Niantic has shared their plans regarding the new metaverse creation!
Niantic, the company behind hit game Pokemon Go, has announced its latest venture into the metaverse with a beta launch of an app called Real World Search.
This app will only be available to select groups for now but will enhance exploration by guiding players towards points of interest that are found in real-world locations. Niantic hopes that the addition of this new feature will help players feel more immersed by further connecting their ‘in-game’ life with their ‘real world’ life.
What is the new application going to be?
Real World Search will aid players on two levels. The first is the exploration element. By providing players with real-time information on things they can see around them, which are located in the metaverse, players will be able to learn more about the places they visit both in-game and out of the game.
This will aid them while out on their adventures by providing landmarks that are around them that they can then reference when needed.
The second level of this search function is to provide more information on points of interest players have already discovered in their real-world travels, allowing them to learn about historical facts behind the sites they pull up. This will be done in a number of ways.
Through the use of augmented reality, players will be able to see a pin on the map showing them the exact location they were at when they took a photo.
The app can also suggest other points of interest in the same area that might make for a good photo. Or if players have shared their location with friends, it will show up on their phones as well.
How can players play in this app?
In addition to this pin feature, Niantic will also release a new layer of information that it calls “contextual search” for each point of interest in the metaverse that is around you in real life. This will be done through a game-like style interface, where players can find out more information about the point of interest by answering trivia questions about the site.
The answers to which are pulled up via an augmented reality link.
The results of this will be based on what Niantic already knows about these locations through its previous games, including Pokemon Go and Ingress. Players will also be able to compare results against friends who have visited the same point of interest to see which ones they liked best or shared more information about.
The app is currently only available for Android devices, but it is expected that iOS users will also get access soon enough.
Image courtesy of Republik Digital/YouTube