Preview: Splatoon 2’s Splat Dualies offer focused fire

I’m not a sharpshooter in Splatoon. I tend to focus my efforts on coating the battlefield, not splatting other inklings. Now that the Splatoon 2 Testfire has come and gone, a new weapon has me changing and rethinking my approach. People who participated in this demo had an opportunity to go hands-on with the Splat Dualies, a pair of pistols, and the loadout for the demo’s version of the weapon is perfectly designed for coating both the field and your opponents with paint.

The Splat Dualies are an incredibly responsive pair of guns. They shoot rapidly and offer a rather nice range. Think of them as a quicker, but slightly less powerful, alternative to a standard Splattershot. At least, that’s how they functioned during the Splatoon 2 Testfire. I was able to coat an area quickly, thanks to having two barrels fighting ink, in a more efficient means than a regular Splattershot or even Splat Charger. While it didn’t pack the same punch as either of the other guns’ attacks, the speed still made it quite a viable weapon for attacks.

The ability to roll with Splat Dualies is a critical one. In Splatoon 2, staying in motion is critical. You want to be hiding in ink when you can and avoiding, all while trying to attack. Being able to roll, then immediately begin firing again after the somersault. There’s an evasiveness with this weapon. I felt more agile. I tend to panic as a player when my opponents catch onto what I’m doing and turn to retaliate. By exploiting the roll, which some didn’t seem quite aware of yet, I bought myself necessary recovery time.

The Splatoon 2 Testfire Splat Dualies’ sub weapon and special complemented the weapon well. Take the Curling Bomb. This is best compared to the Seeker, in that it’s a bomb your Inkling will slide out. It leaves an ink trail and damages any Inkling it hits. However, it lacks the Seeker’s homing ability, and instead replaces that with a bit more range and ability to bounce off of walls. Like the Splat Dualies, it’s good at pulling double duty. It’s an agile bomb that can cover some surface, while also offering quite a surprise to anyone who things they evaded it, but still end up hit.

An Inkjet offers the same sort of surprise. This special attack allows the Inkling wielder to take flight over the arena. They can pump out a few massive paint blasts. While this isn’t the best means of coating an area with paint, it helps the cause. More importantly, it’s great for zeroing in on an opposing Inkling you know is in an area. Even if your aim is poor and they’re attempting to escape, you’ll easily be able to splat someone in a single hit. It’s a reassuring and accommodating weapon with quite a few applications, then allows a speedy retreat to your starting position when the special ends.

Splatoon 2’s Splat Dualies seem like they could prove to be one of the game’s most versatile weapons. The guns are great for covering land and Inklings. They allow you to swiftly dodge danger, then quickly retaliate against the person who was assaulting you. Likewise, its Curling Bomb and Inkjet offer the same variety; each is quite useful for coating the ground and enemies. We’ll see how well the Splat Dualies fare against new and returning weapons when Splatoon 2 comes to the Nintendo Switch later this year. As of now, this seems like a promising weapon with a handy sub weapon and special tied to it.