Now here’s something we don’t hear everyday. According to paidContent, Google’s Niantic Labs (those responsible for apps like Field Trip and Ingress) will soon start co-publishing a series of eBooks based on Ingress. Which is their popular closed-beta augmented reality game. A Spokesperson for Google confirmed to TechCrunch that this report is true.
This series is supposedly going to be called ALIGNMENT and will be written and co-published with the help of Thomas Greanias; the first installment is due to be published in April. The books are apparently designed as prequels to Greanias’ Raising Atlantis series. It also looks like Greanias has bee interested in the Ingress story for quite some time now, and the overall theme of the popular game looks like it fits in well with his earlier books.
For Google, this is definitely a new product. Although so has everything about Niantic Labs. Google isn’t known for launching games either. But to launch a game, albeit still in closed beta, then turn around and make the game into a series of books is definitely some new territory for Google. But from what we’ve been able to tell, Niantic seems to work independently from the rest of Google. You’ll see with other projects like Android, Maps, Google+, etc., they all work together. But for the most part Niantic is like an outside company.
So a series of eBooks about Ingress. These could actually do well. There are still quite a few people that are playing Ingress. Perhaps this is Google’s way of monetizing the game? Selling eBooks that are based off of the game for $1-2 or so each? I’m sure most of us would rather that then have annoying ads in the app. Am I right?
Let us know in the comments below if you’d be interested in an eBook series about Ingress.