Pokemon Snap (Logo Coming)

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When Nintendo announced that the
64DD's writability features would pave
the way for unique gameplay, we knew
some strange games were headed our
way. But a photo safari starring
everyone's favorite monster, Pikachu?
You better believe it.

As everyone knows by now, the 64DD
repeatedly got pushed back, cartridge
sizes increased, and eventually Nintendo
of America decided that the unit should
remain a "Japan-only" enterprise. After
converting 64DD games like Ocarina of
Time and Pokemon Stadium to cart
titles, it's no surprise that Pokemon
Stadium is undergoing the same changes
and will be published as an N64
cartridge game (with 64DD "hooks" for
Japan).

For those of you who still don't know
what Pokemons are: Pokemon is short
for Pocket Monsters -- Nintendo's cute
and cuddly creatures that have sold
millions of Game Boy games and even
star in their own TV series.

Pokemon Snap (also known as Pocket
Monsters' Snap) is perhaps the strangest
Pokemon title so far. You don't control
some wacky mascot with attitude or
methane-driven cyber racer -- you play
as Ash, the human hero from the
Pokemon franchise. On board a
specialized safari vehicle on rails, you will
be driven through the wild polygon
jungles of Pokemon Island, armed only
with your quick reflexes, a bunch of
apples, and a camera.

If that sounds odd, then consider the goal
of the game: Snap pretty pictures of the
more than 150 Pokemons on the island
under the supervision of Professor Oak.
Much like in the hang-glider in Pilotwings
64, you hold a camera with limited
exposures (60) and can take pictures of
your environment.

With the analog stick, you point your
character into any direction you like and even use a zoom lens to get a
closer look at things. Like in a real-life photo safari, the object is to get
the best possible pictures of the native wildlife -- in this case: Pokemons.
But simply turning around and making pictures of them sitting on their
butts isn't enough to score points. You need to use food to lure the shy
monsters out of their hiding places, play the flute to make them dance, or
throw rocks at bushes to startle flying monsters and get good pictures of
them in the air. It remains to be seen what type of memory the cart will
contain, since all pictures were supposed to be saved directly to the
64DD disk and kept in albums for later use (whatever that may be). With
the more limited writable storage of the carts, Nintendo better include an
S-RAM chip.

Yes, it sounds incredibly odd. But considering the success of Pocket
Monster dolls, figurines, socks, medals, stickers, and posters in Japan,
Japanese gamers are going to go nuts over any chance to meet face to
face with the popular gang. And quite frankly, we're dying to give this
strange gem of a game a try -- if only for novelty reasons (and to pay
back Pikachu for all the suffering he has caused with a big fat rock).

As with most N64 titles, the graphics are fully polygonal. Creatures are
rendered in detailed 3D and animated fluidly thanks to real monster
motion capturing. If and when you manage get close enough to one of the
monsters, this is your opportunity to strike in what is known in Japlish as
a 'shutter chance'. You set out from the Pokemon research center in a
strange vehicle known as the 'Zero One', headed for Pokemon Island.
Once there, it's up to you to work out the best approach for tracking the
animals, bearing in mind that some fly, some swim way out to sea, and
others move quickly on the ground or even burrow.

You only have a limited number of exposures on your roll of film, and
once taken, you have to refill back at the lab, so careful composition of
the shots and waiting for exactly the right moment to take the pictures is
essential. Japanese gamers can also take their cartridges and plug them
into specially designed machines at convenience store chain Lawson --
these units will allow them to print out little stickers of the pictures they
snapped. Nintendo has yet to announce a similar feature for the US
market.

Outlook
Nintendo's Pokemon titles for N64 are all a little unconventional, to say
the least. While that may not be enough to quench most Pokemon
gamer's thirst for a Pokemon RPG, they do offer something different
from the rest, backed by the strong creature license. We can't wait to try
it first-hand. Look for the game to make its US debut this summer.

All images are © Nintendo and PokeMon Snap is too