Splatoon 3 appears to have aged up Li'l Judd.
Anyone who's played Splatoon will know that Judd the cat judges the results of multiplayer matches and awards the winner. He was joined by Li'l Judd in Splatoon 2, with each cat representing a different team in the match. Fans wondered what might be next for Splatoon 3, and thanks to the most recent gameplay trailer we finally have an answer - Li'l Judd isn't so little anymore.
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Judd and Li'l Judd can be seen towards the end of the gameplay trailer when announcing the winner of the match. As you can see, although Judd looks almost exactly like he did in Splatoon and Splatoon 2, Li'l Judd has been redesigned and looks a lot older. Not only is he quite a bit bigger than he used to be, but his fur seems to have changed tone to a more sand-like colour.
Interestingly, Li'l Judd is also a lot spikier this time around. The edges of his fur are all pointed out now, much more like a hedgehog than anything else. It's not clear why considering Judd still looks the same, but it could be due to the new sandy environments that Splatoon 3 takes place in.
Contrary to popular belief, Li'l Judd isn't Judd's offspring and is instead a clone of him. Splatoon 2's Sunken Scrolls, the source of most of the game's lore, reveal that Judd was frozen in a capsule to keep him alive and that the capsule had a slot that allowed him to create a clone of himself so as to not get lonely.
If that shocks you, then consider giving the Art of Splatoon 2 a read, where it's claimed that, not only is Li'l Judd aware of the fact that he's a clone, giving him an inferiority complex, he's also "waiting for his chance to stab Judd in the
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