The company behind Pokémon Go will soon be giving the wizarding world of Harry Potter a similar treatment. Niantic Inc. and Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment announced Wednesday that they are partnering to create Harry Potter: Wizards Unite, an augmented reality mobile game based on author J.K. Rowling’s magical world.
This will be Niantic’s third foray into augmented reality, following its massive 2016 success with Pokémon Go, in which players walk to real locations to find, capture, and battle Pokémon. This “AR + real-world mobile game platform” will return in Harry Potter: Wizards Unite to show players that “magic is all around us.”
The announcement did not reveal too many gameplay specifics yet, but we do know that it will involve spells, artifacts, magical creatures, and recognizable characters from the famed Harry Potter series.
The Harry Potter book series and film adaptations truly need no introduction, as they have amassed a vast cult following the world over. As they did for the Pokémon fanbase last year, Niantic looks to provide Harry Potter fans with a brand new way to interact with their beloved world.
“At Niantic, our goal is to leverage technology to create real-world experiences that help people to discover the wonderful and often magical parts of the world around them,” said John Hanke, founder and CEO of Niantic, Inc. “The beloved Harry Potter stories have captured imaginations worldwide for more than 20 years and soon we’ll turn the fantasy into augmented reality, allowing fans and their friends to become wizards and witches.”
The decision to include characters from the series is a key step in the right direction to ensuring fan interest. The diverse and compelling cast is the signature element of the wizarding world’s appeal.
Harry Potter: Wizards Unite will fall under Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment’s brilliantly named Portkey Games, a label solely dedicated to producing games from the Harry Potter universe.
“With this game, we are allowing the passionate, worldwide fan base to experience J.K. Rowling’s deeply powerful and imaginative universe in a new, truly immersive way,” said David Haddad, President, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. “It is wonderful to have Niantic’s remarkable augmented reality expertise as we develop this incredibly rich wizarding world for players to explore in their everyday lives.”
More information about the game will be revealed in 2018. In the meantime, fans can sign up for updates at the game’s official site.