Two blockbuster worlds collide: The makers of the smartphone game “Pokémon Go” bring the “Transformers” from the cinema screen to the augmented reality of a mobile phone game.
A game will be released this year in which you have to fight against virtual robots that appear on the display in real environments, as the developer company Niantic has announced. First, a group of test players in New Zealand will try out “Transformers: Heavy Metal”.
The “Transformers” have good and bad robotsPhoto: Niantic
“Pokémon Go” principle
“Pokémon Go”, which requires you to track down and catch digital Pokémon in the vicinity, became a global phenomenon when it launched in summer 2016. In the meantime, the hype surrounding the game subsided a little. A hard core of die-hard fans continues to bring good business to developer Niantic.
The San Francisco-based company also developed a platform for so-called augmented reality (AR), in which digital objects are displayed in real environments. On this basis, Niantic started a game with characters from the Harry Potter world in 2019, which, however, according to market researchers, found fewer fans than “Pokémon Go”. Two more titles have already been announced for this year, one based on the board game “The Settlers of Catan” and one with Nintendo’s “Pikmin” figures.
This is what the logo will look likePhoto: Niantic
Changeable robots in the “real” world
For around eight years, Niantic negotiated with the toy company Hasbro as the rights holder about a game with the “Transformers” robots, which can be transformed into cars and other vehicles or objects. “Huge robots that run around in the real world – that was just too good to miss out on us,” Niantic boss John Hanke told Bloomberg financial services company. In total, the company is currently working on twelve games. “Some of it had been done for some time. We were just waiting for the right moment to introduce it – while people are now returning more to the real world. “
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