Tag: Pokémon GO

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Mobile Syrup

Niantic’s Tamagotchi-like Peridot is now available for pre-registration on iOS and Android

Niantic built a name for itself with Pokémon Go and is soon launching its own original take on the “catch em’ all’ formula, Peridot. The title is an original IP from the studio and focuses on collecting and attending to an array of colourful new creatures.

Peridot has long been in development following several not-so-successful releases from Niantic. Following titles like Harry Potter: Wizards Unite, Pikmin Bloom, and other licenced games, Niantic is pivoting to an original concept.

Niantic’s title soft launched in beta in Malaysia last year. This revealed a lot of information about the game, offering insight into what players will experience. Rather than a straight clone of Pokémon Go, Niantic appears to be instilling more Tamagotchi-like mechanics into Peridot.

In Peridot, players start with one creature. From there, they’ll be able to interact with other active players and breed their Peridot to spawn new creatures. In turn, the offspring inherit traits from their parent creatures, making them unique. However, breeding and growing a roster of Peridots is only one component of the game.

Much like Tamagotchi, players must actively take care of their creatures. This means you’ll be tasked with petting, playing, and feeding your Peridots. Additionally, you’ll need to go on walks with your creature to keep them happy.

Naturally, Niantic aims to introduce augmented reality (AR) elements into the game. Much like its other mobile titles, Peridot will bring the creatures to the real world through the use of a smartphone. Players can tap the screen and draw to interact and entertain their creature.

It remains to be seen whether Peridot will be a smashing success like Pokémon Go was upon its launch in 2016. However, not being tied to a licence could give Niantic some much-needed flexibility in its ongoing support of the game.

Preregistration for Peridot is available now on iOS and Android. The game will be available in Canada and worldwide on May 9th.

Image credit: Niantic

Source: Android Police

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Mobile Syrup

Revenue for AR mobile games like Pokémon Go said to be on the decline

Over the last few years, the augmented reality (AR) mobile games market has seen quite the rise in popularity. For some studios such as Pokémon Go developer Niantic, this translated to an unwavering amount of success. However, the trajectory of mass user adoption and success may be slowing down.

Niantic has launched a number of popular AR titles over the years. This includes Ingress and Pokémon Go. The latter has seen a ton of success both in revenue and player acquisition. Over the course of seven years, Niantic and Pokémon Go have set the bar for AR mobile titles.

However, Niantic recently faced internal layoffs. Despite acquiring new studios and developing new games like Peridot, the studio let go of eight percent of its staff (85-90 employees). The company is also cancelling the development of Transformers: Heavy Metal.

Now, analysts believe that the AR gaming market may be facing a significant dip. Omidia Analyst Guillermo Escofet states that Pokémon Go’s revenue has dipped an estimated 45 percent in 2022. Outside of Niantic, the market itself faces a decrease of 20 percent in revenue. The last time the AR gaming market saw a significant decline was in 2019.

Based on these drops, Escofet now believes that the AR game market’s projections require a major recalculation. Previously, it was predicted that the market would bring in roughly $6.7 billion USD (about $8.6 billion CAD) in projected revenue. Now, Escofet states that the AR games market is on track to earn only $2.5 billion USD (about $3.2 billion CAD).

While the AR games market faces another decline, Escofet believes that it can sustain itself once again. However, there are two major barriers. The first is that Niantic and Pokémon Go dominate the market space. As of now, it appears as though players adopt one title and stick with it. Breaking that cycle will be crucial.

The other barrier is the Chinese market. As of now, AR titles don’t have the mass popularity of other mobile games. Pokémon Go, for instance, isn’t available in China. Tencent’s Let’s Hunt Monsters, an equivalent title, has failed to generate a lot of revenue.

Pokémon Go’s launch in 2015 set a course for AR games. For many players, this was their first exposure to AR gaming. However, its success has placed the game and Niantic in a bubble. For now, there hasn’t been a competitor that has come close to being that next sensation in the market.

However, AR technology is still quite young and as it advances, so can its popularity. Plus, with new innovations come new ways to generate revenue.

Image credit: Niantic

Source: GameDeveloper

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Mobile Syrup

Sun and Moon Ultra Beasts are coming to Pokémon Go Fest

Get ready for the release of Ultra Beasts from Pokémon Sun and Moon in Pokémon Go later this summer.

Pheromosa, Buzzwole and Xurkitree are the three Ultra Beasts coming to the mobile game’s Pokédex. Players attending Pokémon Go Fest events in Berlin, Germany, Seattle, Washington and Sapporo, Japan will get to take part in special research tasks that offer all three Ultra Beasts first.

The scheduled events will kickoff as listed below:

  • Pokémon Go Fest Berlin runs July 1-3, players receive Pheromosa
  • Pokémon Go Fest Seattle runs July 22-24, players receive Buzzwole
  • Pokémon Go Fest Sapporo runs August 5-7, players receive Xurkitree

A new Poké Ball called the Beast Ball will also be added to Pokémon Go following the addition of Ultra Beasts, followed by a finale event on August 27th.

Pokémon Go Fest tickets are currently on sale for all three events:

Seattle – $25 USD (about $32.33 CAD)

Berlin – €32.13 EUR for early admission (around $43.96 CAD), €24.99 EUR for general admission (about $34.19 CAD).

Sapporo – ¥3,000 JPY (approximately $28.50 CAD)

Other Pokémon Go players that are not attending the event receive the Ultra Beasts when the events are over.

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Mobile Syrup

Campfire is Niantic’s social-communication companion app for all its titles

Since Pokémon Go‘s inception in 2016, players have been coordinating their location for raids and meetups on third-party platforms like Reddit and Discord. Now, Pokémon Go‘s parent company, Niantic, is launching Campfire, a location-based social-communication app for all of Niantic’s AR games, eliminating the need for apps like Discord, and giving its player base a reason to use its in-house application.

Campfire will show you a map with the location of all your friends (if they have Campfire), in-game events, communities and more, similar to Snapchat’s Snap Map. “We think of it as the “homepage” of the real-world Metaverse – a place where players can discover other players in their local area, message one another and share content, organize their own events and meetups, and foster the kinds of real-world social connections that have always been at the core of what Niantic does,” reads the company’s press release.

Campfire is already available to use with Niantic’s Ingress, and will arrive for all of its other games this summer. It’s worth noting that Campfire is not an in-app experience/plugin for games like Pokémon Go, Pikmin Bloom and Ingress, and rather, a companion app like Discord, but developed by Niantic.

With Campfire, Niantic wants to give its “community a new tool to discover the joy of real-world gameplay, meetups, and events, and to provide a way for people to discover new creations designed to make the real-world a more magical and entertaining place.”

We aren’t entirely sure when the companion app will be available for other Niantic titles, though it will be some time this summer.

Image credit: Niantic

Source: Niantic

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Mobile Syrup

Niantic to disable access to Pokémon Go and more in Russia

Niantic, the American developer behind popular titles like Pokémon Go, Ingress, and Pikmin Bloom is now taking action against Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine.

The three above-mentioned games are no longer available for download in Russia and Belarus, and those who already have the games will soon be unable to access them, according to Niantic’s Tweet dated March 10th.

The move from Niantic comes soon after other video game developers and publishers restricted the Russian market in some capacity. Sony announced that it is suspending the sale of its consoles and software in Russia, along with shutting down its PlayStation Store for those accessing it from the nation. Whereas EA removed all Russian club and International teams from its FIFA and NHL titles along with ceasing all sales in Russia and Belarus, including games, content and even including virtual currency bundles.

Check out this roundup of all big tech/social media sanctions against Russia to read what other game developers/publishers like the Montreuil, France-based Ubisoft and the Warsaw, Poland-based CD Projekt Red are implementing.

Source: @NianticLabs

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Mobile Syrup

Court rejects appeal from former police officers who played Pokémon Go on duty

The Pokémon Go mania between 2016 and 2017 was extraordinary.

I remember skipping classes in school and sneaking out at night because I just had to ‘catch em’ all.’ Sure, cutting classes to play a viral game wasn’t the best decision, but it did no real harm. However, what these two former LAPD officers did in 2017 shows a clear lapse in judgment and priority.

Former Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) officers Louis Lozano and Eric Mitchell have been fired for ignoring a radio call asking for backup for a robbery that took place on April 15th, 2017. Why? They were busy trying to catch a Snorlax and a Togetic. 

According to the court documents, courtesy of Axios‘ Stephen Totilo, the in-car recording proves that the officers ignored the radio call and drove around to different locations for about 20 minutes to catch the virtual creatures.

“On their way to the Snorlax location, former Officer Mitchell alerted former Officer Lozano that ‘a Togetic just popped up,’” reads the court document.

Once taken to court, former Officer Lozano and Mitchell filed a petition, arguing that the use of in-car camera footage as evidence against them was unfair and breached their privacy. The news, in this case, is that the former officers’ appeal was rejected on January 7th, 2022 and is now available for the whole world to read.

Below is an excerpt:

After Mitchell apparently caught the Snorlax—exclaiming, “Got ‘em”—petitioners agreed to “[g]o get the Togetic” and drove off. When their car stopped again, the DICVS recorded Mitchell saying, “Don’t run away. Don’t run away,” while Lozano described how he “buried it and ultra-balled” the Togetic before announcing, “Got him.” Mitchell advised he was “[s]till trying to catch it,” adding, “Holy crap, man. This thing is fighting the crap out of me.” Eventually, Mitchell exclaimed, “Holy Crap. Finally,” apparently in reference to capturing the Togetic, and he remarked, “The[ ] guys are going to be so jealous.” Petitioners then agreed to return to the 7-Eleven (where Sergeant Gomez later met them) to end their watch. On the way, Mitchell remarked, “I got you a new Pokémon today, dude.”

There’s more where that came from. Read the complete court document here.

Image credit: Shutterstock

Source: @stephentotilo

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Mobile Syrup

Your iPhone can now run Pokémon Go on native refresh rate

Pokémon Go will now feel more responsive on new and old iOS devices, thanks to its latest ‘version 1.191.0 update.’

As first discovered by The Verge, Pokémon Go can now run on your iPhone’s native refresh rate, which means, it’s not capped at 20 FPS anymore. While Niantic’s update release notes don’t specify the new ‘Native Refresh Rate’ feature, it does mention ‘Quality-of-life improvements.’

The feature is off by default, quoting high battery drain concerns. Here’s how you can turn the setting on and enjoy Pokémon Go on your iPhone’s native refresh rate:

  1. Tap the Pokeball icon and head to settings
  2. Scroll to the bottom and tap on Advanced Settings
  3. Toggle on Native Refresh Rate

The newer iPhone 13 Pro and Pro Max users are the ones who will benefit the most from this update, owing to the 120Hz ProMotion display.

However, older iOS devices should get a slight FPS boost too.

Via: The Verge

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Mobile Syrup

Pokémon Go December 2021 Community Day event details revealed

Niantic has announced more details surrounding its upcoming December Pokémon Go event. This information comes shortly after Pokémon Go’s ‘Community Day’ for November, which was held on Sunday, November 21st.

Pokémon Go’s Community Day for December kicks off on the 18th and will conclude the following day on the 19th. Upon the start of the event, trainers will have a chance to encounter a wide selection of Pokémon in the wild. Additionally, players have a chance to hatch all Pokémon featured throughout the Community Days across 2020 via the 2km eggs.

The breakdown of which Pokémon will be available across both days is as followed.

Pokémon available on December 18:

Fletchling
Gible
Machop
Roselia
Snivy
Swablu

Pokémon available on December 19:

Duskull
Eevee
Oshawott
Shinx
Tepig

Pokémon available by hatching 2km eggs:

Abra
Budew
Charmander
Elekid
Gastly
Magby
Magikarp
Piplup
Porygon
Rhyhorn
Seedot
Weedle

Finally, the Pokémon that are available to catch through raid events have also been revealed. Many of the featured Pokémon are the same as those available through hatching eggs, with rare exceptions.

Raid Pokémon

Abra
Charmander
Electabuzz
Gastly
Magmar
Magikarp
Piplup
Porygon
Rhyhorn
Seedot
Weedle

Community Day event moves will also be available. Evolve any of the featured Pokémon and players will be able to learn event moves from previous Community Days across 2020 and 2021.

Pokémon GO players were offered the chance to catch a Shinx, Luxio, and Luxray during November’s Community Day.

Image credit: Niantic

Via: CNET

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Mobile Syrup

Niantic releases its AR Developer Kit to boost metaverse app development

Pokémon Go developer, Niantic has released its “Lightship Augmented Reality Developer Kit” to facilitate the creation of “real-world metaverse” applications and to “enable developers across the world to realize their visions for augmented reality.”

The first set of Lightship Developer Kit tools are now available to developers globally at Lightship.dev.

“Transforming humanity’s relationship with technology by merging the physical and virtual worlds will require the ideas and perspectives of as many people as possible,” said John Hanke, founder and CEO of Niantic. “That’s why we’re so excited to open the vault of technology that powers our own games, so developers, creators and brands globally can build inclusive experiences that push the boundaries of what’s possible in AR.”

The Augmented Reality Developer Kit (ARDK) is a cross-platform software development kit that runs on Android and iOS devices worldwide. According to Niantic, it combines the tools and technology that power the top three augmented reality features: mapping in Real-Time, Semantic Segmentation, and Multiplayer Experiences.

The toolset is free, however, but Niantic will charge for a feature that allows several devices to access shared AR experiences at the same time. In addition, Niantic is allocating $20 million to finance new companies developing AR software and applications.

“With an initial $20 million fund, Niantic Ventures will invest in companies building applications that share our vision for the Real-World Metaverse and contribute to the global ecosystem we are building,” reads the blog post

Learn more about Niantic’s endeavour here.

Image credit: Niantic

Source: Niantic

Categories
Mobile Syrup

Pokémon Go is making several gameplay adjustments in the coming months

Pokémon Go is testing several gameplay adjustments in the coming months, according to a new blog post from Niantic.

Some of the features that will soon be available include:

  • Nickname suggestions for new Trainers
  • An expanded set of Trainer Tips
  • New PokéStop features
  • Egg hatch updates, including the option to skip the hatch animation
  • A Special Research story that introduces new Trainers to the world of Pokémon Go

Additionally, Pokémon Go’s Halloween content will run from October 15th to 31st with two separate parts. The first part focuses on Psychic and Poison-type Pokémon and marks Galarian Slowking’s debut in the mobile game. The second part that starts October 22nd stars Ghost-type Pokémon.

The above video plays the Lavender town theme song, which is a creepy ghost town from Pokémon’s Kanto region. Be careful with this music around kids… (not actually).  

Pokémon Go available on both iOS and Android.

Source: Pokémon Go Blog