noble prefix mac-
- ↑ Sergio is an Italian male given name which may be in this case a pun with sergente ("sergeant"); seppia is the literal meaning of "cuttlefish"
- ↑ From каракатица karakatitsa ("cuttlefish"), кальмар kal'mar ("squid"), and старый staryy ("old")
- ↑ The reason of his name being different in Splatoon 3 is most likely the change of the Russian translation team.
- ↑ A combination of his Russian surname and transliteration of his English name
- ↑ Atarime is slang for dried shredded cuttlefish
- ↑ "Captain" is normally spelled kapitein in Dutch
References
- ↑ Mr. Switch™ on Twitter
- ↑ The Art of Splatoon 3 page 90, at the bottom of the page written in bold "スルメのすがた" literally "dried squid form" in Japanese
- ↑ Developer Interview - September 2015 (Famitsu).
- ↑ Octo Expansion dialogue.
C-C-C-Calamari County is where I' from! Keep it superfresh 'n' we can def be chums! - ↑ Live from Squid Research Lab: This unreasonably attractive gentleman goes by the...
- ↑ SplatoonJP
- ↑ Leanny on GitHub
- ↑ Pre-release material
- ↑ From the official Chinese release of The Art of Splatoon
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