How Niantic is preparing for AR’s ubiquitous future
/When he was a child, John Hanke was obsessed with pull-out maps from National Geographic magazines, spending hours poring over names and topographic features. So in some ways, it makes sense that the Niantic CEO wants to help map the entire world with augmented reality.
At the Game Developers Conference 2019 in San Francisco, Hanke talked about why developers should continue pursuing AR, and how it can be a force for good if done right. Niantic popularized consumer AR through location-based mobile apps like Ingress and Pokémon Go, and is applying that expertise to the upcoming Harry Potter: Wizards Unite. One thing that all three games share in common is that they’re part of Niantic’s overarching mission of incorporating AR into the world in a fun and interesting way.