Granddad’s Camera

Games like Alba and Pokémon Snap

Wildlife photography games for iPhone and Android

Games where the camera is the point: finding animals, waiting for the moment, and getting the shot. These are the ones on phones, and two worth knowing about that aren’t. We make Granddad’s Camera, so it’s first on our list; the rest are games we like. Platforms and prices checked on 8 October 2026.

Granddad’s Camera: a red fox and its cubs in a Millbrook alley at dusk, with the SHOOT, CREEP, WAIT and LEAVE menu.

Granddad’s Camera

iPhone, iPad and Android

Photograph 113 real British species in real places: a market town, the New Forest, the Norfolk Broads, the Pembrokeshire coast and Skomer, and the Cairngorms. Every animal keeps to its real season and time of day, rare ones really are rare, and each photo fills in a field journal page checked against UK sources. You shoot on your granddad’s old film camera, and you only see the photos once they’re developed.

Best if you want real wildlife, and to learn where and when to find it.

Free to start; one purchase opens the rest of Britain · Google Play

Alba: A Wildlife Adventure

iPhone and iPad through Apple Arcade; also Mac, PC, Switch, PlayStation and Xbox. Not on Android · ustwo games

Alba spends the summer on her grandparents’ Mediterranean island, photographing the animals and starting a movement to save the island. From the studio behind Monument Valley, with a warm story and no rush.

Best if you want a short, gentle story with a conservation heart.

Included with Apple Arcade (a subscription) · App Store

TOEM: A Photo Adventure

iPhone and Android (since October 2025); also PC and consoles · Something We Made

A hand-drawn, black-and-white trip from town to town, where you solve people’s problems by taking the right photo. The creatures are odd and made up rather than real, and it’s funny.

Best if you like puzzles and charm more than real animals.

Free to try; one purchase unlocks the full game · App Store

Wilderless

iPhone and Android · Protopop

A huge open wilderness to wander, with no enemies and no quests, and a photo mode for the views. You can even turn into animals, from a fox to a hawk, to get around.

Best if you want landscapes and quiet wandering rather than spotting animals.

£4.99 on the UK App Store, with no ads or in-app purchases · App Store

Not on phones, but worth knowing

New Pokémon Snap

Nintendo Switch

The famous one: ride through the wilds and photograph Pokémon going about their lives. Not on phones.

Beasts of Maravilla Island

PC, Mac, Switch, Xbox and PlayStation

A young wildlife photographer on a magical island of more than 50 made-up creatures and plants.

Questions

Is there a Pokémon Snap game for phones?

No. New Pokémon Snap (2021) is on Nintendo Switch. On iPhone and Android the closest are Alba (iPhone and iPad, through Apple Arcade), TOEM, and Granddad’s Camera.

Is there a wildlife photography game with real animals?

Granddad’s Camera has 113 real British species, each on its real calendar and clock, with journal pages checked against UK sources such as the RSPB and the BTO. Alba is set on a made-up Mediterranean island full of animals to find.

Are there bird watching games for iPhone and Android?

Granddad’s Camera has 73 real British birds, from the robin on the fence to the bittern in the reeds, and you find them the way birders do: the right habitat, the right month, the right hour, and a lot of keeping still. Rare visitors turn up on Bird News for a day or two.

Which wildlife photography games are free?

TOEM and Granddad’s Camera are free to start, with one purchase for the full game. Alba comes with an Apple Arcade subscription. Wilderless is a one-off purchase.

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