Virtual photography has become an increasingly popular activity among gamers. Although it is hard to trace exactly where it started, games with photo mode began cropping up around 2015, allowing players to take pictures inside a video game world. The idea quickly caught on and started to appear in more and more video games.
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The exact options varied, but the basic principle of having a tool that allowed players to freely capture and share pictures of their in-game adventures proved immensely popular. Virtual photography using an in-game photo mode has grown into an art form in itself, with virtual photographers practically growing into a sub-group of gamers. However, there remain plenty of AAA franchises that still don’t offer players a photo mode.
Updated Jun 06, 2025, by John Alexander Hitchcock:Virtual photography is still growing as a hobby, and the range of titles that support it continues to expand. However, there are still plenty of developers that have failed to recognize the value of a solid photo mode. Some of these are big developers with hugely popular games, yet their AAA franchises continue to resist the growing presence of virtual photographers and the inclusion of a photo mode.
9Bioshock
The originalBioshockgames sadly pre-dated the rise of virtual photography. The closest the player could get was the research cameras in the first two, and even those were hardly effective for getting quality photos. Photography was not even their main function in the game — cameras were intended as a means of gathering information to help with survival.
Although it is understandable why a photo mode might not have occurred to Ken Levine at the time of the games' development, it is unfortunate given the series' talent for spectacular environments and situations. Modern virtual photographers would have a lot of fun capturing all the details of Rapture and Columbia, or the various strange characters encountered. An opportunity for solid photos ofBig Daddieswould be awesome. Fortunately,there is a new game in production. Hopefully, it can finally rectify this one shortcoming of the earlier titles.
8Call of Duty
Activision’s trademark first-person shooter series has been seriously overdue for a photo mode. The distinct characters, fast-paced action, and highly detailed environments all have a cinematic quality that would be exceptional for virtual photography and yet players have gotten nothing, even after eight games released within the time virtual photography has grown as an art form. To make matters even stranger,Vanguardactually took the step of hiring professional war correspondents to take photos in the game with an expensive virtual camera rig, yet they still didn’t bother to add a publicly accessible photo mode.
Many fans were hoping that 2022’sModern Warfare 2would be the game where Activision finally came to its senses and added photo mode to its campaign. Unfortunately, this was not the case. When the game dropped there was no photo mode to be found, and attempts to express a desire for it to Activision have so far fallen on deaf ears. Unfortunately, there is no reason to believe this might change in the next game.
7Elden Ring
This strange dark fantasy collaboration between FromSoftware and George R.R. Martin proved surprisingly popular with players due to its unique lore, but many were frustrated by the lack of a photo mode. As is typical for FromSoftware,Elden Ringcontains some interesting visualsthat could make for some great photographs.
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There are plenty of strange bosses encountered throughout the notoriously difficult story that would be the basis for excellent shots and no shortage of bizarre monsters. Even the game’s surreal landscapes could make for some really nice photographs. At the very least, players may want to show off their unique character builds. With the popularity of the first game, a sequel seems logical, so perhapsElden Ring 2will finally allow players to go wild with the camera.
6Gears of War
Microsoft’s popular series of third-person shooters has gone on for a long time, and it has always enjoyed a cinematic quality. There is no shortage of spectacles of action and destruction, unique environments, and strange encounters that would be great for a photo mode.
Granted, the first three titles were released before virtual photography was widely established, but a remastered re-release of the original trilogy with photo mode added would certainly get fans excited. Unfortunately, however, it still hasn’t appeared in the more recent titles. Somewhat frustratingly, producer Rod Fergusson promised a photo mode forGears 5,but it never happened. A photo mode in any of the games would offer some exciting opportunities, from capturing epic duels with chainsaw guns to rampaging brumaks. Hopefully, that will be addressedwhen they announceGears of War 6.
5Half-Life
Valve’s 1998 first-person shooter about a scientist trying to prevent the collapse of reality was not only well-received, but also set a template for many later games. A lot of popular games fromBioshocktoControlowe something toHalf-Life. Valve then outdid themselves with the even more popularHalf-Life 2. The series has since become known for its sporadic releases, but the release and success ofHalf-Life: Alyxin 2020indicates that the series may still have some life left in it. The original games obviously pre-date the rise of virtual photography, but any future games could offer a lot of good material.
The series has some iconic and memorable characters who would make great subjects. A photo mode could have fun just offering different poses and expressions for Gordon Freeman, but players could also enjoy photographing other characters like Alyx Vance or the mysterious blue-suited character known only as G-Man. Then there are the many detailedpost-apocalyptic environmentsand various alien species encountered throughout the games. Valve’s recent push towards VR might make it necessary to adapt a photo mode accordingly, but this should be possible.
4The Legend of Zelda
Nintendo’sLegend of Zeldaseries has existed for decades and continues to maintain a strong fanbase, but it has not yet recognized the full potential of virtual photography. The more recent installments have featured beautiful 3D-rendered environments, crazy characters, monsters, big action scenes, and landscapes that all provide great photographic opportunities.Breath of the Wildcame close, with the inclusion of an in-game camera tool that could be used to take pictures, but this has limitations compared to a proper photo mode.
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The inclusion of the camera inBreath of the Wilddoes suggest that Nintendo has some awareness of virtual photography as an art form, and they did include a photo mode inSuper Mario Odyssey. Although unconfirmed, this does make it possible that a more detailed photo mode will be included in the upcomingTears of the Kingdom.
3Halo
Microsoft’s other popular shooter franchise has also been guilty of not accommodating virtual photography. EvenThe Master Chief Collection,with its remasters of the first two games, did not do it. Many fans were disappointed to find out there wasn’t a photo mode inHalo: Infinite, despite its presence in other big games around the same time.
The series definitely has good material for photographs. Master Chief alone would probably be a popular subject for photos, to say nothing of the sci-fi environments, vehicles, explosions, andwide variety of aliensthat would also make interesting shots.
2Wolfenstein
While it is forgivable thatWolfenstein 3Ddid not have a photo mode, the feature has been noticeably lacking in the franchise’s more recent iterations. This has unfortunately given theWolfensteingames are famous for their over-the-top action, and what enthusiastic player would not want to photograph their Nazi-killing antics?
Just capturing B.J. Blazkowiscz in action would be a great photo opportunity, but there are certainly others. After all, inThe New OrderandThe New Colossushe does not work alone. His allies could also make great photographic subjects, plus the explosions and carnage inevitably caused by the player. Some players may even want to take ominous or imposing photographs of the Nazis.
1Yakuza
The Yakuzaseries has played with small-scale photography before, but not to any amazing degree. Some games have toyed with using the protagonist’s cell phone to take selfies or to play minigames about capturing improbable occurrences at just the right moment.Yakuza: Like a Dragonallowed the player to take photos with some editing options, but it was still confined to being seen through the protagonist’s cell phone camera. What it really needs is a proper photo mode like the ones featured in other popular franchises.Like A Dragoncomes close, but it still needs free camera movement.
Furthermore, a lot of the photography featured in the series is limited to the quieter open-world segments which lack as many interesting subjects for photos. This is a seriesknown for its action. Sometimes the player cannot even walk down the street without getting pulled into a fistfight every five seconds. Players should be able to get epic shots of fight sequences, or opportunities for close-ups of iconic characters.
