Splatoon 3 11.3.0 Patch Notes: Release Date and Balance Changes

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Splatoon 3 version 11.3.0 lands with a locked bonus weapon and real balance pressure

Nintendo’s next Splatoon 3 update is version 11.3.0, and the sharpest competitive detail is not the new weapon skin. It is that the patch changes the way several established weapons spend ink, hold space, or confirm damage. According to Nintendo’s patch notes, as reproduced by Nintendo Life and My Nintendo News, the update applies to both Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2 versions of Splatoon 3.

The headline addition is the Plastic-Bottle Shot Replica, a Splatoon Raiders tie-in weapon. Nintendo says it has the same weapon specifications as the Tentatek Splattershot, so active players should treat it as a themed unlock rather than a new stat line entering the meta. The catch is access. To claim it from the lobby terminal, players need Splatoon Raiders save data on the same system, must have cleared that game’s main story, and must start Splatoon 3 with the same user profile tied to that save data.

That requirement creates a clean split in this Splatoon 3 update. Everyone gets the balance and bug fixes. Only players who have finished Splatoon Raiders on Switch 2, under the right profile conditions, get the Plastic-Bottle Shot Replica. For ranked and tournament-minded players, the practical result is simple: do not expect the new weapon to change matchups by itself, because Nintendo lists it as matching the Tentatek Splattershot. Expect the balance edits around Carbon Roller, Tri-Slosher, Glooga Dualies, .52 Gal, E-liter 4K, Snipewriter, Tri-Stringer, and Triple Splashdown to be the part that actually changes fights.

Release timing is regional, and the public listings do not phrase it cleanly

The reported launch window for Splatoon 3 version 11.3.0 is this week, but the source material is messier than a single universal date. Nintendo Life lists Splatoon 3 version 11.3.0 for 19 August 2026 and says the changes come to both Switch and Switch 2. Nintendo Everything, in a post dated August 18, reports that the update will be out “tomorrow” in North America and early Thursday in Europe, which points to August 19 in North America and August 20 in Europe.

My Nintendo News also cites the update as releasing August 19, 2026, although its post text contains an internal timing inconsistency by saying it was scheduled for “tomorrow, 19th August” on an article dated August 19. Inkipedia, which labels its page as covering unreleased content and notes that information is subject to change, lists version 11.3.0 as releasing on 20 August 2026. Taken together, the safest reader guidance is that the patch is scheduled around August 19 in North America and August 20 in Europe, with regional timing likely explaining part of the discrepancy.

Nintendo’s own patch-note language, as quoted by the outlets, matters more than the secondary date wording: all changes apply to both Nintendo Switch 2 and Nintendo Switch. There is no separate Switch 2-only balance track mentioned in the provided notes. The only Switch 2-specific piece is the Splatoon Raiders requirement for the Plastic-Bottle Shot Replica, because the notes identify Splatoon Raiders as Nintendo Switch 2 software and require its cleared main-story save data.

Carbon Roller, Tri-Slosher, and Glooga Dualies get usability buffs

The most straightforward buffs in the Splatoon 3 11.3.0 patch notes target weapons that benefit from cleaner engagement windows. Nintendo says Carbon Roller, Carbon Roller Deco, and Carbon Roller ANG-L now deal 50.0 damage and 100 damage farther than before on vertical swings through adjusted distance-based damage falloff. Those same Carbon Roller variants also get about a 5 percent increase to maximum movement speed while holding ZR to ink forward.

For Carbon players, that reads like a meaningful feel change. The extra vertical-swing reach should make edge-of-range confirms less punishing, while the forward inking speed buff helps a weapon class that lives and dies on getting into threat range without being deleted on approach. It does not turn Carbon into a backline weapon, and Nintendo does not describe any change to its core role. It does, however, make its close-range pressure less brittle.

Tri-Slosher, Tri-Slosher Nouveau, and Tri-Slosher ASH-N receive a roughly 5 percent reduction in ink consumption. That is a small number on paper, but Tri-Slosher is a pacing weapon. More swings before dry tank means more time contesting corners, sharking in messy paint, and forcing opponents to move. In a game where missed pressure often turns into a lost zone or broken push, ink efficiency is fight uptime.

Glooga Dualies and Glooga Dualies Deco get approximately 10 percent less shot scatter after a Dodge Roll. That is the kind of change duelists should feel immediately. Gloogas already ask the player to commit to roll timing and aim discipline. Tighter post-roll scatter rewards that commitment with more reliable damage output, especially in quick punish windows where a few stray shots decide whether the rolled player wins the trade or feeds.

.52 Gal, E-liter, Snipewriter, and Tri-Stringer are being pulled back from safe pressure

Nintendo’s own explanation, quoted by My Nintendo News and Inkipedia, says version 11.3.0 is intended to make it harder for certain main weapons to safely keep Splat Zones inked or maintain constant pressure on opponents. The clearest examples are the changes to .52 Gal, E-liter 4K, Snipewriter, and Tri-Stringer families.

The .52 Gal and .52 Gal Deco have the radius of ink splatter at the point of impact reduced by about 8 percent for projectiles that land at a distance. That is a direct hit to safe paint output at range. .52 Gal’s value has always included how much threat it creates while still contributing paint, so reducing distant splatter narrows some of that low-risk map control. The gun still has its identity, but zone painting from safer spacing should be less forgiving.

E-liter 4K, Custom E-liter 4K, E-liter 4K Scope, and Custom E-liter 4K Scope are hit through gear scaling. Nintendo says the effect of the ink-consumption reduction from Ink Saver (Main) has been lessened for these weapons. That does not read as a damage or range nerf. It targets endurance. Backline players who leaned on Ink Saver (Main) to hold sightlines and keep firing will need to recheck builds rather than assume old gear math still fits.

Snipewriter 5H and Snipewriter 5B now consume about 7 percent more ink. Tri-Stringer, Inkline Tri-Stringer, Bulbz Tri-Stringer, and Order Stringer Replica have a smaller area inked by falling spray. Both changes attack sustained influence. For anchor and support players, the question after this Splatoon 3 balance change is not whether these weapons still function. It is whether their old paint rhythms still let a team hold Splat Zones without exposing itself.

Triple Splashdown is faster to protect the user, but its damage area shrinks

Special weapons also change in version 11.3.0. The provided Nintendo Life excerpt identifies Triple Splashdown as one of the adjusted specials. According to Nintendo’s notes in that report, players become invulnerable to damage about one-sixth of a second faster after activation. At the same time, the damaging explosion area is reduced by about 9 percent, and the distance traveled by the ink fists is increased.

That combination is more interesting than a flat buff or nerf. Faster invulnerability helps Triple Splashdown users survive activation, which has always been the tension around panic or counter-engage specials: if the startup is too punishable, the special becomes unreliable under pressure. Shrinking the damaging explosion area, however, means nearby opponents get a little more room to survive if they are spaced well. Increased ink-fist travel adds another spacing variable, although the excerpted notes do not provide the full numerical value after that line.

For active players, the matchup adjustment is about timing and distance. If you are using Triple Splashdown, version 11.3.0 should make the button feel safer at the moment you commit. If you are fighting it, do not assume the same close-range blast coverage as before. The special appears to be shifting toward more reliable activation with a tighter lethal footprint.

The notes also state that points required for some special weapons have changed, according to My Nintendo News and Nintendo’s patch-note structure reproduced by Nintendo Life. The supplied source text does not list the full point table, so players should verify individual kit costs in-game after updating before locking in ranked loadouts.

The Squid Surge fix closes a movement exploit path

Version 11.3.0 includes one listed bug fix, but movement bugs matter in Splatoon because mobility is aim, defense, and tempo all at once. Nintendo says it fixed an issue where performing certain actions immediately after jumping off a wall with Squid Surge allowed greater horizontal movement than intended.

The note is narrow, but the implications are practical. Any player using that interaction for extra lateral displacement loses a piece of unintended movement. For most casual matches, this may read like housekeeping. For high-level play, where wall movement and micro-positioning can decide whether a player escapes a pinch or starts a flank, removing unintended horizontal travel makes the movement model more consistent.

This is also the only bug fix called out in the provided Splatoon 3 patch notes. There are no listed netcode changes, performance changes, map reworks, Salmon Run adjustments, or weapon hit-detection fixes in the supplied source material. That absence matters because players looking for broad technical changes should keep expectations in check. Version 11.3.0 is framed by Nintendo as a multiplayer balance update with a Splatoon Raiders reward and a specific Squid Surge control fix, not a wider systems patch.

Active players should test gear, paint output, and Splat Zones habits after the update

This patch fits the rhythm of Splatoon 3’s later balance work. Inkipedia’s entry for version 11.2.0 says that earlier June 2026 update focused on balance and matchmaking, including changes that softened some version 11.0.0 improvements after Nintendo analyzed battles over a longer period. Version 11.3.0 continues that maintenance pattern. Nintendo’s note says the next update will again focus on multiplayer balance.

The immediate checklist is clear. Carbon Roller users should retest vertical-swing ranges and approach speed. Tri-Slosher players should feel whether the ink-consumption reduction changes how aggressively they can hold corners. Glooga players should spend time after Dodge Rolls and confirm whether the scatter reduction makes their punish windows more dependable. On the other side, .52 Gal, E-liter, Snipewriter, and Tri-Stringer players should assume their old zone-control routines need adjustment.

The Plastic-Bottle Shot Replica is worth claiming if you meet the Splatoon Raiders requirements, but Nintendo’s own note that it shares Tentatek Splattershot specifications keeps it from being the competitive center of the patch. The true Splatoon 3 update story is pressure management. Version 11.3.0 buffs several weapons that want cleaner personal fights while reducing some of the safer paint and endurance patterns that can lock down Splat Zones.

If you play ranked regularly, do not jump straight into an important set with old muscle memory. Check your ink tank on the affected weapons, confirm special costs in-game where your kit changed, and relearn the new Triple Splashdown spacing. The numbers here are small enough that the game will still feel familiar, but in Splatoon, small percentage changes decide who gets to keep firing when the zone flips.