Little Buddy, also known as Smallfry, is a new character in Splatoon 3. It's a Smallfry, a type of Salmonid that was first seen in Salmon Run.
As first seen in the Splatoon 3 announcement trailer, it follows the player's Inkling/Octoling in an almost pet-like manner, as part of a seemingly symbiotic relationship.
Appearance[]
The Little Buddy greatly resembles the generic Smallfries seen in Salmon Run, but with a grey nose and pants instead of red (for the former) and lime green (for the latter). Its hairstyle is customizable during the character customization screen in the tutorial or in the settings after the tutorial, with seven hairstyles being available.
At the climax of the single-player mode, Little Buddy becomes an enormous, realistic salmon that retains its hairstyle known as Hugefry.
Use[]
Little Buddy acts like a sub weapon in Return of the Mammalians; Agent 3 holds it over their head and tosses it in an arc to land at a spot designated by a marker. If it lands on an interactable object - such as a switch, a crate, or a Fuzzy Octarian, it will attack them until one of them is splatted or Agent 3 recalls it. If it doesn't hit an interactable object, the Smallfry will simply hop in place, drawing enemy attention to itself; this leaves it vulnerable to attack, however. Certain upgrades increase Little Buddy's health and damage output, making it more effective as a sub weapon. The player can call it back to them by pressing "This way!", or the up arrow on the D-pad. It will then go into the player's backpack, and if the player isn't currently in a level, it will shortly exit the backpack and start wandering/following the player.
In the overworld of Alterna, Little Buddy can sniff out Loot Anchors if it is wandering outside of Agent 3's backpack; this can help the player locate the invisible Loot Anchors scattered around the map. More importantly, Little Buddy can be fed Power Eggs in order to remove Fuzzy Ooze; this is achieved by throwing it at a Fuzzball, which it swallows whole as the connected ooze mass dissipates. Holding Little Buddy near a Fuzzball reveals how many Power Eggs are needed to remove it; this icon becomes brighter if its trajectory will bring it into eating range, allowing the player to better gauge their throw.
During the final battle with Mr. Grizz, Agent 3 needs to collect Golden Eggs around the rocket in order to have their Little Buddy remove Fuzzballs in the environment and on Mr. Grizz himself. When Mr. Grizz absorbs all of his collected Fuzzy Ooze to become a giant, the Little Buddy is thrown into space alongside Agent 3. Fortunately, they are saved by DJ Octavio, who broadcasts "Calamari Inkantation 3MIX" via his Octobot King mech; this fills the Little Buddy with "marine life energy" and transforms them into a Hugefry. In this form, Smallfry/Hugefry is able to battle Mr. Grizz directly, distracting him as Agent 3 uses the Octobot King's Ink Vac to absorb the villain's Fuzzy Ooze. Following Mr. Grizz's defeat, the Little Buddy returns to its normal state, nestling itself in Agent 3's backpack as they return home aboard Octavio's robot.
Trivia[]
- Little Buddy's Hugefry form is near-identical to those of male spawning Salmon during real life Salmon Runs.
- It is unknown how or why the bond between the player's Inkling/Octoling and this Smallfry was formed - this is unusual due to the normal aggression Salmonids show towards Inklings and Octolings. A Sunken Scroll implies that Smallfries separated from their school become more amenable to non-Salmonids; they also become extremely voracious eaters, explaining the Little Buddy's ability to eat massive amounts of Fuzzy Ooze.
- Little Buddy sometimes rides in the player's ink tank (which is a backpack) in the single-player mode.
- It is unclear whether "Little Buddy" is their name, or just a title given to them from being a small friend of Agent 3.
- Notably, the amiibo, while taking its design mostly from Little Buddy, is referred to on the packaging simply as the Smallfry amiibo.
- While idle in Alterna, there is a chance that the Little Buddy will begin humming part of "Calamari Inkantation".
- Little Buddy will sing "Happy Little Workers" instead of "Calamari Inkantation" after defeating the final boss.
- Little Buddy can be found in 10 parts of Splatsville:
- On the stool outside of Crush Station
- On the metal crate to the left of the Ammo Knights entrance and right of the main stairs(He can be seen on the title screen if he spawns there)
- Behind the player's spawn on a square drain(He can also be seen on the title screen if he spawns there)
- In front of the waterfall river garden in the northern quad
- On the fence on the balcony overlooking the river garden
- Next to Murch, lying down(and occasionally sleeping)
- On the concrete ledge next to the manhole
- High up inside of the cafe above Deep Cut's studio
- High up on top of a sign attached above Hotlantis
- On top of the sidewalk pole in front of Hotlantis
- Due to the fact that Little Buddy glows whenever they are pointing out a hidden cache, it is speculated that Little Buddy may be a Smallfry version of a Goldie.
- You will get and/or see little buddy or Smallfry at the second you start Splatoon 3 where you chose the eye colour, hair, etc.
Gallery[]
