Harry Potter: Wizards Unite, the upcoming AR game developed by Portkey Games and co-published by WB Games San Francisco and Niantic, Inc. (of Pokemon GO fame), is releasing tomorrow, Friday the 21st, and is hoping to cast a spell on the millions of players who’ve dabbled with Pokemon GO and also bring into the fold the many Harry Potter fanatics across the world. Is it going to succeed" Based on the few hours I got to play the game at the Universal Studios Wizarding World launch event this past Tuesday, I think it will because it brings to your phones a richer universe than Pokemon GO, an actual evolving narrative, better visuals, and an emphasis on collaboration. And although Wizards Unite definitely has more depth than Pokemon GO, its main gameplay loop is similar enough to still be inviting to the casuals, which bodes well for its success.
If you’ve never played an Augmented Reality game such as Pokemon GO or Ingress, you play by interacting with content you find in the real world and fight battles (or take other actions) by seeing a blend of game visuals and the real world through your phone’s camera. Given how popular Pokemon GO has been, I expect almost all of you will know how an AR game plays by now, which is great news for Wizards Unite since it doesn’t have to act as the evangelist of AR games, although it also won’t benefit from gamers’ curiosity about this new tech like Pokemon GO did.
So, is Wizards Unite good&quo...