When word hit the street that iconic Aussie TV show Bluey was getting a game and it was being developer right here in Brisbane, we couldn’t have been more excited. Now that Bluey’s Happy Snaps has landed you know what’s next – it’s gotta be done!
Give a six-year-old a camera and one afternoon, and they will photograph nine hundred things you’d never look at twice – right?! That is the entire glorious idea behind Bluey’s Happy Snaps, the new photo-adventure starring the little blue heeler pup your family has watched roughly nine hundred times.
The story sees Bluey and her little sister Bingo dig out Dad’s ancient instant camera. It’s the chunky old sort that whirrs out a real photo the second you press the button. And the two of them decide, with total six-year-old certainty, that the whole point of it is to fill a scrapbook right to the edges. They are, of course, completely correct.
So, what do you actually do in this game? You wander streets inspired by Bluey’s hometown of Brisbane, and it’s lovely. Each spot is yours to poke around in – crouch in the grass, wait for a lorikeet to sit still, double back because you heard a funny noise coming from a bush.
There’s a list of things to photograph and snapping one earns you a sticker for your scrapbook. Best part: you can plonk that sticker ANYWHERE. Wonky, sideways, ten of them squished in one corner – there’s no right way, which is possibly the most Bluey thing a game has ever done. Think Pokémon Snap, the one where you photograph animals from a slow-moving cart, except somebody’s unhooked the cart and let you off the lead entirely.
There are different locations, too. For example, you can go camping. The whole Heeler family rocks up to a campsite, trailer and all, and the woods around them are stuffed with toys and critters begging to be papped. Some are sitting right there in the open. Others are cheeky and hidden, and you’ll need proper detective eyes to spot them.
Get stuck and there’s a Photo Clues page – a little “psst, try over there” – waiting in the pause menu. Land the trickiest shots and you’ll unlock colouring pages, too, so once you’ve filled the scrapbook there’s a whole second craft table to muck about at.
And it’s a proper couch co-op game. Bingo can pop in as player two whenever you fancy, and pop straight back out again just as easily. That means a mate or a parent can grab the second controller mid-play without any fuss at all. Characters even pose for each other. Bluey can even pass her camera to someone else so she can hop into the photo herself.
It’s the kind of gentle, goofy little touch that makes this feel less like a lazy spin-off and more like a lost episode you never saw. Which fits, because the whole telly voice cast turned up to record it. Muffin, Coco, Winton, Lucky, the lot. So, pottering about New Farm Park, South Bank and Mount Coot-tha feel legit.
Plus, there’s more to do than just point and shoot. Minigames see you chase cheeky bin chickens, race Barky Boats down a stream and play I-Spy. Plus, games from the show like Shadowlands and Magic Potion appear.
If you’re a Bluey diehard, you’ll squeal at every location you recognise. And here’s the honest bit. If you turn up wanting a big challenge – jumps, boss fights, a fireworks finish – this gentle meander isn’t chasing any of that, and it never pretends to be. It’s cosy on purpose, all the way down. But as a warm, wander-and-wonder hug of a game about slowing down and really looking at the world? It’s the best Bluey game going, and it isn’t even a close call.
