New Pokémon Snap, the first (and only) new entry in the Pokémon Snap series in over 20 years, was announced for a 2021 release last year. Today, the release date for New Pokémon Snap has been made official: April 30, 2021. It will launch on that date worldwide for the Nintendo Switch, and more gameplay footage, screenshots, and information has been revealed thanks to the trailer above as well as the accompanying New Pokémon Snap website.
New Pokémon Snap takes place in the isles of the Lental region, and your goal there as a budding Pokémon photographer is to work with Professor Mirror and his assistant, Rita, to take pictures of Pokémon in their natural habitats for ecological research purposes.
Similarly to the original game, you’ll be able to travel through various regions on the NEO-ONE auto-driving vehicle so you can snap pictures of around 200 Pokémon from every generation. You’ll be able to use special fruit called Fluffruit to help draw out Pokémon and cause them to interact differently to make for some interesting camera shots.
Going through each stage will challenge players to take pictures of Pokémon for points, with more points being awarded for properly centered shots, for their distance from the camera, whether they’re directly facing the camera or not, and then additional criteria or actions. Again, this sounds to be the same basic style from the original game. Taking pictures of Pokémon will fill out the Photodex, a sort of collection or album of different Pokémon in the style of the Pokédex.
Not only that, but there’s a strange occurrence found in the isles of the Lental region known as the Illumina Phenomenon, which is causing some Pokémon and vegetation in the region to take on a special glow. One such Pokémon seen prominently exhibiting this phenomenon is a Meganium.
The game is available for pre-order right now on the Nintendo Switch eShop as well as on participating retailers, such as Amazon.com*. It has a MSRP of $59.99 USD and, if purchased digitally, takes up 6.8 GB of storage. It releases worldwide on April 30, 2021.
Here are some more screenshots from the game:
(* as an Amazon Associate, Marriland earns from qualifying Amazon purchases.)