Poké mon Go' Slated for July Release
June 15 2016 - 7:20PM
Dow Jones News
LOS ANGELES—An augmented-reality "Poké mon" game for smartphones
is slated for release by the end of July, executives at the
companies developing the app said Wednesday.
The game, called "Poké mon Go," will connect with coming titles
in the blockbuster franchise being developed for Nintendo Co.'s
hand-held gaming system.
"We would work hard to let fans enjoy the game by the next
month," Tsunekazu Ishihara, chief executive of Poké mon Company
said.
"Poké mon Go" is being developed for iOS and Android by Poké mon
Company and Niantic Inc., a spinoff from Alphabet Inc.'s Google
that is known for the augmented-reality game "Ingress." Niantic
counts Google, Nintendo and a handful of Silicon Valley companies
among its investors.
In the game, players scour real-life city streets, parks and
other locations to capture virtual monsters, such as the well-known
creature Pikachu. The app, which is currently being tested by
select gamers, will be free to download and is expected to generate
revenue through in-app purchases.
Augmented and virtual reality are hot right now. Analysts say
the markets for the cutting-edge technologies will expand rapidly
in the coming years as education, health care and other industries
adopt them.
This year marks the 20th anniversary for the popular videogame
series, which has been featured in movies and merchandise. Poké mon
Company plans to release two new role-playing games, "Poké mon Sun"
and "Poké mon Moon," in November for Nintendo's hand-held 3DS
device.
Nintendo hopes the games will prop up slowing sales of the 3DS
before the Japanese game maker releases its next-generation system,
code-named NX, in March.
"Poké mon Go" will interact with the two new 3DS games,
developers said during an onstage event at the E3 trade show in Los
Angeles. They didn't elaborate further.
Nintendo is also working on a Bluetooth-enabled device to allow
users to play "Poké mon Go" without looking at smartphone screens.
The hardware, dubbed Poké mon Go Plus, will be released by the end
of next month for $34.99, Nintendo executive Shigeru Miyamoto
said.
Write to Takashi Mochizuki at takashi.mochizuki@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
June 15, 2016 19:05 ET (23:05 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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