Splatoon Raiders Difficulty: Tourist vs Raider vs Survivalist

Difficulty comparison

The table does not claim a specific percentage change because Nintendo has not provided one.

Tourist difficulty

Tourist is designed for a more casual experience. It is a sensible mode for learning movement, ink recovery, Tank switching and Gadget interactions without giving up access to the game's loot pool.

Still unknown:

• Whether the player receives more health or enemies deal less damage.
• Whether objective timers are extended.
• Whether enemy counts or attack patterns change.
• Whether checkpoints are more generous.
• Whether any challenge records exclude Tourist clears.

Do not describe Tourist as an “assist mode” with specific features until the final settings menu is documented.

Raider difficulty

Raider is Nintendo's standard experience. It is the natural baseline for comparative testing because higher and lower modes can be measured against it.

For first-time players familiar with Splatoon movement, Raider is a reasonable starting point. Difficulty can be changed later, so choosing it does not create a permanent commitment.

Survivalist difficulty

Survivalist is intended for experienced players and challenge-seekers. Nintendo states that Salmonids are much tougher at higher difficulties, but does not explain whether difficulty affects only statistics or also behavior and encounter composition.

Because the same loot is available on all settings, Survivalist should be selected for challenge rather than an assumed reward advantage.

Does higher difficulty give better loot?

Nintendo's answer is no: the loot will be the same for each difficulty. The US product page clarifies that difficulty affects combat, not the loot you can get.

The exact interpretation should remain careful:

• The same loot types and items are available.
• Nintendo has not published rarity percentages.
• Challenge-specific cosmetics or records, if any exist, have not been detailed.
• Stage completion rewards may have conditions unrelated to the general loot pool.

Avoid stating that every drop rate is identical unless testing confirms it.

When can difficulty be changed?

Nintendo says the setting can be changed at any time on the Hideout Ship. That confirms flexible changes between raids. It does not necessarily prove that the player can pause in the middle of a stage and switch without consequence.

Launch testing should check:

1. Whether the active raid must be abandoned.
2. Whether checkpoints retain the old setting.
3. Whether a boss can be restarted on a different difficulty.
4. Whether the change affects all save files or only the current profile.
5. Whether multiplayer follows the host's selection.

Multiplayer and difficulty

Nintendo separately confirms that multiplayer automatically scales player power. It has not explained how this interacts with Tourist, Raider or Survivalist.

Open questions include:

• Is difficulty chosen by the host?
• Must all players unlock Survivalist first?
• Does power scaling normalize upgrades before difficulty is applied?
• Do helpers in Call for Help enter at the requester's difficulty?
• Is the Help Bonus affected by difficulty?

Until launch, multiplayer scaling should not be described as an automatic reduction of enemy difficulty.

Which difficulty should you choose?

These are editorial recommendations, not official difficulty prescriptions.

How to measure the differences after launch

A useful controlled test should keep the following constant:

• Same stage and checkpoint.
• Same weapon, level and special power.
• Same Tank, Gadgets and Parts.
• Same Relic Powers.
• Same player count.

Then record:

• Damage received from one repeatable attack.
• Hits required to defeat a fixed Lesser Salmonid.
• Boss health phases and time to defeat.
• Enemy count and spawn timing.
• Objective timer length.
• Revive, checkpoint or failure behavior.
• Loot items and quantities over multiple runs.

One run per mode is not enough to establish drop-rate differences.

FAQ

Related Guides

First Raid Beginner Guide Learn the raid loop, movement, Tank choice, difficulty, loot, upgrades, co-op, and early mistakes. Enemy Guide Salmonid Enemies Learn the three enemy categories, Boss drops, Mega Power Eggs, Showstoppers, and launch-week combat fundamentals. Co-Op Guide Multiplayer & Co-Op Check player counts, local wireless, online co-op, Call for Help, Nintendo Switch Online, and version requirements. Build Guide Tank Comparison Compare Speed, Power, and Tactical Tank roles, Gadgets, upgrades, Relic Powers, and first-pick advice.