It seems like an obvious thing, but for some reason, New Pokemon Snap doesn’t have any Shiny Pokemon. It’s such a shame not to include something so popular in a Pokemon game, especially Snap, which feels like the perfect opportunity for Shiny hunting. With the new update this week, I had hoped that Bandai Namco was finally going to add Shinies to the game, but I guess we’ll have to wait for the inevitable DLC expansion to see them, if ever.
Shiny Pokemon are such a huge part of the franchise. Everyone loves hunting shinies in the mainline RPG games and in Pokemon GO. Pokemon GO events and community days are so much fun to do partly because they’re the best opportunity to hunt Shiny Pokemon. As a Pokemon card collector, I’m especially fond of Shinies because they’re essentially the digital version of a secret rare. A Shiny isn’t really any different than the regular version of a Pokemon, but like a Rainbow or Full Art Pokemon card, its rarity is what makes it so special and fun to collect.
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To that end, New Pokemon Snap is practically the perfect game for Shiny hunting. Imagine if every time you played a course, there was something like a 2% chance that any Pokemon you encounter would be shiny. Nothing about the level would need to change, but vigilant photographers would notice, on very rare occasions, that a Pokemon is a different color than normal. Photographs of Shinies could be collected on a separate page in the Photodex and Professor Mirror could comment on how special the Pokemon is during his review. If the devs really wanted to blow us away, they could give Shinies a special pose or action when you scan them so that your Shiny pictures are extra unique.
The simple addition of Shiny Pokemon would have a huge impact on the game. It would give completionists a motivation to keep playing after finishing their Photodex, it would give casual players a fun surprise, and perhaps most importantly, it would help alleviate the game’s frustrating repetition. The most common criticism levied against New Pokemon Snap is the fatigue it creates by making players replay the same courses over and over to level them up and unlock new Pokemon. I think the promise of an occasional Shiny appearance would take away a lot of that friction and make people feel better about the grind. Any amount of variety would go a long way for players that don’t enjoy endlessly repeating each course.
Not to be an armchair developer, but it seems like such a simple thing to add and such an obvious miss for the developers. Unless there’s some weird licensing barrier preventing Bamco from using Shinies — which wouldn’t be totally surprising — I have to assume that Shinies are in the works for future expansions or sequels. Shiny Pokemon are a huge crowd pleaser and including them is a proven way to extend the longevity of any Pokemon game. Bamco, I just want to see that black Charizard. Please don’t make me beg.
Next: New Pokemon Snap Update – Every Pokemon Added To The Game And Where To Find Them
