Perhaps it’s in its very concept lies the idea that augmented reality (AR) is easily marriageable (in a sense) with mobile computing devices. Even LEGO itself has gone into the craze, with its Creative Play Lab giving previews of a LEGO-AR mobile app back in early December of last year.
It’s been half a year since the first images were shown, and LEGO is now showing off some further developments of this app, made possible by their utilization of AR Kit 2, the latest version of the proprietary AR dev-kit created by Apple. It was showcased this week at the Apple Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC).
What better way perhaps to display the new ARK2-powered capabilities of the new and improved LEGO Studio-AR, than to demonstrate the added features of its AR interaction between real LEGO sets and app-provided special effects. Two tablets running LEGO Studio-AR were trained on a fully assembled LEGO Creator Expert Assembly Square (10255) set. Check out their demo below.
Like magic, the app “filled up” the space around the Assembly Square (10255) with AR reproductions of other Creator Expert sets such as the Downtown Diner (10260) and Brick Bank (10251). That was showcased in the 2017 build; now the app does better by populating the scene with animated virtual minifigures walking in, out and around the real and virtual sets.
The LEGO Studio-AR app also has gameplay elements similar to other past LEGO mobile game apps, with virtual sets, vehicles and minifigures to unlock by completing quests. And to think, this development by LEGO is merely one of the many applications of Apple’s AR Kit 2, which has been used by many other developers from numerous different other companies present.
We’ll have to wait yet for the app to be complete, but the previews have been proving more promising every update, so we’ve nothing else but wait for its release.
