Written by: J.H. Longman
I’m not afraid to say it, sometimes when it comes to Pokemon I can get a little obsessed and with more and more being learned about both Pokemon Go and Pokken Tournament, my obsession has gripped me once more, so much so I’ve taken a small break from Super Mario Maker just to go mad for Pokemon Rumble U, and yet with these two great games on the horizon, all I can think about is how much I’d really like to see another Pokemon Snap game.
For me Pkmn-Snap was a game change, my favourite shooter to play, the mechanics, seeing the photos and feeling all excited as Professor Oak cast judgement on them, it was just spectacular and let’s not forget about being able to go off and find Mew at the end and catching a couple of cheeky snaps. Oh and let’s not forget the whole throwing stuff at Charmeleon to make him fall into the lava pit, just so we can make him evolve into Charizard and give us some major pointage for the snap of that action. It really would be awesome to see another installment and I’m not the only one to think that.
Gamers the world over all desire to see such a game happen, a Pokemon Snap 2 especially now the Pokemon world has grown greatly and there are so many more playful characters all just waiting to have their photo taken, but sadly there has never been another game. Even now there is no plans for a sequel and it’s not like Nintendo haven’t heard our cries, as Junichi Masuda did hear us and in an interview last year had this to say:
“It’s always great to hear from the fans and as a game player myself I can relate to what they want. They’re always wanting cool new things and obviously it would be great if we had the resources to develop all of these things but that can be difficult. As a player I definitely want to play a cool new version of Pokemon Snap but at the same time I also think if it was just a remake with better graphics I don’t think it would be as interesting as a lot of people are imagining. If someone was to end up developing it they’d have to come up with some cool ideas to really make it a good game for the current generation. It’s sort of like what I was saying about Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire. If it was just a direct port that would be kind of neat as well, but having new elements is definitely important.” — Junichi Masuda
However that aside, needing new elements to make it pop, why not do a merger? The Wii had not one but two Pokepark games, why not do a Pokemon Snap sequel by merging with Pokepark, it would be a move unexpected, offering that new element we desire, whilst at the same time, the list of Pokemon just keeps growing, a sequel would make great use of DLC and as for story, how’s this: The park has moved location and now bigger than ever, the exhibitions are all new and every week, new Pokemon are being introduced to the park. Although you’re a new member of the ranger staff, you are also a photographer, and so you asked by the local Pokemon professor to help document all the Pokemon in the park and with more arriving each week, there are always more photos to be obtained. You could even include online play via special events when rarer Pokemon will turn up in the park just for a couple of hours and even allow players to encounter other online players in their park and be able to swap photos and hints such as down at the bay a Pikachu is surfing on the back of a Lapras.
In all honesty, there really is so much that could be down with this game and with both the 3DS and the Wii U Gamepad, the way you are, you could easily utilise them to act as cameras in the game, such as when playing on your home screen, the GamePad acts as your camera and motion controls, but your TV displays the scenery around you and the activity. You then lift the pad to the screen, looking at the GamePad screen to line up your shot and then pressing a ZR or ZL button to take the shot. Of course this is just one way it could be done, because there are at least three ways this can be done and I really hope it does happen because the timing would be perfect, we have the technology and Nintendo you have the team who can make this a reality it. 1999 saw the release of the first instalment, you have plenty of time to develop its sequel and see it released in 2019, a means of celebrating 20 years of Pokemon Snap Love.
But even if such a day never comes, I will still stay forever hopeful that it does, I’m not done with Snap and even if we don’t get another game, well Nintendo, can you at least gives us it again as a virtual release? You don’t need to remaster it, the game is a classic masterpiece, a timeless work and honestly, I would rather have the original over a graphically enhanced version and I’m pretty sure I’m not the only one.
Till next time folks. Keep up the good fight and Keep on Gaming!
