The Washington Post recently chatted with Haruki Suzaki, game director at Bandai Namco Studios, about the upcoming Nintendo Switch title New Pokemon Snap. Mr. Suzaki said that while the assembled team members are new to the project, the team had consulted those who were involved with the original’s development on the Nintendo 64 title, which was released back in 1999. Here’s what was said about that, along with the new features that players can look forward to exploring once the game is out on 30th April.
“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.”
“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. 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.”
“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★.”
“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.
“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.’”
“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.”
“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,”
I mean, you were basically pepper spraying them with it. Even as a kid playing the original, I thought using that ball seemed off when it made everything faint or feel unwell. I’m okay with it being replaced .
Still can’t believe it’s on rails instead of an open stage safari like game. Hope its worth it for those purchasing.