Pokemon GO developer Niantic is developing a new augmented reality mobile game based on the popular Harry Potter franchise, titled Harry Potter: Wizards Unite, which is set to launch in 2018.
Niantic is developing the game together with Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and Portkey Games, a brand-new label formed specifically for Harry Potter-themed games.
In Harry Potter: Wizards Unite, players will be able to learn spells, explore the real-world, encounter legendary beasts, and fight against powerful enemies, Niantic said in its official announcement.
Official Harry Potter site Pottermore has a few more details on the upcoming game: Using augmented-reality technology, players will get the chance to view the real-world through a "wizarding world lens," discover artifacts and build a wizarding career.
"With this game, we are allowing the passionate, worldwide fan base to explore J.K. Rowling's deeply powerful and imaginative universe in a new, truly immersive way," said David Haddad, President of Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment.
Harry Potter: Wizards Unite will most certainly use the already existing location data established in Ingress, which was also used in Pokemon GO. The partnership with Warner Bros. is another big win for Niantic, giving the California-based company another massively popular franchise to work on.
Based on the limited information provided by the parties involved, it's difficult to accurately picture just what kind of game Harry Potter: Wizards Unite will turn out to be. Perhaps the only thing we can count on is the inclusion of the four Hogwarts Houses, namely Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Niantic will most certainly use the four Houses in the same manner as the three teams in Pokemon GO to promote competition.
Harry Potter: Wizards Unite is the first project under Portkey Games, which is set to produce a series of mobile and console games based on author J. K. Rowling's magical world.
"With Portkey Games, we are thrilled to answer the fans' requests for more games inspired by J.K. Rowling's Wizarding World," said Haddad in yet another announcement.
Let's hope at least one of the games will allow players to experience an alternate Harry Potter reality where Dobby and Fred Weasley don't die.