At today’s Google hardware event in San Francisco, the company previewed various augmented reality apps built using the ARCore SDK, including a League of Legends AR map and a Lego AR model builder. ARCore is Google’s equivalent to Apple’s ARKit – supported by their new flagship Pixel 2 smartphone, and coming to many other high-end Android devices.
Real-time action from a League of Legends match was presented via an AR map, developed by Grab Games, creators of VR boxing game Knockout League and co-developers of VR FPS John Wick Chronicles. This experience is uses the ‘GRAB Augmented Reality “Table-Top” Platform’, previewed on the developer’s website. Grab Games believes their platform “will be future of how we experience traditional sports and esports replays”.
An augmented reality Lego model builder with characters that come to life was also shown. The famous construction toy has a strong background in virtual spaces, with the discontinued Fusion sets, the more recent Lego Brickheadz Builder VR for Daydream, not forgetting the many successful Lego video games. The AR demonstration shared similarities with the existing Brickheadz Builder VR.
