The third installment of the Splatoon series, Splatoon 3, is no doubt one of the best in the series. Exclusively available for the Nintendo Switch, the game’s launch back in September 2022 was a huge success, but things have taken a different turn since then. Ever since its initial launch, the hype for Splatoon 3 has died down significantly. It has seen a steady decline to the point where players report encountering the “not enough players” error when queuing for matchmaking. Anyway, if you play Splatoon 3 regularly but are suddenly encountering the error, consider reading this guide, as we have shared all the details regarding whether a workaround for it is available.
Online games rely on their player base to provide engagement to players using the matchmaking system that pits them against each other or in a party together. In most cases, depending on the server on which you are initiating the matchmaking, it will take the game (Splatoon 3) about 1-2 minutes to load every player into the match. But sometimes, due to various reasons, this doesn’t happen, and you are greeted with the not enough players message. In this situation, there are only a few things you can try.
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Splatoon 3 not enough players: Any workaround for it?
As said earlier, the player base of Splatoon 3 is nowhere near what it used to be when it was launched initially. Due to this, it is possible that the lack of players in the game is the reason why you are encountering the not enough players error. If there are no players to match you with, the matchmaking system will fail and throw this error. But this isn’t a new error that players are encountering now. It appeared back in 2022 as well, even when the game’s player base was substantially large. Even Nintendo has a dedicated page for this error on the official Splatoon 3 support page. So, it is possible that your internet connection is to blame. To rule this possibility out, here are some workarounds worth trying:
1) Check your internet
A faulty or slow internet connection can be the reason why you are encountering this error. So, we recommend that you either restart your router or switch to a different network to check if the issue persists. You can try connecting to a mobile hotspot and then check if the error still occurs. Nintendo has also mentioned switching to a wired connection for better connectivity, so try the same. In addition to this, make sure that your console’s NAT type is set to A.
2) Sleep mode
A player shared that putting their console into sleep mode and powering it up again made the issue go away. After this, you can launch the game, and check if the matchmaking works. If not, close the game, and then disable the network connection, re-enable it, and then check again.
3) Change location
Changing the physical location of the Switch can also work. We recommend visiting a friend’s place, connecting to their wifi, and then checking if you still encounter the issue. If you don’t, then it is clear that the problem lies with your Wifi router or ISP.
Player base issue
All the above-mentioned workarounds are of no use if there is simply not enough players playing Splatoon 3. If that’s indeed the case, the game won’t be able to find players to match you with. Well, there is not much to be done here other than playing the single-player campaign or waiting for more players to join in.
That said, now you know how to deal with the not enough players issue in Splatoon 3. For more such interesting guides on all the latest gaming trends, consider visiting Android Gram daily.
