With the interactive/interconnected world we live in toys are no longer solitary items for kids to play with. There can be layers upon layers of different gameplay elements to learn and collect like Skylanders and Nintendo’s Amiibos. The latest comes from British game and robotics company PlayFusion, in collaboration with toy giant TOMY, with Lightseekers, a trading card game that’s also a videogame with augmented reality (AR) elements.
The Lightseekers Trading Card Game will arrive with more than 350 printed cards at launch allowing players to use a hero and an arsenal of cards, featuring spells, creatures, items, and locations, to defeat their opponents. There’s also a free mobile videogame for iOS and Android that can utilise the cards. This is where the AR functionality comes into play, scanning the cards will bring up 3D models of whatever item or character that particular card featured, which then unlocks in the videogame.
Cards are available for purchase online at Toys”R”Us and Amazon in the US and UK. At launch customers will be able to buy the Intro Pack for $29.99 USD, that includes: two intro decks (one Storm and one Tech), each deck includes one hero card, five combo cards, and 30 action cards; one Booster Pack; two play mats; two health counters; the full game rules; two deck storage boxes; a trading shield; and a Tribute Card.
After that there’s the Starter Decks for $19.99. Each of these includes: one hero card, five combo cards, and 30 action cards;
5 exclusive cards that can only be found in these Starter Deck packs; one Booster Pack containing another nine random cards that can be used to start building your own custom deck; one play mat; one health counter; the full game rules; a deck storage box; a trading shield; and a Tribute Card. Additionally, $3.99 booster packs are available containing one hero card, one rare card, two uncommon, five common cards, and a possible rare “shiny” card.
While Lightseekers may feature an AR element videogames such as Pokemon GO and Hologrid: Monster Battle do actually feature AR gameplay.
VRFocus will continue its coverage relating to the latest AR use cases, reporting back as further announcements are made.