The original “Pokémon Snap” in 1999 featured a young photographer (Todd Snap) taking photos of over 60 different Pokémon using cameras of the time. Released on the Nintendo 64, the game charmed players with its focus on photography and impressing Professor Oak with skillful snapshots.
“The world in which wild Pokémon live is rendered to the best of the Nintendo Switch’s hardware capabilities, and the aim of the game is to investigate that world. Once you’ve taken a photo, you can edit and share it online with people around the world,” Haruki Suzaki, “New Pokémon Snap” director at Bandai Namco Studios, wrote in an email to The Washington Post.
“We took that concept [of photographing Pokémon in their natural surroundings] and adapted it to the Nintendo Switch’s hardware in a way that fits today’s photo culture,” Suzaki wrote. “The result is a simple game of taking pictures in a world where Pokémon are alive and well in nature, but at the same time there is a variety of contemporary ways to play with photography.”
Instead of catching Pokémon, the goal in this game is to capture images. Players can work toward completing the Photodex, an album of pictures, by taking different photos of each Pokémon. Photos can be edited, cropped and even filtered.
The game takes place in the new Lental Region, composed of islands of varying environments, such as the beach or the forest. Various Pokémon including Pikachu, Squirtle and even newer ones like Scorbunny and Sobble will be present. Interacting with those Pokémon by playing the flute, can make them dance, which generates even better photos.
“Pokémon Snap” on the Nintendo 64 featured a point system that awarded players if Pokémon were well-positioned in a photo. The 2021 game adds to this with a star system that rates pictures by rarity.
“The system is designed to help you get to know a Pokémon better by capturing various scenes of it, from ordinary to special moments,” Suzaki said. “For a certain Pokémon, for example, walking is 1★, eating is 2★, playing is 3★ and dancing with friends is 4★.”
Suzaki said that the original developers of the Nintendo 64 “Pokémon Snap” were consulted for this project, though a new team is responsible for the upcoming title. With the Switch’s updated graphics, the new game shows more detailed environments and the playful creatures’ expressions.
It also has nighttime phase, which wasn’t present in the 1999 version. At night, nocturnal Pokémon will appear and players can use a new item, Illumina Orbs, to get different reactions for their photo shoot.
“New Pokémon Snap” also makes use of the Switch’s gyroscope to sense when the controller is moved, emulating the sense of “controlling a real camera,” according to Suzaki.
The game has grown more progressive. In 1999, players threw pester balls at Pokémon to knock out or stun them and generate an irritated response. In 2021, the game replaces this with Fluffruit, which resembles an apple but is not an apple, and still triggers reactions from Pokémon that can make for interesting photographs.
“There is no Pester Ball. … One of the reasons is that the ball can be perceived as something a little less kind in current times,” Suzaki said. “However, the Pester Ball was an important element to bring out a Pokémon’s reaction in the Nintendo 64 ‘Pokémon Snap,’ so we decided to add the role of the Pester Ball to the Fluffruit in 'New Pokémon Snap.’”
There is still an element of player choice involved.
Suzaki added: “Even though Fluffruit doesn’t hurt when it hits a Pokémon, it’d makes sense that some Pokémon don’t like being hit by Fluffruit. So, we designed the item to leave it up to players whether they place it near a Pokémon or throw it at a Pokémon.”
Read more:
