Niantic is aiming higher than just producing games. While Pokemon GO remains one of the most popular games and is financially rewarding for the developers, they aim to expand beyond the world of just gaming. Niantic is now aiming to become a platform from which other developers can build location-aware apps.
This is not news, as Niantic has actively worked on this platform since 2018. But it’s taking a major leap forward this week as their location mapping software for AR is released. This Visual Positioning System or VPS software enables AR experiences to be grounded to a physical location. This means no more random floating AR elements.
VPS will form part of Niantic’s Lightship SDK, which will let multiple devices access a shared AR experience in the future. Can you imagine a 3D multiplayer AR experience? Niantic is releasing VPS for free for a few months in an initial beta period. Afterward, they plan on introducing a tiered billing system based on the number of monthly users on the app.
This isn’t the only new app being launched by Niantic this week. They will also release Campfire this week. Campfire is a location-based social media platform that also integrates with Niantic’s games and future Lightship apps. The goal with Campfire is to make games like Pokemon GO more social but also create a way for other Lightship developers to get their apps seen by the millions of users already on the platform, thanks to Pokemon GO.
Currently, Niantic has crowdsourced millions of phone camera scans through Ingress and Pokemon GO players. This data has enabled them 30 000 VPS-activated locations throughout the world. These locations include San Francisco, London, Tokyo, Los Angeles, New York, and Seattle. More locations are being added to the AR platform all the time.
There are many more developments regarding these new platforms from Niantic. Still, their ultimate goal is to provide a platform where developers can build apps that run cross-platform but that those developers still own. With all the new developments, Pokemon GO hasn’t been neglected, and the company even teased the possible introduction of Gen 7 Ultra Beasts to the game.
