Niantic, the development studio behind the hyper-successful Pokémon Go, is developing an augmented-reality Transformers game.Announced on Twitter, Transformers: Heavy Metal is a mobile game that will see players using their phones to interact with a variety of Autobots and Deceptions transposed into the real world. Similar to how Pokémon Go saw fans walk around their neighborhoods to capture Pokémon, players will need to venture outside to play their part in an ongoing war between the Cybertronians.Related: Pokémon Go: Everything Available in the New Pokémon Snap Celebration Event

"In Transformers: Heavy Metal, players will join the Guardian Network, a group of humans who have banded together with the Autobots in a war against the Decepticons. As a Guardian, players will uncover hidden regions across Earth to find resources and battle Decepticons in turn-based battles, either solo or with friends," reads Niantic's description of the game.

While Niantic has yet to confirm the minutia of the gameplay, official screenshots for Transformers: Heavy Metal suggest several mechanical similarities between the upcoming game and the developers' previous releases. A variety of menacing Decepticons are littered across a GPS-like map; these will likely serve as "encounters" that players will need to overcome. The hovering nodes may be the game's replacement for Pokémon Go's PokéStops but nothing has been confirmed. What appears to be a shadowy Starscream may also serve as a raid battle.

Related: Transformers: War for Cybertron Key Art Reveals Kingdom Release Date

While Pokémon Go may have been Niantic's breakout title, the developer has experienced success with other franchises, mostly recently with Harry Potter: Wizards Unite. Niantic is currently developing an AR Pikmin game alongside Nintendo although no further information has been revealed since the game's announcement in 2020.

Transformers: Heavy Metal will enter a soft launch "soon" and will be available for Android and iOS. Niantic has yet to reveal which regions will receive this early version of the game.

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Source: Twitter