Lately I’ve seen posts and comments about how great it would be to have an Apple Watch version of Pokémon GO. What people tend to forget is, that the Watch is a companion device and thus should be handled like that.
In my Bachelor Thesis I worked on a Mixed Reality / Pervasive Game that uses special built devices for playing in the real world – without looking at screens and just by micro interactions. One of the many things we learned while researching for that project is, that the immersion of a mixed reality game won’t be fostered by pushing a whole Mixed Reality Game and every little mechanic of it into one device (particulary when we talk about smart watches).
That said, I’d like to show you an approach which uses the Watch as a true companion for the game itself. In Pokémon X/Y (the 3DS Game) you can use an item called Pokéradar, which finds Pokémon nearby. What if the watch would represent that device in the real world? What if trainers could select Pokémon in their Pokédex and the Pokéradar (your watch) would alarm you, if there is one nearby?
I don’t think that catching Pokémon by just tapping a button (yes, I am talking about the Pokémon GO Plus wearable) is as fun as on your mmartphone. Moreover I am quite sure, that throwing Pokéballs on a 312×390 display isn’t that fun, too.
However by giving other devices (your Watch, your TV, your home, maybe your car?) a very special role in the game world and connecting them to a coherent experience, Mixed Reality Games like Pokémon Go can be much more immersive. The Framer prototype you see above is just a preview and a rough idea of the greater concept. Surely some mechanics have to be added, but it should give you a glimpse of how Mixed Reality Experiences will work in the near future.
