Splatoon 2 tips and tricks - Where to find Murch and the other vendors

Splatoon 2 has been out for a week now, which has given most launch day players plenty of time to explore the bustling Inkopolis Square. But if you've been too busy inking turf to take in the sights, you may not have noticed all the areas of interest scattered around your Inkling's new home.

While the major points of interest can be found via the shortcut map in the menu (press X), you can also access everything by physically walking to the place in question. And some areas and characters can only be found this way.

Below we've taken a walking tour of Inkopolis Square and noted all of the highlights you can find while out and about.

When you first boot up Splatoon 2, you always spawn at the entrance to Inkopolis Square, which is directly south of the large Battle Lobby. For this tour, we'll treat the Square like a clock face when referencing locations: the Lobby is at 12 o'clock (north) and you spawn at 6 o'clock (south).

If you turn around at the arrival point, immediately behind you is Crusty Sean's Crust Bucket food truck.

Here you can trade in food and drink tickets for power-ups that increase the EXP and coins you earn in battle or the chance of unlocking specific sub-abilities when leveling up gear. Tickets for Crusty Sean's are available in Salmon Run and single-player.

Directly behind Crusty Sean's, at the southernmost point on the Square, is the Amiibo box. If you want to activate an Amiibo within your game, head over to this case and interact with it.

If we turn around from the Amiibo Box and Crusty Sean's and head back north, on our right at about 4 o'clock is a DDR machine and an unoccupied system right next to it. This is Squid Beatz 2, a rhythm mini-game set to the tunes of Splatoon 2.

Squid Beatz 2 is stationed right outside The Shoal, the local area arcade. Inside The Shoal you can set up private matches or Salmon Runs with friends that are playing on the same network as you.

Just north of The Shoal, at about 3 o'clock, is the recording studio where Pearl and Marina broadcast their recurring segment. There's not much to do here except adoringly peek inside and see what our hosts are up to.

Just outside the Battle Lobby, on a bench on the east side of the entrance, sits Murch. He's a spikey-haired urchin kid surrounded by sea snails.

Once you reach level 4, you can speak to Murch to unlock the ability to order new gear. You can then walk up to any Inkling hanging out in the Square, examine their gear, and choose a piece to order. You can also find items via Splatnet in the Nintendo Switch Online mobile app.

After you've ordered a piece of gear, visit Murch the following day to pay for and collect it. He can also add slots to your existing gear, re-roll your abilities, or scrub out abilities you no longer want.

Just past Murch to the northeast, at not quite 1 o'clock, is a windowed café. If you peer inside, you can see Spyke from the original Splatoon. At the moment, this just seems like an Easter Egg, although the alley behind the café is reminiscent of Spyke's old stomping grounds.

Directly west of Murch is the Battle Lobby, the place to go when you want to compete online. This is where all of the competitive matchmaking takes place, as well as set-up for any private online matches.

On the western edge of the Battle Lobby entrance sits Judd, the squid-tailed cat judge you'll see at the end of every match. If you talk to Judd, he'll offer random bits of advice on Splatoon 2. He repeats the same words of wisdom until you enter and exit a building.

In the far northwest corner of Inkopolis Square, at 11 o'clock, is Grizzco. This is where you go to take part in the Salmon Run co-op mode—whenever it's open and available.

You have to complete two rounds of training before the online mode becomes accessible, and even then the door will only be open during the scheduled times (see Stages: Salmon Run in the in-game menu for the upcoming times).

On the left wall outside Grizzco is a small and shady window. If you've played Salmon Run and earned enough points to collect a bonus, this window is where you pick it up.

Bonuses do not expire, so you can play Salmon Run repeatedly and then collect all of your bonuses at a later time. You can pick up bonuses even when Grizzco is closed. Bonuses range from coins and food tickets to new gear.

Just south of Grizzco and west of Judd is an orange manhole. You'll often see a mysterious figure disappearing into this grate as you draw near. Entering will send you to Octo Canyon and Splatoon 2's single-player campaign.

Right behind the Octo Canyon manhole is the weapon shop, Ammo Knights. Shopkeeper Sheldon will sell you different pre-selected sets of weapon, sub-weapon, and special ability based on your experience level.

Between Ammo Knights and Headspace is a large red post box. If you want to draw a cartoon or note that will appear above your Inkling in the Square, this is the place to do so.

Just south of the Post Box, at 9 o'clock, is the hat shop, Headspace. Flow sells head gear here; as you level up, the head gear available will have more ability slots by default. But it's usually best to find an item you like on another Inkling in the Square and order it from Murch.

Continuing south, at 8:30, is Bisk's shoe store, Shella Fresh. Like Headspace, you can get stronger gear as you gain levels, but we recommend ordering from Murch unless you find something really special.

The last clothing store in the Galleria is Jelfonzo's Ye Olde Clothing Shoppe. Here you can purchase shirts, sweaters, jackets—you know, torso coverings. Again, browse freely but don't feel limited by the shop's inventory—check out what's fashionable in the Square and on order.