Niantic Spatial’s Charming Pet Simulator ‘Hello, Dot’ Launches from Early Access on Quest 3

Sure, here it is:

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So, Niantic Spatial dropped this new mixed reality pet thing called Hello, Dot on Quest 3. It used to be in early access, but not anymore. And boy, did they throw in a bunch of extra stuff.

What’s Hello, Dot, you ask? Well, it’s kind of like this whole mix of reality thing. I guess Niantic started playing around with AR on phones—remember Peridot from 2023? Yep, that’s where they started the magic show.

They’re not just stopping at Hello, Dot, though. Nope. There’s also Peridot Beyond for Snap Spectacles (sounds futuristic, right?), Pause with Peridot, Snap-a-Dot for Web AR, and something called SunnyTune for Apple Vision Pro. A mouthful, but hey, it’s the future.

Hello, Dot got a major upgrade as it stepped out of the shadows of its early access phase on Quest 3. Now it’s all about:

– Dots with new quirks. Seriously, they’ve got more personality than ever.
– An arcade setup for Dot dates. Yep, you’re pairing dots now.
– Gen AI is now in the mix. Something about customizing through voice prompts?
– They tossed in games like Dotball (dodgeball?), and this Eating Contests thing. Dots must have a blast.
– Oh, and some wink towards Peridot’s AI taking over the world…just kidding, sort of.

There’s a picture of this “Hello, Dot” game store or something. I saw it online – pretty nice, I guess.

And, the arcade machine. It lets you run mini-games, like dodgeball and eating contests. Winning these gets you coins or something like that. You trade those for cool Dot gear. Imagine your Dot rocking a fedora or maybe something wild like bunny ears.

Asim Ahmed, the dude handling the global product marketing or whatever, talked about how Hello, Dot is more than just a game. It’s magic, he says. Some tech weaving wonder or something poetic like that.

Now there’s this AI magic too. You grab a virtual mic (no, really), tell it what look you want for your Dot, and watch them transform in some trippy digital makeover.

Go check it out on the Horizon Store. It’s free, but only for Quest 3 and 3S peeps. Fun stuff!