Splatoon is a video game developed and published by Nintendo exclusively for their Wii U system. The game is a third-person shooter in which teams of kid-like/squid-like beings known as Inklings use a variety of weapons to cover a battlefield in their color of ink, with the winners of the Turf War being the team who covers the largest surface area in their color.

An in-game Splatfest event took place for 24 hours in North America between August 28-29, 2015, with Transformers as its central theme due to a sponsorship deal between Nintendo and Hasbro.

Synopsis

Freshness is the right of all sentient beings.

12,000 years in Earth's future, humanity has gone extinct due to rising sea levels, causing sea life to evolve and become the dominant species of the planet. Many of these creatures, most notably Inklings, reside in the bustling city of Inkopolis, whose residents are obsessed with staying "fresh" and participating in the popular sport known as Ink Battles. Occasionally, a Splatfest is held in Inkopolis, in which competitors split into teams based on their preferences for one of two subjects, such as cats vs. dogs, then participate in a series of Turf Wars over a 24-hour period to earn points for their team based on their performance, with a winning side being chosen after the 24 hours are up.

On August 18, a sudden broadcast of Inkopolis News took place, with news anchors Callie and Marie stating that they had a special announcement. According to the Squid Sisters, word from "on high" had come down stating that there was to be a new Splatfest event soon, and that its theme would be Transformers, with Inklings choosing whether to represent the Autobots or Decepticons. When asked which side she would support, Callie enthusiastically praised the Autobots, revealing her admiration for Optimus Prime. This prompted Marie to accuse her cousin of being a "classic goody-goody", citing Shockwave, Soundwave, and Megatronus as being much cooler, though Callie claimed this was only because Marie was jealous of the Autobot supporters' stylish red shirts. The two urged their viewers to pick a side at the Pledge Box by Inkopolis Tower before continuing with the rest of their newscast.

For several days following this, Inklings threw support behind their respective sides, wearing shirts bearing their chosen faction's insignia, changing their ink and tentacle colors to match, and posting graffiti and artwork in support of their teams all over Inkopolis. On the night of August 28, the Splatfest began, with teams taking to Port Mackerel, Saltspray Rig, and Flounder Heights to earn points for their respective side while Callie and Marie each set up trucks in Inkopolis Plaza and put on a live performance from on top of them. After a grueling 24 hours of continuous battles, the Squid Sisters appeared again on Inkopolis News to announce the final results of the event. The Autobots proved to be the more popular faction, with 58% of participants taking their side. However, befitting their chosen faction's nature, the Decepticon supporters proved more vicious in combat, winning 56% of all Splatfest battles. As a result, due to the victory percentage being worth four times as many points as the popularity percentage, the Decepticons ultimately placed higher than the Autobots, earning 266 points compared to the Autobots' 234, prompting a celebratory cry of "Decepticons annihilate!" from Marie. She declared that being evil never felt so good, though Callie continued to maintain that her side had the cooler shirts. The two reminded participants to pick up their Super Sea Snail prizes before continuing with the rest of their broadcast.

Notes

"Hmm...an emissary of peace, or an ancient evil bent on my destruction...tough choice."