Nintendo isn’t finished tinkering with Splatoon 3. Update 11.3.0 has arrived with another multiplayer shake-up, and this one isn’t just a routine bug-fixing patch. There’s a new weapon tied to Splatoon Raiders, several noticeable buffs and nerfs, changes to special weapons, and a fix for a movement trick involving Squid Surge. The update applies to both Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2 versions of the game.
Splatoon 3 Update 11.3.0 Introduces a New Weapon
The headline addition is the Plastic-Bottle Shot Replica, a new weapon connected directly to Splatoon Raiders. It isn’t simply handed to every player after installing the update, though. To claim it, players need Splatoon Raiders save data on the same Nintendo Switch 2 system and must have completed that game’s main story. Splatoon 3 also needs to be launched using the same user profile connected to the qualifying save data. Once those conditions are met, the weapon can be collected from the lobby terminal. The replica uses the same weapon specifications as the Tentatek Splattershot.
It’s a slightly unusual crossover reward. Rather than adding something dramatically stronger or mechanically different, Nintendo has effectively turned the weapon into a collectible bonus for players who have spent time with Splatoon Raiders. That should also prevent the unlock requirement from creating an obvious competitive advantage.
Carbon Roller and Tri-Slosher Get Some Help
Carbon Roller players have a couple of reasons to pay attention to this patch. Nintendo adjusted the damage falloff of vertical swings, allowing the Carbon Roller family to deal 50 and 100 damage from farther away than before. Maximum movement speed while holding ZR and inking forward has also been increased by roughly 5%.
The Tri-Slosher family gets a simpler buff: ink consumption has been reduced by around 5%. Glooga Dualies and Glooga Dualies Deco also become more consistent after Dodge Rolls, with shot scatter reduced by approximately 10%. These aren’t flashy additions, but they’re the kind of numbers that can quietly change which weapons start showing up more often in multiplayer.
Not Every Weapon Escaped the Nerfs
There are cuts elsewhere. The .52 Gal and .52 Gal Deco now create a roughly 8% smaller ink-splatter radius when distant shots hit the ground. E-liter 4K variants have also been adjusted so Ink Saver (Main) provides less of an ink-consumption benefit. Snipewriter 5H and Snipewriter 5B go in the other direction entirely, consuming approximately 7% more ink.
The Tri-Stringer family isn’t untouched either. Nintendo reduced the size of the area inked by falling spray for the Tri-Stringer, Inkline Tri-Stringer, Bulbz Tri-Stringer, and Order Stringer Replica. For players who lean heavily on controlling territory from safer positions, that one could be felt fairly quickly.
Nintendo says part of the thinking behind these changes is to make it harder for certain weapons to safely keep Splat Zones covered or maintain constant pressure. Other adjustments are meant to sharpen individual weapon identities or simply make them nicer to use.
Trizooka Shots Just Got Much Faster
The special weapon changes may end up being the more interesting part of update 11.3.0. Trizooka projectile speed has been increased by approximately 13%, while its overall flight distance remains unchanged. Faster shots mean opponents get less time to react, which could make an already threatening Trizooka considerably nastier in the right hands.
Triple Splashdown has been reworked in several directions at once. Players become invulnerable to damage roughly one-sixth of a second earlier after activation, while the damaging explosion area has been reduced by around 9%. The ink fists travel approximately 9% farther as well. Nintendo says the changes reduce the area where overlapping explosions can inflict 100 or more damage. It’s not a clean buff or nerf. The special should behave differently depending on positioning, and that’s probably the point.
Ink Vac receives a clearer reduction, with the amount of enemy ink it can absorb dropping by approximately 9%.
Special Point Requirements Have Changed Too
Three weapon kits now have different special-point requirements. Splattershot Pro FRZ-N drops from 190 points to 180, while Custom Hydra Splatling also becomes cheaper at 190 points instead of 200. Inkline Tri-Stringer moves the opposite way, climbing from 190 points to 200.
Ten points might not look dramatic on paper. Across an entire match, though, changing how quickly a special comes online can matter more than the number suggests. Splattershot Pro FRZ-N and Custom Hydra Splatling players potentially get their specials more frequently, while Inkline Tri-Stringer users will have to work a little harder for theirs.
Nintendo Fixes a Squid Surge Movement Exploit
There’s one specific player-control bug fix in the patch notes. Nintendo addressed an issue where performing certain actions immediately after jumping away from a wall with Squid Surge could give players more horizontal movement than intended. Version 11.3.0 closes that loophole.
It’s a small fix compared with the balance adjustments, but movement quirks have a habit of becoming part of high-level play when they’re left around long enough. Nintendo clearly didn’t want this one becoming permanent tech.
Another Splatoon 3 Balance Update Is Already Planned
Perhaps the most interesting detail sits near the end of Nintendo’s notes. Version 11.3.0 isn’t the end of the balancing work. Nintendo says the next update is planned to focus primarily on multiplayer balance changes.
That makes update 11.3.0 feel less like a final cleanup pass and more like another step in the game’s ongoing competitive tuning. The Plastic-Bottle Shot Replica gives the patch something immediately new to chase, but the weapon adjustments are probably what regular Splatoon 3 players will notice for much longer.
Carbon Roller has more reach where it counts. Tri-Slosher gets better ink efficiency. Trizooka gets faster. Several long-range options have been pulled back. None of that completely tears up the game overnight, but it could be enough to nudge the multiplayer meta somewhere different.
And apparently Nintendo isn’t done nudging.