The brilliant colors and paint-splatting gameplay of Splatoon 3 offer a unique experience to both beginner and veteran players. Players can either progress the storyline with their favorite squid or octopus character or take on a battle on multiplayer and claim victory. Meanwhile, since multiplayer gameplay is prone to issues, most players ask questions related to Splatoon 3 on how to cancel matchmaking.
Key Takeaways
- Matchmaking in Splatoon 3 can be prone to issues and waiting times, prompting players to cancel it.
- There are two ways to cancel matchmaking: using the cancel button or restarting the game.
- The cancel button is only available for a limited time, and if the player is already in a match, they may not be able to access it.
- Restarting the game is the only option when the cancel button is not available or matchmaking is glitched.
- Quitting during a match can result in severe infractions for the player’s character.
- Developers may improve matchmaking in future updates.
Matchmaking can often feel stuck or elongated in Splatoon 3, which may feel daunting initially.
Apart from all the new features introduced by Nintendo Switch and abilities to mix up gears and weapons, multiplayer still requires numerous fixes to improve the quality of gameplay. Players often opt to cancel matchmaking to cut the chase of the waiting times.
Meanwhile, this process is not easy as it sounds because the game limits the canceling feature for matchmaking. If you are also one of those players stuck in matchmaking and want to cancel it, this guide is just for you.
This guide entails all the details you need to know about when and how to cancel matchmaking in Splatoon 3. With that said, let’s get right into it.
How To Cancel Matchmaking In Splatoon 3?
Before diving directly into canceling the matchmaking in Splatoon 3, many players might want to know how these mechanics work. To answer that, numerous aspect goes into the mechanics of matchmaking in Splatoon 3. The first and most important one is the location, and your team composition will be based on the players on your or nearest server.
But the most important and prominent aspect is the weapons with a matchmaking range. For that instance, game mechanics balance the players during the matchmaking based on these matchmaking ranges of the weapons. This might seem a little tricky to comprehend, but once you start playing the game, you will be able to understand it with your own experience.

There are two ways to cancel matchmaking with a team in the game. Let’s discuss them one by one.
Canceling Matchmaking With A Button
The first and easiest way to get out of the matchmaking process is by holding down the cancel button in Splatoon 3. The button will be available as soon as your character is available for matchmaking.
All you need to do is to hold the button down for some time, and you will be out of the hair of matchmaking.
This all sounds very simple and easy. But it also comes with two downsides that may impact the whole process of canceling the matchmaking in Splatoon 3. The first is that the Cancel button is only available for a limited time.

When your game is into the matchmaking process, you will be able to see a ring counter around the Cancel button. Once the counter ends, the button will disappear, and there is nothing you can do about it.
Now you will be unable to cancel the game’s matchmaking process and will have to wait until the matchmaking is completed.
As said earlier, the matchmaking process is based on the weapons, locations, and many more aspects of the game; it may take some time to compose a balanced team finally.
There is no fixed waiting time where you can get out of the matchmaking screen. In our case, we also had to wait over 16 minutes on the matchmaking screen of Splatoon 3.

Moreover, if you were to play a match and continue it afterward, you may not be able to receive a Cancel button if you are in the next match. As for the next match, players will receive three options: Stop button to leave the ongoing multiplayer game, Keep Going button to continue the next match, or Change Gear, Then Go button.
You will have to leave the game if you do not want to proceed to the next match. Otherwise, players may have to wait for the matchmaking process again without any cancelation feature.
Cancel Matchmaking By Restarting The Game
Apart from the Cancel button, the only way to get out of the matchmaking dilemma is by restarting the game. This is the last and forced cancelation of matchmaking that involves shutting down the game completely and then restarting it. Players must only consider this when they have no other option and matchmaking is stuck or glitched with forever counter.
The only thing that you need to make sure is never to quit the game during a match. When you are playing the match, quitting in the middle will result in severe infractions for your character that may impact the overall performance of your playthrough. To avoid that, always shut down the game during matchmaking, as it is entirely safe.
Final Words
Splatoon 3 is unique and colorful to the Nintendo Switch exclusive series. Moreover, developers are also planning to add more content and upgrades to the latest release to enhance the gameplay experience for players.
We hope they may also fix this matchmaking problem that allows players to leave the matchmaking process anytime and anywhere. Or they can make the matchmaking process faster to reduce the waiting times and ensure balance teams for the colorful paint battles.
That is about it for Splatoon 3 how to cancel matchmaking guide. Do you find this guide helpful for canceling the matchmaking process and leaving the game?
What are your thoughts on getting out of the endless waiting times of matchmaking in Splatoon 3? We would love to hear them in the comments section down below.
Another similar problem that players face is resolved with our guide that you can check: Splatoon 3 How to Change Character?
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