Published Apr 23, 2026, 4:00 PM EDT

New Pokémon Snap pioneered Nintendo's era of finding fun in open-ended play

New Pokémon Snap's legacy is more important than ever

Image: Bandai Namco/ Nintendo, The Pokémon Company

New Pokémon Snap was a surprise when it launched in 2021. It was a different kind of cozy game, where vibes mattered more than tasks and you had limited control over your environment. And, despite folks requesting a Pokémon Snap sequel for years, it turned out rather less innovative than many expected from a Nintendo game at the time. Yet this conventional, predictable game had an important feature that went largely unremarked on at the time — and it became an essential part of Nintendo's first batch of Switch 2 games.

New Pokémon Snap puts you in the role of a research assistant working for Professor Mirror.…