New Pokémon Snap

Video Game Review

1999 and 2000 were very different times in our earliest years of video gaming. We were still in the midst of the fifth generation of consoles, where many genre-defining games saw us take our first steps towards standard systems/mechanics we now consider integral parts of 21st-century interactive entertainment experiences. Over this period, developer HAL Laboratory and publisher Nintendo gave many their first on-rails shooter experience, but in a format that was revolutionary for the time. When you think of shooters, you think of guns, correct? What about… if you replaced that weapon with a camera?

Pokémon Snap was released at the height of the Pokémon craze, encouraging players of all ages to unleash their inner photographer and take pictures of some of the (at the time) 151 known Pokémon. The game was revolutionary in many ways. Not only was the game bright and colourful despite hardware limitations, but you could take the game cartridge to your local Blockbuster Video or Toys “R” Us store and get them printed. For the time, it was awe-inspiring, and I remember playing each stage for hours on end to get slightly better photos of each Pokémon for my score.

New Pokémon Snap 1

But times have changed, and what was once innovative back then can be seen as an average gaming experience, which lives better in our memories than reused in a new game. While this is not to say that it is a terrible game, by no means, New Pokémon Snap quickly shifts from the nostalgia and engaging gameplay into a monotonous experience. It made me wish they went all out and made this a mainline Pokémon game with a professional photo mode.

One of New Pokémon Snap’s downfall is arguably one of its most significant new additions, a narrative. It should be a no-brainer that a storyline would be an appropriate addition to the game, given its predecessor had very little of the sort. What they delivered was adequate, with the usual “Pokémon Anime” style of child-appeal, but it was nice to see them tie the two games together through references to Professor Oak and the early-story appearance of Todd. Like many Pokémon side games, the narrative is almost entirely forgettable but should keep younger players interested.

New Pokémon Snap 2

However, where the storyline fails is its brutally slow pace at times, constantly serving as a barrier to progressing through the game at your own pace. Didn’t like a particular stage? Well, you will probably be forced to play it several times at a slow pace, with both daytime and night-time versions interspersed with plot delivery which is a tad on the slow side. This is probably fine for the younger audiences who may take multiple attempts to discover everything, but those craftier players will find themselves bored to tears – at least until more items come their way for alternate poses.

The gameplay of New Pokémon Snap remains reminiscent of the original game, involving on-rail segments where you snap pictures of Pokémon at the opportune moment to get the most points. The “gameplay” element outside of this is that you can discover new ways to photograph the Pokémon and acquire better ratings by manipulating the environment with a variety of unlockable items. Really, it can best be described as taking the original Pokémon Snap’s gameplay mechanics and bringing them to modern-day standards. This is where the gameplay both thrives and falls a little flat.

New Pokémon Snap 3

On the plus side, the gameplay is easily approachable, and no matter your competency with video games or photography, it isn’t too hard to take some decent photos. The problem is that in-game photography, in general, has moved on. Despite being a game about taking photographs, you are not given anywhere near as much freedom as games like Final Fantasy XIVGenshin ImpactAnimal Crossing or many others released over the last few years. You can certainly take photos, and they sure throw in features to get close to these games as you can eventually retake shots or fiddle with filters – but being able to freely roam in a safari-like environment would have appealed more to the budding photographer inside of me. Instead it feels like the development team were only half way there, still confining viewers to select scenes within the on-rail segments.

That said, if you don’t mind replaying levels over and over again, there is some decent replayability. Each area is brimming with life, and there will undoubtedly be things you miss on your first, second or third playthroughs. But very quickly, you will have discovered everything there is to discover, and the appeal will wear off very quickly. Granted, this was the same in the original, but I think as time has passed, our expectations in games have shifted, and more needed to be done to diversify the game world in my opinion. It would have been nice for there to be some variety, allowing someone to go through the stages multiple times and have something different occur each time. This could perhaps be accomplished by having Pokémon doing alternate actions, having mini-narratives across subsequent run-throughs or completely different Pokémon to snap.

New Pokémon Snap 4

While there may be some flaws in the gameplay, New Pokémon Snap is one of the prettiest first-party games on the Nintendo Switch. It shows how, in fully transitioning from portable gaming consoles to home video consoles, they have managed to make the Pokémon universe prettier than ever.

New Pokémon Snap is not the revolutionary sequel we have been waiting twenty years for, as its repetitiveness quickly grinds, and nostalgia only goes so far. That said, for the average to hardcore Pokémon fan, there is still quite a lot to enjoy during at least the initial playthrough, has incredibly high production values in the world, Pokémon and sound design departments, and ultimately is still an enjoyable experience for those both young and old.

5

Sam
Sam
Founder of The Otaku's Study. I have been exploring this labyrinth of fandom these last fifteen years, and still nowhere close to the exit yet. Probably searching for a long time to come.

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