Creative app displays passion of team members

Click. With a touch of the finger, a monkey in the jungle is photographed. Click. This time, a baboon trekking up a tree. Click. This photo a picture of…an antelope chasing a cheetah. All done on a phone or computer. No, I’m not describing a photography safari. All these things are possible in the game Snapimals.

Snapimals is a free to play app by BebopBee. Inc for iOs, Android and Amazon. Made with the Unity engine, the colorful game takes many of it’s gameplay mechanics from Pokémon Snap, a game released in 1999 for the Nintendo 64.

In Snapimals, the player travels through different areas of the island on a set path. The player is always moving and is not in control of the movement, much like an on-rails shooter. However, instead of shooting a gun, they shoot pictures of the various wild animals that live around the island.

This makes unlocking something new fun for awhile, until it gets routine and the player loses interest. The game isn’t really engaging or compelling, just a cute way to spend some free time. Yet the passion the creators put into the game is obvious, lacking glitches and boasting tight design. —Emily Ladd

The controls are simple enough. Hold a finger down and drag to look around, and tap to take a picture. Pinching the screen in or out causes the camera to zoom in (if the player has the camera lens). The app presents a vibrant and adorable world full of cute critters posing for the camera.

Sometimes, in an attempt to zoom in or move the camera I would accidentally take a picture, wasting film. After changing my grip of the phone, this happened less often, but can still be a problem.

Players are allowed 5 pictures per trip, and can only have 3 rolls max at a time. More film rolls are given to the player over hours. Other features include building a museum to house pictures of specific events, especially rare and legendary encounters. The animal encounters are randomized each trip, and sometimes they must be triggered by tossing a ball (called “goofballs”) to the animals. After a certain number of trips, players can upgrade the camera to have a better lens to allow zooming in.

There’s not too many annoying push notifications, and there’s no punishment for not playing the game constantly. Pick it up and put it down whenever it strikes the player.

However, this can be seen as a problem. The app isn’t exactly attention holding. There’s no story, just a goal to 100% complete it. A drive for the completest who strive to finish games, but nothing too compelling for the casual gamer.

This makes unlocking something new fun for awhile, until it gets routine and the player loses interest. The game isn’t really engaging or compelling, just a cute way to spend some free time. Yet the passion the creators put into the game is obvious, lacking glitches and boasting tight design.

The game didn’t hold attention long, but it’s a good source of entertainment when there’s time to burn. Snapimals is great for kids as well, especially younger children with a love for video games. The controls are easy to pick up, the art style is well done and there’s no signs of lazy design in the game. The care that went into making the game and it’s pick-up-and-play nature make the app charming, and fun for at least a little while.

For another app review read Search app review Quiz-Up App Review.

This writer can be reach via email: [email protected] or via Twitter: @ejLadd.