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Final Fantasy publisher Square Enix is working with Qualcomm on its new AR developer kit, Snapdragon Spaces.
The pair announced the collaboration today as Qualcomm also revealed a $100 million ‘Snapdragon Metaverse Fund‘. It will see Square Enix explore the possibilities for “immersive gaming experiences” on the platform.
Specifics for the partnership aren’t known but, in a prepared statement, Ben Taylor, Technical Director at Square Enix noted that the company thinks “the time is right with XR to innovate on games of a classic genre we are especially known for, and we look forward to sharing them with the world”.
First announced back in November 2021, Snapdragon Spaces consists of a pair of head-worn AR glasses that are tethered to an external power source such as a smartphone. Similar to other glasses — many of which are powered by Qualcomm’s own XR2 platform — the device is capable of anchoring virtual images in the real world when viewed through the lenses. It also features positional tracking and hand tracking for input.
Square Enix, meanwhile, is known for some of the biggest brands in gaming, including several Japanese role-playing series such as the Final Fantasy games. Taylor’s note on a “classic genre” suggests that the company could be looking to bring this style of experience to the platform.
Qualcomm previously noted that Snapdragon Spaces would see general availability sometime in spring 2022, but it’s currently unclear what this rollout will look like.
What would you want to see Square Enix bring to AR? Let us know in the comments below!
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Jamie has been covering the VR industry since 2014 having come from a gaming and technology background. While he loves games, he’s most interested in experiential VR that explores narrative, human connection and other such themes. He’s also the host of Upload’s VR Showcases, which you should definitely watch.
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