Nintendo to end support for Splatoon 2’s Online Lounge next month

Nintendo has announced that it will end support for Splatoon 2’s Online Lounge feature in the Nintendo Switch Online app next month. The Splatoon 2 Online Lounge allows players to arrange battles through their smartphones, allowing them to send URLs to other services such as Twitter and bring players together in a single Splatoon 2 Online Lounge room.

Support for the Splatoon 2 Online Lounge ends on July 28. From then on, the Nintendo Switch Online app will no longer display the feature, and it won’t be accessible by any user. However, it’s not all bad news. Users will still be able to voice chat through the Nintendo Switch Online app.

Nintendo has confirmed that while it is shutting down the Splatoon 2 Online Lounge, there are no other planned closures of other game-specific features within the Nintendo Switch Online app. The company also reminded fans that starting a local or online multiplayer game is possible without using this feature.

Splatoon 2 is a popular multiplayer title for the Nintendo Switch, but that popularity seems to wax and wane based on the in-game events. As each event crops up, pitting two rivals, ketchup and mayo, for example, against one another, players are forced to choose a team to side with. This usually sees most Splatoon 2 fans turn out for a weekend of hectic competitive multiplayer, which dies down again once the event is over.

Nintendo is likely ending support for this feature as it plans to implement something new for Splatoon 3. While the game was sorely lacking from Nintendo’s E3 2021 showcase, it’s something that fans are always looking out for.