Facebook announced that their messaging app, Facebook Messenger, will be bringing AR (Augmented Reality) to Messenger, taking interaction to new levels with filters and AR effects. Jumping on the AR Bandwagon is HMD Global (The guys who make Nokia Phones) decided to have a modern throwback to possibly the greatest mobile game of all time.
Keeping the Nokia nostalgia in mind, HMD Global is launching an all new Snake that has been reimagined for a new generation of Nokia smartphones in the world of AR.
HMD Global is pioneering the use of Facebook’s AR camera for gaming by letting you enjoy Snake like millions before enjoyed Pokemon GO. They are the first brand to use this tech for gaming with the introduction of Snake on Facebook Camera which includes Snake Mask and Snake Real World.
Snake Mask
Put simply, Snake Mask turns you into a snake using Facebook’s front facing camera AR tech! Open your mouth and your snake head will stick out its tongue. Like the original snake, you can still eat apples and gain points. The snake even blinks when you blink. Its like a cross of an Animoji and the AR face filters.
One of things we didn’t even know we wanted, but it sure if fun!
Snake Real World
Snake Real World uses Facebook’s back facing camera AR technology to bring Snake gameplay to life and in real world settings. On the beach? In the zoo? With Snake Real World, you can take the game with you.
A bit on the slower side in terms of button responsiveness, and we didn’t quite understand if the snake can die by hitting a real-world wall. Our snake just kept on moving. Would be cool if that was the level of AR interaction, but its still alot of fun to play around with.
I had the chance to play around with the game ahead of its global launch and the experience has been fun.
- Does Snake support multiplayer?
- Will I be able to play with my friends?
- Is there a leaderboard, especially with my friends?
- What kind of devices will support this (tho it’s probably more of a question for Facebook)
The cool thing about all this is that, since Snake is available via Facebook’s AR Camera, it is available on all devices and not limited to Nokia handsets or even Android. Could this be the answer to the nostalgia we were facing back in Episode 2 of Throwback Thursday?
