‘Pokémon Go’ maker Niantic is helping others create AR metaverse apps

 

Niantic

Niantic Labs is offering everyone the chance to get their hands on the tech behind Pokémon Go and Pikmin Bloom so they can build their own augmented reality and "real-world metaverse" apps. Developers can start using the Niantic Lightship platform today. The company also announced a $20 million investment fund to back developers that "share our vision for the real-world metaverse and contribute to the global ecosystem we are building."

Developers can use Ninatic's toolkit to create real-time 3D mesh maps so apps can understand the surfaces and topography of the world surrounding a device. Other APIs will help apps know the difference between different aspects of an environment, such as the ground, sky, water and buildings. The toolkit also enables developers to make apps that allow up to five players to take part in the same AR multiplayer session, keeping all of their content and interactions in sync.

The tools are mostly free. The multiplayer APIs will be available at no cost for the first six months no matter how many users an app has. After that, Niantic will charge a fee if the APIs are used in an app with more than 50,000 monthly active users.

Several notable brands have taken part in a private beta of the development kit, including Universal Pictures, PGA of America and Warner Music Group. Coachella has created an AR experience that its festival attendees will be able to check out next year. They'll be able to see a large version of Coachella's butterfly landing on the seven-story Spectra rainbow walkway tower.

Meanwhile, Shueisha is working with developer T&S to bring characters from One Piece and other manga into the real world with AR. That app will be available in 2022.

Niantic's vision of the metaverse is very much different from the virtual reality-centered future Facebook's parent company Meta has in mind. In a blog post in August, CEO John Hanke suggested that the "real-world metaverse" is about connecting the physical and digital worlds, rather than existing purely as a virtual experience. With that in mind, his company has been working on AR glasses with Qualcomm over the last couple of years.

Riot brings 'League of Legends,' Valorant' and other titles to Epic Games Store

 

Riot Games/Epic Games

Riot Games is taking its PC titles into new territory as League of Legends, Valorant, Teamfight Tactics and Legends of Runeterra are all now available on the Epic Games Store. The move could get the four free-to-play titles in front of a wider audience.

You'll need to install the new Riot Client (which debuted earlier this month), but you can fire up the games from Epic's app or a desktop shortcut. If you already play any of those games, you'll still be able to sign in with your account and access your existing friends list.

The partnership between Riot and Epic extends to the latter's titles too. League of Legends champion Jinx is dropping into Fortnite, marking the first appearance of a LoL character in a non-Riot game.

The collaboration forms part of Riot's month-long campaign to promote Arcane, the League of Legends animated series that premieres at 10PM ET on November 6th on Netflix. Elsewhere, Riot has also teamed up with Amazon to offer Prime Gaming members some in-game goodies over the next year.

A League of Legends rhythm runner game is coming to Switch, PC and Netflix

 

Riot Forge/Choice Provisions

It's a big month for Riot, as the company is going all out to promote Arcane, the Netflix animated series based on League of Legends. But the company hasn't forgotten about the gaming side of things. Its publishing label, Riot Forge, has announced a rhythm runner game set in the LoL universe.

In Hextech Mayhem: A League of Legends Story, you'll play as Ziggs, a Yordle and Hexplosives expert, who wants to build the greatest bomb in the history of Runeterra. You'll carry out bomb jumps and attacks as you bypass obstacles, disarm enemies and light fuses to the beat of this platformer's soundtrack.

In terms of gameplay, Hextech Mayhem looks a little like the Bit.Trip series. That shouldn't be too surprising, since Choice Provisions is the developer behind both.

More details will be revealed during a Riot Forge video showcase at 11AM ET on November 16th. Hextech Mayhem: A League of Legends Story will be available on Nintendo Switch, Steam, GOG and the Epic Games Store on the same day. If you pre-order, you'll snag an exclusive skin for Ziggs.

The game is also coming to Netflix at a later date. It's the first new title announced for Netflix's nascent gaming service since the company expanded it to all Android users last week. The current lineup of five mobile games will be available to iOS users soon. Netflix subscribers will be able to play Hextech Mayhem at no extra cost.