Pokemon GO getting new AR Buddy Adventure feature, Niantic Wayfarer tool rolling out next week
Niantic has detailed some new functionality on the way for Pokemon GO. Currently in the works is an AR-centric Buddy Adventure, which is designed to be an interactive experience with friends. Something else that we’ll be seeing very soon is the Niantic Wayfarer tool that will let people add certain locations to the world.
Here’s the rundown on both features:
Buddy Adventure
– Multiplayer interaction
– Shared AR experiences at its core
– Can interact with your “Buddy” by feeding it berries and giving it virtual pats on the head
– Also able to see your friends’ Pokemon at the same time
– You can then interact with them, and your friends will be able to interact with your Pokemon too
– Photo mode works here
– Niantic isn’t sharing any gameplay specifics just yet
– Unclear if feeding your Buddy berries or giving it pats will accrue any points, for example
– Designed to be real-time
– You and your friends would need to have the feature enabled and be in the same location for it to work
– Niantic didn’t say exactly how many friends or “Buddies” the feature will accommodate
– This experience is really meant for small groups of people
– Niantic working on improving its AR tech
– No word on availability as of yet
Niantic Wayfarer tool
– Fill out the map with real-world locations like local landmarks
– The tool was seeded out to a few Pokemon GO areas to test out early last month
– Now it’ll be ready for everyone
– Participants will need to be level 40 and pass a short quiz in order to submit a location
– Other players can then review, edit and vote for which locations are worthy enough to be added to the world
– Niantic is planning on allowing small and medium-sized businesses get in on the action with a new Niantic Sponsored Locations program launching in December of this year
– Any storefront can now schedule events like raids to happen at a specific time, or place other attractions like lures in order to draw foot traffic
– Businesses can also put an in-store promotion, like a coupon or special offer, at a game location
– Sponsored locations are hidden from children unless there’s explicit parental permission
– Wayfarer tool will roll out next week for Pokemon GO players around the world
– Early beta access to Niantic’s Sponsored Locations begin in December, with sign-ups starting this month
