And we need a new Pokemon Snap, too
inFamous: Second Sonsaw an almost benign update withPhoto Mode last week(hashtag many filters). With it, you’rephotografreeto turn off the HUD, adjust depth of field, change time of day, and, well, take pictures. Pictures of stunning digital vistas and creepy monster teens. It’s like you’re a member of the Ansel Adams Family.
It’s in some ways an extension ofinFamous 2‘s user-generated missions, which stemmed from Sony going hard on the “Play, Create, Share” campaign after the success of games likeLittleBigPlanet. It’s also a natural extension of a thing a lot of games already had — level editors — now even more useful with the ability to share levels with everyone.
And it’s a great idea, equal parts a smart business decision and a fun, artistic tool for letting you make screenshots thatsecond stun.
[screenshot via NeoGAF’s emalord]
[screenshot]
Hopefully you have seenDead End Thrills. It makes games sing. Even not so great games. More often than you might think, publishers don’t capture great screenshots, which feels like a waste of years of slaving over a hot modelling computer. Dead End Thrills is all about artistic shots. And that’s whatSecond Son‘s Photo Mode is about. Just look at theTwitter hashtag. Or thisNeoGAF thread.
Of course, Photo Mode might also exist for the same reason the Share button exists: virality and marketing. Sucker Punch has unleashed an artistic tool that is fun to use, but also gets peopletweetingand sharing pictures of its game, keeping it in the public consciousness for longer and likely encouraging people to buy it.
It’s advertising,apersure, but it’s advertising I can get behind. Let people be creative and show off cool things. On the other hand, I think we can f-stop with auto-tweeting high scores or anything from Raptr ever.
WhenSuper Smash Bros. Meleewas myil pane quotidiano, we always came up with meta games within the confines of a match. That’s part ofMelee‘s fun: user-generated gameplay. You could choose item sets and their frequency, completely changing matches. Provided you weren’t always a stodgy khaki wearer andonlyplayed it as an item-less competitive fighter. It even offered modes like giant melee, lightning melee, and single-button.
Then of course there are self-imposed changes. Playing DK Island: Kongo Jungle and fighting for supremacy of the rock that juts out on the lower right. Playing baseball with Ness by throwing Kirbys and Jigglypuffs. It’s about using tools to make your own fun.
And even without a special Photo Mode enhancement suite, one of the meta games we did inMeleewas randomly pause the game within matches and cycle between characters, hoping we’d caught a hilarious face or a coolRocky IIIfreeze-frame punch. And yeah,Meleeis like 15 years old so, yes, there were some intentional Yoshi plays to catch him pooping people out in eggs or licking butts.
Second Son‘s Photo Mode was a great move by Sucker Punch. It conceivably helps its game do better with something that is fun for us and yields cool results. Maybe I’ll get tired ofSecond Sonscreenshots, but I haven’t yet.
Seriously, Nintendo. Make another god damnPokemon Snap. Yes, this is a total rider of an issue, but we’re talking about videogame photography andPokemon Snapis great! Despite releasing a console with pointer controls, Nintendo couldn’t have another one made? But there are threePokemon Rangergames and like fiveMystery Dungeons?
