I think I’ve been luckier than most when it comes to New Pokemon Snap. My top five Pokemon (Gardevoir, Sylveon, Absol, Milotic, and Gengar, if you wanted to confirm I have excellent taste), are all in the base game. Gyarados, my sixth favourite, probably should have been, but joins in the first DLC anyway. For most people though, their favourites haven’t made the cut, but that’s a good thing – New Pokemon Snap is brilliant at spotlighting unusual ‘mons, and the three new levels that recently arrived in the free update are no different.
Some major ‘mons remain absent. While Gyarados makes the cut – as well as Snorlax and its strange teeth – most of the new arrivals are relatively average ‘mons. Shroomish, Drilbur, Swalot, Crustle, Salazzle, Scolipede, and Tropius are all fairly forgettable, yet they’re here for the DLC. With only 20 new Pokemon arriving, it must have been tempting for the developer to go with big hitters instead. Yet the choice to go with relative nobodies for the new stages underlines exactly what New Pokemon Snap has always excelled at.
Related: I Can't Believe New Pokemon Snap Still Doesn't Have ShiniesMewtwo, Lucario, Rayquazza, Garchomp, Mimikyu, and Greninja are all frequently mentioned when it comes to ‘most popular Pokemon’. None of them feature in the photography sim. In fact, Greninja – a serious contender to Pikachu and Charizard for the single most popular Pokemon – is not only absent, the entire Kalos starter family doesn’t make the cut. A whole region’s starter trio, one of the most important Pokemon categories, is completely absent from the 234 strong roster. Vivallion, Swanna, Bounsweet, Unfezant, Crabawler, Stunfisk, Sandygast, and Clawitzer are there though, aye? Great, I’ve always wanted to do a cover shoot with Stunfisk.
With New Pokemon Snap though, the unpopularity is the point. It’s not that the game has chosen Swanna because it knows everybody is indifferent to it, but because Swanna fits what the game is trying to do. I don’t think it’s consciously trying to spotlight underrated Pokemon, but through its storytelling, it’s impossible not to.
New Pokemon Snap excels at telling stories and allowing you to create your own. The actual narrative is bland, and the human cast is terrible. Phil is the worst ‘rival’ I’ve ever seen – please bring back Silver – and Todd Snap is a fraud. It’s storytelling is instead done out in the wild, with all the different Pokemon interactions. Grookey, for example, is everyone’s mate, and plays with a variety of different mons across the game. In Outaway Cave, Pokemon’s best cave in years, you need to lure out Diancie to get past Mawile – these ‘mons are picked not because they’re beloved, but because they work for the story.
The new DLC doubles down on this philosophy, designing the levels first and the 'mons second. We've had a lot of watery levels, but nothing where we're pulled along by the current of a river, and so Mightywide River joins the party, and suitable Pokemon – popular are not – are added to it. The shrinking level has a big name star in Snorlax, but aside from that it introduces Shroomish and Foongus, because the pint-sized mushroom 'mons are the best fit for this mechanic in Florio Nature Park. New Pokemon Snap has made consistently smart choices, from its level design to its roster to its interactions. The smart thing to do next would be to take us into space for the next update, and if it does, it will undoubtedly add 'mons that fit instead of launching the Pokemon that sell the most cuddly toys into orbit.
Swalot is in the game because the new level suits it perfectly, and because the devs get to have a lot of photogenic fun with it. You could dump Lucario on the map, but it wouldn’t be the same. New Pokemon Snap isn’t about taking pictures of your favourite Pokemon, it’s about taking pictures of Pokemon and finding new favourites in the process.
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