Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Splintered Fate by developer Super Evil Megacorp is exactly the kind of game that those even remotely interested in the TMNT have been waiting for — a roguelike that straps four sewer-dwelling heroes and their allies into a run-and-bash formula that’s simultaneously familiar and surprisingly fresh. Think Supergiant’s Hades franchise, but with katanas and nunchaku. The Turtles vault through rooms of Foot Soldiers, bizarre mutants, and classic TMNT villains in a loop that’s addictive, chaotic, and occasionally poorly balanced.
Splintered Fate doesn’t reinvent the genre, but it does paste the TMNT skin over it with enough style to make it feel like its own adventure. You choose from Leo, Raph, Donnie, Mikey, and, thanks to the DLC, TMNT allies Casey Jones and Metalhead as well. The premise is simple: the heroes have been caught in a time loop that they need to navigate in order to save Master Splinter. Each hero is outfitted with distinct abilities that will aid progression through randomised rooms that hold power-ups, which will help you to adapt to every run.
Roguelike veterans and newcomers alike will find joy here. Runs tend to be quick but packed with decisions, rewards, and callbacks to numerous moments from the vast history of the TMNT franchise. That said, it isn’t without flaws. RNG can be annoying. Sometimes you get great power-ups, other times you get flimsy rewards that will hardly help in the adventure. Progression can feel uneven, and some runs feel hopeless because the items given are so weak.
On standard Switch hardware, Splintered Fate looks impressive when viewed on its own merits — the art style captures a cel-shaded TMNT vibe; character models ooze style, and levels feel varied enough to keep things interesting. That said, the visuals aren’t going to stick out remotely when compared to triple-A console titles, and in certain sections, the game looks rather muddy.
Performance is solid, but heavy encounters with multiple enemies onscreen will see the frame rate dip and stutter. Sound and presentation are great; the voice work captures the personality of the turtles the eccentric cast of characters perfectly. Music can be rather forgettable in some sections, but overall, it does a commendable job of keeping the chaos engaging.
For roguelike fans, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Splintered Fate’s loop is addictive. Upgrades, randomised room layouts, modifiers, and challenge modes give runs long legs, and beating bosses or experimenting with new builds adds incentive to jump back in. Couch co-op and easy online play give it a social edge, which helps with some of the repetition.
Released December 16, 2025, the Nintendo Switch 2 edition of Splintered Fate is more than a simple reissue — it takes full advantage of the newer hardware. Resolution jumps to 4K in docked mode (1080p undocked), and the game hits a smoother 60 frames per second, making combat feel noticeably more responsive and fluid than its original Switch counterpart. This version also unlocks GameChat and GameShare, meaning you can connect with friends locally or online with built-in voice/video chat — a big step up from the base Switch’s invite-code shuffle.
