Every Location In New Pokemon Snap
Do you want to be the very best Pokemon photographer, like no one ever was? If so, to snap pictures will be your real test, and to train your photographic eye will be your cause. You will be able to do all that and more as you explore the Lental Region in "New Pokemon Snap," but that also raises the question of how much you will be able to explore.
It's been a long time since "Pokemon Snap" attracted burgeoning photographers with the promise of snapping polygonal Pokemon on the Nintendo 64. However, technology and the "Pokemon" franchise have come a long way since then. The original "Pokemon Snap" only includes 63 Generation 1 Pokemon scattered across seven levels (via Serebii.net), but the upcoming sequel for the Nintendo Switch will cram in over 200 creatures from across eight generations.
With the power of the Switch backing more Pokemon and higher fidelity graphics, the game should also sport a larger variety of biomes, right? You don't need a Xatu to look into the future to answer that question — read on.
New Pokemon Snap may include over nine areas to explore
At the time of this writing, the official "New Pokemon Snap" site had yet to state how many locations players will scour for Pokemon photographs. However, the April 16 "Official Gameplay Overview Trailer" offers some hints.
The video starts by introducing audiences to a scrapbook full of numbered photographs. The book's first pages include the pictures "06 Jungle," "07 Ocean," "08 Desert," and "09 Forest." These are obviously four different biomes in the Lental Region's island (don't ask how a desert can sit next to a lush jungle), but what about "01" through "05?" Do those locations even exist? More than likely.
Besides the jungle, ocean, desert, and forest, the trailer also shows areas such as a beach and a foggy valley filled with gnarled trees and Dark and Psychic-types like Shiftry, Trevenant, and Espurr. Odds are the numbering implies "New Pokemon Snap" will feature at least nine unique locations, two of which will include the aforementioned beach and valley.
On a side note, the original "Pokemon Snap" squirreled away a secret location players couldn't access unless they jumped through specific photogenic hoops, so the sequel might try something similar.
The more you play, the more you see
The original "Pokemon Snap" encourages players to revisit locations, but only up to a certain point. Many Pokemon are hidden behind item puzzles, and the game encourages gamers to beat challenge scores. However, retreading old ground doesn't significantly alter the experience. "New Pokemon Snap," meanwhile, will deliver a string of rewards that will make subsequent visits to old areas feel like new adventures.
According to the gameplay trailer, eagle-eyed players can discover branching pathways in levels that provide different photograph opportunities. In the ocean, for instance, one route will let players snap a picture of a pod of Mantine; another will allow them to spy a deep-sea battle between a Tentacruel and a Starmie. Additionally, the more pictures players take in an area, the more their Research Level increases. Certain routes and Pokemon are locked behind these levels.
Furthermore, players can visit locations at different times of day, so while a daytime jaunt through the jungle will provide a troop of Aipom, a star-lit visit will give players a chance to snap an Ariados. For all fans know, the "foggy valley" isn't a unique level, but may in fact be the standard Forest biome at night.
Don't assume that you will see every Pokemon in one go while playing "New Pokemon Snap." You will have to burn through a few rolls of film to snap 'em all.