Splatoon 2 gets a 3.0 update including X Rank, new gear and the return of Callie

Splatoon 2 for the Nintendo Switch is just about to get a major software update, as promised by Nintendo some time ago. The Splatoon 2  version 3.0 update,  which will roll out beginning at 6pm PDT/9pm EDT later today, will feature the return of Callie, a challenging new “X Rank” ranked battle, balance adjustments and a plethora of new/returning gear. Nice!

See some shots of the update and gear and read on for all the details from Nintendo.

Splatoon 2 3.0 update:

Nintendo?s dropping some fresh (and free!) new content for Splatoon 2 on Nintendo Switch tonight! After downloading a major new update (Version 3.0) to the Splatoon 2 game at 6 p.m. PT, players will have access to a huge amount of new content. This includes the addition of more than 100 pieces of new and returning gear, new songs, the introduction of a challenging new X Rank for the top-performing players in Ranked Battle, weapon balance adjustments and the return of Callie of the famous Squid Sisters.

?As promised when the game was first announced, we are determined to provide players with new experiences and content in Splatoon 2,? said Doug Bowser, Nintendo of America?s Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing. ?Through these regular updates, we are ensuring that both players old and new will log on to fun new experiences.?

X Rank is an extremely challenging Ranked Battle experience targeting the best-of-the-best players. Players who are S+10 in the current Splatoon 2 ranking system will automatically be registered as X Rank after downloading the update. Players who are X Rank will battle for an X Power level. Once a month, 500 players with the highest X Power level for each of the four different Ranked Battle modes will be announced within SplatNet 2, a service of the Nintendo Switch Online app for mobile devices.

X Power levels will be reset every month. During this reset, players whose X Power level ends up lower than a set threshold will rank down to S+9. This new system encourages players of all ranks to enjoy improving their play and maintaining their skills, as opposed to simply focusing on ranking up.

The first X Power reset is currently scheduled for May 31, and any future resets will take place on the final day of that month. As part of these periodic resets, the rotation of eight selected stages in Ranked Battle (with two stages rotating every two hours), the addition of new weapons and the introduction of new stages will also occur. In fact, tonight will also see the return of the popular stage Camp Triggerfish, along with four additional weapons.

In addition to X Rank, when Version 3.0 goes live this evening, this new update adds more than 100 pieces of gear ? some new, some returning from the original Splatoongame ? as well as new songs from Chirpy Chips, a popular in-game chiptune-style band featured in the first game. The update will also include some weapon balance adjustments, bug fixes and other changes.

Fans of the Squid Sisters will need to sit down, as the software update also marks the long-awaited return of Callie. Once players meet a certain condition after downloading the update, Callie will appear in Tentakeel Outpost in Octo Canyon. As exciting as it is to see the Squid Sisters reunited, Callie will also offer recent multiplayer stats about the player?s character.

For complete notes about Version 3.0 additions and instructions about how to download the updates, visit the official Nintendo customer support site.