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Niantic snaps up Seismic Games to build new AR experiences
Niantic has acquired yet another developer in a bid to conquer AR gaming. The Pokémon Go creator has announced that it has acquired LA-based Seismic Games, mostly known for turn-based mobile RPG Marvel: Strikeforce. You can assemble Marvel characters in the free-to-play title, which brought in $25 million in worldwide player spending over the past four months. Seismic is also the company behind Blade Runner: Revelations, a virtual reality game for Google Daydream. According to Niantic, it will continue to work on its own games but will transition into building all-new AR experiences for the company going forward.
First Amendment suit halts anti-'Pokémon Go' law
A legal battle against AR games like Pokémon Go has been brewing in Wisconsin and this week, the games scored a win. In February, Milwaukee County introduced a new law that required AR game makers to get a permit before their games could be designed for use in the county's parks. The move came after the parks saw large increases in traffic after the release of Pokémon Go last year.
Refactr turns whiteboard into giant 3DS AR card, proves bigger is better (video)
If you haven't already seen our demo of the 3DS' rather impressive bag of augmented reality tricks, then let us take this opportunity to show you -- once again -- why we're excited about the thing's AR capabilities. The folks over at software development firm Refactr have done some tinkering and found that all you need to make your very own 3DS AR card is a white board, some dry erase markers, and a projector. By tracing the outlines of that mysterious question mark card on to a shiny white surface, they found that conjuring the device's AR interface is actually quite simple, and mostly a matter of contrast. Going big, in this case anyway, not only makes for a good time -- as evidenced by the video below -- but it should also put to rest any questions about whether or not these things are sprinkled with pixie dust, Juju powder, or some other magical substance.
Nintendo 3DS in-depth preview, slight return (update: more videos!)
Immediately following its big 3DS price and release date unveiling, Nintendo had on hand dozens of new titles playing on what we'd surmise is final hardware (or at least near-final, given its February 27th Japanese launch). Our first hands-on experience was just over six months ago during E3, at which point we were very impressed with what we saw. Did this playthrough garner the same excitement? Have our decidedly older but not much wiser selves become jaded by the novelty of it all? Venture on after the break to find out. %Gallery-114669% %Gallery-114714%
