It's one of the curses of Nintendo's innovation: It takes a while for developers to figure out how to make new features for a new console work in gameplay. The same thing happened with the Wii, to an extent. Some of the launch titles do cool things with the new, innovative controls, but then the innovation largely stagnates aside from a few overly gimmicky titles.
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The Wii U's GamePad has certainly suffered from this curse. Developers by and large have not been too successful with finding ways to utilize it during gameplay. Koei Tecmo's Wii U exclusive Fatal Frame V, however, could turn that around, based on a newly released gameplay trailer.
In the new gameplay trailer posted on Nintendo's YouTube channel, the player character is seen slowly making her way around the dramatically creepy setting, nothing out of the ordinary for a survival horror game. When she encounters a spirit, however, the player can raise the Wii U GamePad and use it like a camera, centering the ghostly presence on the screen and snapping a photo. The game will also prompt the player to tilt the camera's frame to get a better angle for the shot.
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The camera mechanic seems to be used for both investigation and for defense – quickly focusing the camera on a ghostly enemy appears to make them back off. Whatever the mechanic's uses, though, it's certainly innovative and one of the best uses for the GamePad in the Wii U's library.
Of course, with this type of interactive picture-taking game mechanic in mind, why Nintendo hasn't already given in to fan pressure and released an HD remake for Pokémon Snap is beyond me.
So far, Fatal Frame V is only set for a Japanese release, and considering the fact that Fatal Frame IV never made its way West, there's a fair chance this next installment will remain Japan-exclusive as well. It's set to release for Japanese Wii U consoles at the end of the month.
