Niantic to roll out highly improved AR snapshot mode for Pokémon Go

The new feature is aimed brining players closer to the Pokémon in their inventory by making it easier to take photos.

Niantic, Inc., the American software development firm, has recently announced that it would be launching a new feature known as ‘Go snapshot’ to Pokémon Go. Apparently, this new feature would expand the game’s photo capabilities, developing on the AR+ feature which first debuted in late 2017.

According to reports, the new snapshot mode would extend the feature to all the Pokémon in storage. Now, there will be a camera icon whenever a Pokémon is chosen from the bag, and a player can move to the snapshot tool from there. This process would seem both playful and simple, getting a Pokémon wherever a trainer wants it, tossing a pokéball in that particular spot and it’ll appear, at scale.

Laura Warner, a game designer at Niantic, explained that the goal of this new feature is making it easier for players to take photos. The players are taking great pictures with the current technology, however, they have to do it in specific scenarios, such as pokémon encounters. The company had realized that it should be making it easy for the players to take photos. They should be capable of taking a photo on any adventure a person is on, at any time of day, with a pokémon in their inventory.

Warner further said that the aim of the company was not just of making a basic camera in the game; it was of using the tools for making pokémon feel more real. It was really important for the company that pokémon feel like partners, it should feel like those pokémon are a part of player’s world. Therefore, Niantic did not want a simple camera app.

The company wanted players to feel like it is bringing them closer to their Pokémon, Warner added. Purportedly, the company has stated that the snapshot tool would soon be launching on both Android and iOS.