Niantic Inc., best known for “Pokemon GO,” announced today it has teamed up with Tomy Co. Ltd. and Hasbro Inc. to launch a new augmented reality title set in the Transformers universe.

The game, titled “Transformers: Heavy Metal,” will bring the transforming robots to life in the real world through mobile devices the same way that “Pokemon GO” and “Harry Potter: Wizards Unite” did for their respective properties.

“Transformers is the perfect franchise for AR,” said John Hanke, chief executive of Niantic. “Battling and interacting with giant robots in the real world is an amazing experience.”

The Transformers universe is particularly well-suited for AR games because Transformers are robots that disguise themselves as everyday objects – most commonly automobiles – and exist in the modern world. It will be easy for players to understand giant robots walking around city streets, viewed through the lens of their mobile phones.

The game will allow players to participate in play alongside with well-known heroes from the Transformers movie and game franchises as well such as Optimus Prime, Bumblebee and the other Autobots.

Players will join the Autobots in what Niantic calls the Guardian Network to fight against the Decepticons, the enemy faction of robots, both solo and in social raids. They will prowl the streets in search of resources in hidden regions across the Earth — mostly in their own neighborhoods — using their mobile phones in AR and engage in turn-based battles.

Development studio Very Very Spaceship founded by Sean Vesce will be developing the new Transformers title using Niantic Lightship, the company’s AR tool suite. “We want to live up to the high expectations of Transformers fans around the world and bring them a game, unlike anything they’ve played before,” said Hanke.

Niantic defined an entire genre of games and introduced augmented reality to the mainstream with “Pokemon GO” in 2016.

The game still made surprising revenue in 2020, even with the pandemic chasing people from the streets, according to a report from analyst firm Sensor Tower. It generated more than $1 billion in the first 10 months of last year alone and about $4.2 billion in player spending in its lifetime.

Image: Niantic