They might have even used Spatineo Directory as one of their sources, since the Directory has the most comprehensive listing of geographical data in the world and is open for all to browse. “That gets into more -type of data … and we utilise that to map Pokémon species to appropriate habitats,” John Hanke, CEO and founder of Niantic, told Mashable. For instance you’ll meet water-type pokémons only next to the actual water features (lakes, ponds, fountains, etc). Pokémon Go is backed by a large amount of data gathered from different sources like geology, vegetation and hydrology.Ĭreators of Pokémon Go have put a lot of effort into using data to give context for the different scenarios the players will encounter. There is much more to the game’s maps than just the the typical street maps we’re accustomed to. Not only does the game encourage people to get active and explore their surroundings, but it also utilizes map data in a very innovative ways. Please let us know if you have information otherwise and we can continue our Pokémon hunt. Given all this information, we think we can call it: Pokémon Go uses Google Maps. However, given the fact that Ingress, Niantic’s original map and location based augmented reality game, was developed under Google’s wing, and that Niantic was spun off only as recently as September 2015, it’s safe to assume they might still have a working relationship when it comes to maps. On the other hand, Google Maps outsources most of their map data, which makes it at least theoretically possible that Niantic is just using the same original source instead of Google Maps.
These images strongly suggest that Pokémon Go uses Google maps as its basemap. Let’s take a look at this screenshot from the Pokemon Go interface: (Yes, our fellow Finns, while the game isn’t released here yet, we were lucky enough to find a friend who had downloaded the game from a foreign App Store). So we thought, why wouldn’t we try to figure it out ourselves? We took screenshots of a particular location (in Espoo, Finland) in the game as well as in Google Maps and OpenStreetMap.
And their maps come from…Īn article in The Atlantic was questioning whether the spatial data used in the game comes from the OpenStreetMap or Google Maps, and creators of the game from Niantic declined to disclose this information. This data covers most of the world and is quite a remarkable data collection in itself, that is why the source of this map data has become a topic of several recent media articles. In case you’ve been a little disconnected from the outside world lately and haven’t heard about the game, just check out their video to see how it works.The game relies heavily on maps to not only show the location of the user, but also to show where you can find Pokémon, Gyms, etc. Most of you probably have already heard what the game is about, so we’ll just summarize the idea behind the game: Pokémon Go is a mobile augmented reality game where players use their smartphones to catch virtual Pokémon creatures that can be found in real world places. It should be no surprise that we, map data geeks from Spatineo, just could not stay away from doing our own little investigation of the maps they’re using. There has been a lot of hype surrounding Pokémon Go lately and also speculation around the source of the map data they are using. The mystery of Pokemon Go maps is solved and it’s not just about the street maps
0 kommentar(er)
