When you need a break fighting your way through Octo Valley or battling your friends in multiplayer in Nintendo’s Splatoon, visit Inkopolis, the central hub where you can meet up with other players, upgrade your gear and buy new weapons.
The city is easy to explore, with shops located on one side, the main combat hub in the middle and some other fun places to the right. On that note, here’s a breakdown of everything you’ll find while touring Inkopolis!
Shop Till You Drop
The first thing you’ll want to do (once you achieve level four status) is visit the shops in Booyah Base on the left side of the hub. Here you’ll be able to buy new weapons, head gear and other little oddities to make your character stand out.
Ammo Knights: We talked about Sheldon in our Splatoon Weapons Guide, but this begs repeating: this guy loves his weaponry. You’ll be able to buy all sorts of guns, whether you want a Charger, a Shooter or a Roller weapon. Better still, he has a great testing lab, so you can give these weapons a try before making a purchase.
Cooler Heads: Looking for the coolest head gear? Want to put a giant squid on your head to show your true colors? Pay a visit to Annie at the Cooler Heads shop, where you can purchase a variety of hats and helmets with your hard-earned Power Eggs.
Jelly Fresh: Although Jelonzo may not be your typical store owner (he’s an octopus with a strange fashion sense), his shop Jelly Fresh is a great place to get some traditional clothing for your Inkling Boy or Girl, whether you prefer slick t-shirts, cool shorts or fashionable jackets. There are plenty of bargains.
Shrimp Kicks: Don’t let the name fool you – this shoe shop has something for feet of all sizes. Run by Crusty Sean, there’s something for everyone, including sandals and high-top sneakers. You can’t go wrong with a good set of high tops.
Heading Into Battle
If you don’t feel like exploring and want to jump right into battle, there are three spots within Inkopolis where you can go. Straight ahead is Inkopolis Tower, which you can enter to take on both regular and ranked battles, which Nintendo’s update unlocked this week. It’s your choice which way you want to go, but don’t forget to read our Splatoon multiplayer tips.
The second stop is to the right of Inkopolis Tower. You’ll see Cap’n Cuttlefish peek his way out of a manhole. Go over to it and dive in, and you’ll go right to the single player portion of the game, the Octo Valley missions. This is a great place to improve your skills before heading into multiplayer combat.
Finally, to the far right, located on the second floor, is the Battle Dojo. You’ll take on a friend in local balloon-bursting action. To play in two-player mode, you’ll need both the GamePad and a secondary controller so your friend can play along using the TV screen.
The Little Oddities
Finally, outside of the shops and the combat zones, there are other fun things to see around the city of Inkopolis.
Spyke – Spyke is in the back alley located to the right of the city hub. You can’t miss him – he’s covered in shrubbery, right next to a busted vending machine. Although Spyke doesn’t look it, he can offer your character various items in the game. If you order gear from the plaza, you can pick it up through him, although you’re limited to one item per day. He can also increase spots in your player’s gear space, but you’ll need to provide him a Super Sea Snail in return. You can earn these during special Splatfest events, depending on how well you perform. Once your team wins, you receive the Snail.
In order to earn new spots, you need to reach level 20, or 30,000 Power Eggs for Spyke to use one of his own slots. If you prefer, he can also “re-roll” gear abilities in your loadout, if you prefer to do something new.
Judd –Judd is the fat cat who decides the final tally during each multiplayer round. You’ll find him hanging around a postage box sitting in front of the Inkopolis Tower, to the right. Visit him daily for a cash reward, usually to the tune of 100 coins. Although he doesn’t have much to say outside his matches, it never hurts to collect free money.
Fellow Players — If you’re curious as to what other players are drawing up in the Miiverse, feel free to walk around the plaza and visit them. You’ll see their drawings as they walk up, usually something Splatoon themed. Although these features are still early, we’ve seen a few curious sketches, including a piece of Splatoon art inspired by Call of Duty: Black Ops II.
The Squid Sisters –You’ll see the Squid Sisters every time you check in with the game, as they host the daily program that highlights the new maps you can play in regular and ranked battles. You can pay their studio a visit on the second floor, right next to the Battle Dojo, although they don’t offer much interactivity outside of that. However, they do host the Splatfest events where you can win the Super Sea Snail, which you then give to Spyke.
amiibo area –Visit the back area of Inkopolis Tower and you’ll be able to check on any progress you have with the amiibos in the game. It’s a good way to keep tabs on how you’re doing, as well as any single player challenges you may unlock.
Arcade Machine –Finally, step across from the Booyah Base and you’ll find an arcade machine where you’ll be able to jump into the various 8-bit mini-games you’re able to play while waiting for a multiplayer match in Splatoon. The main game is Squid Jump, where you guide a squid through a series of platforms in order to reach a goal at the top, while avoiding rising water from the bottom. Depending on which amiibo you use, you can also unlock the following games:
Squid Racer: In this game, you’ll race against rival jellyfish as you try to reach the end of the stage before they do. However, you can’t touch the jellyfish or the sides of the stage, or you lose a turn.
Squid Beatz: This music/rhythm game has you pressing buttons based on the line at the bottom of the screen, which moves over a series of beats. The better you do at hitting these, the better score you’ll accomplish. This mini-game uses a number of tunes found in Splatoon’s single player and multiplayer stages.
Squid Ball: In this old-school game, you’ll have to keep a falling Zapfish in the air. It’s like volleyball, but with sea life.
Have fun in Inkopolis! In the meantime, if you want more Splatoon fun, find out how to unlock every weapon in the game and locate all 29 Sunken Scrolls!
