Splatoon 3 devs detail the importance of music to the franchise

Minegishi: In that sense, music is also an important element. The music played during battles is not mere background music of the game but also hit songs played by popular bands in the Inkling world. These are the songs the Inklings listen to every day during Turf War battles to hype themselves. During the early development of the first title, Inoue-san said, “Maybe we could start by considering what kind of band is playing this background music.” Although I was a bit taken aback at the time, in retrospect, I believe this was an important suggestion that has led us to create a unique sound for the series.

Inoue: I thought if the music can account for not only bands existing in this world, but also things like their history, the relationship between their members and how their approaches to life changed over time, it would add depth to the Inkling world.

Minegishi: As Inoue-san explained earlier, the world in the second title counters the first and the world in the third title counters the second. We created the music considering this transition. What was at the forefront of music in the first game was a fast, playful and summery feel using just a few notes. For C-Side, which plays a central role in the third game’s music, we made the deep bass and upbeat melody stand out in their music while reminding the audience of the sound from the first game.

Nogami: One of the things we adjusted to express the realistic changes in the Inkling world was the characteristics of its trendy music. This changed according to the events and cultures of each title’s time period: in the first title seven years ago, in the second set five years ago, and in this title…Even if we do not depict everything in the game, we are always considering a variety of details like that.

Inoue: Even with a single illustration, the team looks at not only its quality as an end product, but also whether or not it feels realistic as a key factor in evaluation.

Minegishi: Even if the band members don’t appear in the game as characters, players still enjoy the bands and their place in the world of Splatoon. Perhaps, something like this happens because we create such a detailed setting.