Polygon called Splatoon Raiders the strongest single-player entry the series has produced, which is a fine result for a franchise built around 4v4 turf paint. It also lands on the Switch, and Nintendo keeps Splatoon inside its own walled garden. If you own a PC and want the same feeling - colorful, non-realistic, fast, arcade - the good news is that the solo shooter scene has been in a great run for years. These are the best apps for Splatoon-style single-player shooter games on desktop, all with campaigns you can start today.
We stuck to games with a defined single-player arc or a bot-friendly first hour, not endless PVP lobbies. Every pick runs on Windows, most have Steam Deck verification, and the aesthetic bar was set at “would not look out of place next to a Nintendo pastel palette.”
What to look for in a Splatoon-style solo shooter
Splatoon works because of a few structural choices most military shooters ignore. When we vetted the list, we looked for:
- A clear single-player campaign or an offline-friendly bot mode, not a matchmaking treadmill.
- Movement tech beyond crouch and sprint - wall-runs, dashes, portals, grapples, hover, or squid-form equivalents.
- A color language that leans bright and stylized. Neon, cel-shading, ink, magic glow, cartoon plastic.
- Weapons that reward splash, spray, and area denial over precise headshots.
- A pace that ramps up in the first hour instead of easing you into 20 minutes of intro cutscenes.
- Systems you can finish in a weekend or two if you want to, with challenge modes for players who want more.
Quick comparison
| Game | Best for | Platforms | Free plan | Starting price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ULTRAKILL | Style-heavy speed combat | Windows | Demo | Paid, mid-range |
| Neon White | Speedrun-friendly puzzle FPS | Windows | Demo on Steam Next Fest events | Paid, mid-range |
| Titanfall 2 | Movement-first campaign | Windows | No | Paid, budget |
| High on Life | Cartoon comedy shooter | Windows | No | Paid, full-price at launch |
| Turbo Overkill | Neon cyberpunk carnage | Windows | Demo | Paid, mid-range |
| Immortals of Aveum | Magic-shooter campaign | Windows | No | Paid, budget after discounts |
| SPLITGATE: Arena Reloaded | Portal arena with bot warmup | Windows | Yes, free-to-play | Free |
The seven picks
1. ULTRAKILL - best for style-heavy speed combat
ULTRAKILL is the closest thing PC has to a modern arcade shooter that rewards showmanship. You slide, dash, wall-jump, parry with a fist, and drink enemy blood to heal, all while a style meter grades you like a fighting game. The palette is red, black, white, and neon, and the levels are built around loops so you can chain kills at ridiculous speed.
Where it falls short: Still in Early Access - Act III is not finished. The difficulty curve after the tutorial is steep for players new to twitch-heavy shooters.
Pricing: Paid, mid-range on Steam. Frequent 25 to 30 percent discounts.
Platforms: Windows. Steam Deck verified.
Download: Steam · Developer site
Bottom line: The most stylish solo shooter on the list, and the one that captures the “score attack” feeling Splatoon players will recognize from Salmon Run.
2. Neon White - best for speedrun-friendly puzzle FPS
Neon White turns each weapon into a card. You can either shoot the card or discard it for a movement ability - a jump, a dash, a bomb - and every level is a tight puzzle you replay for a faster time. The visual identity is bright anime pastel, and levels rarely last more than a minute, so the loop of “run, retry, shave a second” is the whole game.
Where it falls short: The visual novel scenes between missions divide players. If you skip them you miss the character writing that carries the campaign.
Pricing: Paid, mid-range on Steam. Regular discounts down to the low double digits.
Platforms: Windows. Steam Deck verified.
Download: Steam · Developer site
Bottom line: If Splatoon’s short-round replay energy is what you love, Neon White is the closest cousin PC has.
3. Titanfall 2 - best for movement-first campaign
Titanfall 2 is the campaign a lot of shooter players cite as the best of the last decade. The pilot moves like Splatoon’s Inkling in squid form - wall-runs, double-jumps, sliding into a mech drop - and the level design keeps introducing new mechanics right up to the credits. It is short, tight, and built to be played twice.
Where it falls short: The multiplayer servers took years of DDoS abuse and have only partially recovered. Buy it for the campaign, treat MP as a bonus.
Pricing: Paid, budget. Almost always on sale for under ten dollars.
Platforms: Windows. Available on Steam and Origin.
Bottom line: The cheapest way to get a Splatoon-adjacent movement rush with a proper campaign attached.
4. High on Life - best for cartoon comedy shooter
High on Life is a solo FPS from Squanch Games with living, talking guns and a bright, cartoon-plastic art style. Each Gatlian has its own personality and a movement gadget baked in - a mantis-blade grapple, a slam ability, a hover pod. The tone is closer to a Saturday morning show than a war game, and the moment-to-moment feel matches Splatoon’s playful attitude better than most PC shooters manage.
Where it falls short: Comedy is central to the pacing, and it does not land for every player. Combat depth is lighter than the other picks here.
Pricing: Paid, full-price at launch. Frequently discounted below the mid-range on Steam.
Platforms: Windows. Also on Xbox Game Pass for PC.
Download: Steam · Developer site
Bottom line: The most tonally Splatoon-shaped pick - bright, silly, and confident about it.
5. Turbo Overkill - best for neon cyberpunk carnage
Turbo Overkill is built around a chainsaw leg. That single mechanic is enough to give the game its own combat identity: you slide into a group, saw a body in half, launch to a rooftop, and rain neon down while a synthwave track ticks up. The Paradise setting is drenched in Vaporwave color, and the campaign runs across three acts with dozens of weapons and mods.
Where it falls short: Level layouts get maze-like in the later chapters, and the visual noise can hide enemies at higher difficulties.
Pricing: Paid, mid-range on Steam. Discounts of 50 percent or more are common.
Platforms: Windows. Steam Deck verified.
Download: Steam · Publisher site
Bottom line: The most overtly stylized solo shooter here, and the one with the widest weapon roster.
6. Immortals of Aveum - best for magic-shooter campaign
Immortals of Aveum is a single-player FPS that swaps guns for spells across three color-coded schools - blue for precision, green for burst, red for close range. The magic system is closer to a Splatoon color loadout than a traditional weapon wheel, and the campaign runs long with a full story, side quests, and skill trees. The art direction leans painterly and colorful rather than the usual dark-fantasy palette.
Where it falls short: Launched at full triple-A price without the audience to match, and the studio downsized after release. Support has been minimal since.
Pricing: Paid, but heavily discounted since launch - often 70 to 90 percent off on Steam.
Platforms: Windows. Available on Steam, EA App, and Epic.
Bottom line: The closest thing to a Splatoon single-player campaign on PC - three-color magic, big set pieces, no PVP demands.
7. SPLITGATE: Arena Reloaded - best for portal arena with bot warmup
SPLITGATE: Arena Reloaded is the relaunched form of Splitgate 2, fusing arena modes from the original with a battle royale layer. The Splatoon pull here is the portal mechanic - a movement layer that gives arenas a vertical spatial puzzle on top of the shooting, plus a colorful sci-fi palette that feels closer to Splatoon’s stages than any other PVP FPS on Steam. Bots handle your first match after the tutorial and backfill when someone quits.
Where it falls short: The core loop is competitive PVP. Bot support is more of a warmup than a full campaign, and the launch history has been rocky.
Pricing: Free-to-play. Cosmetic battle pass and skin bundles are optional.
Platforms: Windows. Also on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S.
Download: Steam · Official site
Bottom line: The pick for players who want the arena color and movement of Splatoon without the price tag, with bots to soften the entry.
How to pick the right one
If Salmon Run’s score-chase energy is what you miss, start with ULTRAKILL. The style meter, the escalating waves, and the freedom to chain a single kill into a highlight reel are the closest a PC game gets to that feeling.
If you want the shortest possible time-to-fun, buy Titanfall 2. It costs less than a lunch, the campaign is under ten hours, and the wall-run tutorial takes about five minutes.
If you want a proper single-player story with a color-based combat system, Immortals of Aveum is the closest structural match. Three-color magic maps directly onto Splatoon’s ink types, and the campaign runs long.
If you have a Steam Deck, ULTRAKILL, Neon White, and Turbo Overkill are all verified and play well portable - the closest Splatoon-style handheld experience PC can offer.
If you do not want to pay anything, SPLITGATE: Arena Reloaded is free and comes with bots. It is the loosest match to Splatoon on this list, but it is the only zero-cost entry.
If the vibe matters more than the combat depth, High on Life is the one. It looks and sounds most like Splatoon.
FAQ
Why not just wait for Splatoon on PC? Nintendo has never released a mainline Splatoon on any platform except its own consoles, and there is no public sign that will change. Emulation of Switch games sits in legal grey territory and does not run online play. If you want the Splatoon feeling on PC, the practical answer is a game that shares its DNA rather than the game itself.
Do any of these have paint mechanics like Splatoon? The 2D platformer Splasher is the closest by pure mechanic, but it is not a first-person shooter. Among the FPS picks, Immortals of Aveum’s three-color magic system is the closest analogue - spells, not ink, but the same “pick the right color for the fight” logic.
Which is best for a Steam Deck? ULTRAKILL, Neon White, and Turbo Overkill are all Steam Deck verified and run at solid frame rates on the handheld. Titanfall 2 works well with community controller layouts. Immortals of Aveum runs but drains the battery fast because of its higher graphics load.
Are any of these co-op? Most are strict single-player. SPLITGATE: Arena Reloaded is the only pick with online multiplayer as its main mode. If co-op is important, look at co-op-focused roundups instead of this list.
Are the campaigns long? Short by modern standards, which we consider a feature. ULTRAKILL, Neon White, Titanfall 2, and Turbo Overkill run 8 to 15 hours on a first playthrough. High on Life and Immortals of Aveum run longer, roughly 15 to 25 hours with side content.
Do any run on macOS or Linux? Most run on Linux through Steam’s Proton compatibility layer, and all Deck-verified picks work as a good proxy for Linux support. macOS support is limited - Splasher is the only pick with a native macOS build, and it is not on our shortlist because it is a platformer rather than a shooter.
