Augmented Reality Gaming

Reality goes disruptive - Blurring the line between digital and analogue worlds

Betting big on Augmented Reality Technology for evolved gaming experiences

While we talk and feel how connected we are, technology is leaping bigger with innovation and creativity in a quest to provide the avid gamers an immersive experience that is far more interactive and real. As the gaming industry strives for major breakthroughs in 2016, players’ expectations keep soaring high which look for nothing short of phenomenal realistic experiences. Blending the real and virtual realms achieved through HMDs(Head Mount Displays) etc. can sway the entire gaming community world over. Augmented Reality (AR) is one such technology that creates this blend and helps shape dreams of the gamers come true virtually by augmenting the reality.

Not the same old plain vanilla reality

Augmented Reality is a technology that superimposes digital media and other sensor-based inputs on the real world view using the camera of your device. This is aimed at enhancing the user's sensory perception of what one can hear, feel and see. The sensor receptors in the AR equipment through protocols facilitate simulation in the gaming environments thereby providing the avid gamers a near to reality experience in gaming.

By simply overlaying virtual objects and other digital media or information into the real word, AR helps people envision virtual world coming to life in the physical environments. Leveraging HD TV capabilities, smart algorithms along with sensory reception apparatus like accelerometers and gyroscopes, AR triggers the dawn of augmented reality gaming(ARG) experience migrating from the legacy wired gaming controllers to protocol based sensory technologies.

Having all the hardware components and software that are required to create an AR experience, smartphones have been the ideal joints for deployments of AR globally and with days to come by, optical apparatus like goggles, contact lenses etc will too partake in the AR technology revolution.

So who’s eyeing on the ARG pie:

Google, Microsoft, Apple, Sony are the major players striving to bring ARG into mainstream usage. Despite the flak received for its wearable technology, Google continues to dive deep and work around on Google Glass. Also, Magic Leap, Google Cardboard and Ingress are few pursuits that show great promise of this tech giant’s heads-up when it comes to taking on the market with its innovation prowess.

There has been a very positive buzz surrounding Microsoft HoloLens, and Apple, Sony, Samsung are also not behind capturing the pulse of gaming community worldwide.

Limitations and the future of ARG:

While the ARG market looks lucrative, following concerns are expected to hamper/delay the market penetration and user adoption surge:

·         The process of setting up a dedicated AR gaming session is tedious

·         Dedicated bandwidth allocation for switching to real-time mode

·         High capital investments to acquire the AR gaming equipment

·         User privacy

What the future holds for AR:

With the burgeoning use of smartphones, AR is likely to gain huge traction across markets. User adoption is expected to reach new heights as device prices tumble owing to new entrants and increased competition making AR technology accessible and affordable. Mobile screen real estate issue will make way for AR capable wearables which provide expansive views of the world around them. This in turn is expected to drive the growth for AR hardware components.

Conclusion: The future is neither Real nor Virtual – It’s Augmented

Augmented reality gaming is amazingly teasing and incredibly young. But the whole lot of focus on this technology with capital investment inflows and steady but rising interest is driving it mature enough to make the dreams of realizing the virtual-in-real. No surprise, we are all connected to this dream by making the industry comply to our expectations of creating a whole new world that enhances the way we consume everything around us.