In Infinity Nikki, the portrait mode reaches its final form

Infinity Nikki It’s my favorite new release of 2024. It’s a cotton candy treat for an open world game that offers much more depth and variety than I expected to find. I enjoy the adorable wardrobe, simple puzzles, and charming side quests. But the most surprising thing about… Infinity Nikki It was something I’d been ignoring in games for years: photo mode.

I didn’t expect this to become a highlight Infinity Nikki expertise. In fact, when it came up in a long series of lessons during my first session, my initial reaction was, “Oh good, something I can forget.”

Photo mode has become a standard feature in single-player AAA games over the past decade. For those unfamiliar, this feature pauses gameplay to allow you to position your protagonist as an action figure, making them smile with a silly expression or raise a peace sign. You can add a filter or make fine adjustments to focus, aperture and other details to capture a stunning photo.

Over the years, I’ve seen people photograph Nathan Drake, Eli, Joel, Aloy, and many others striking heroic or funny poses. I appreciate those photos when they cross my social feeds. And since game graphics are more realistic than ever, it makes sense that studios would want to give players tools to capture beautiful moments as they happen. But every time I played a game using photo mode, I found that after taking the one photo the tutorial required, I never opened the camera again.

My problem isn’t that these games aren’t great enough to warrant documentation. It’s when I’m in the middle of playing something like that The last of usit doesn’t occur to me to stop for a moment because I’m so focused on other gameplay mechanics and goals. Sure, there may be some quieter moments to breathe, but running for your life in a post-apocalyptic wasteland is no time to casually browse through filters. In other games, taking photos simply doesn’t feel like a character activity. Come on, there’s no way Kratos would take a selfie.

Like all its predecessors, Infinity Nikki It is a beautiful game. Featuring picturesque towns and enchanting landscapes, Miraland is also beautiful in its sweeping views and hidden corners. Everywhere you look there are tons of carefully crafted little interactions that serve no purpose other than to encourage you to present a nice image. You press a button to take a hot air balloon ride or blow bubbles at a café table. It’s a step up from most apps, where the most you can do is sit on a chair or bench.

But what made me fall in love with photography was the system where players were asked to take photos of iconic locations around Miraland. The first time she found one, it was a lush green grotto where she directed Nikki to sit on a tree trunk next to an underground lake. It was definitely a beautiful area, but what pleased me most was that my clothes matched the place perfectly. So I didn’t just take a photo and move on to a more important task. Take the time to look great He is The most important task.

There is no one stereotypical point of view Infinity Nikki. Some special sets provide contextual in-game abilities, but most of the pieces are just there so you can look exactly how you want. Nikki is a silly anime character from the fantasy land of tulle and glitter. Or they could look just like someone you might see streaming the game on Twitch or TikTok wearing an oversized hoodie. Or she can wear a top hat with denim shorts and thigh-high knit boots if you want. (And yes, I wanted to.)

This game knows you’re there at least partly to play dress-up. You also know that the obvious thing to do when you’re playing dress-up is to immortalize your best self through a photo shoot. That’s why Infinity NikkiPhoto mode not only looks fun, but it’s essential. It’s an essential part of the game loop. When I’m putting together a new outfit, I want to find a good place to take a photo. When I stumble upon a stunning location, I think about what poses will showcase it best.

Most of the time, the cameras and shooting modes do little to enhance my love for a game. They are the metaphorical cherry on top of the sundae. with Infinity Nikkieven though the photo mode is ice cream. And it’s delicious.