Google Maps for Android has seen another update, adding to the Las Vegas indoor floorplans released earlier in the week with a new set of plans as submitted from the Floor Plans tool. The Google LatLong Blog also reveals that the company has a new Google Maps for Google+ game incoming, seemingly turning the PND service into a real-world Pac-Man of sorts.
Full details on the Google Maps game haven’t been revealed, but it looks like the floorplan data is used to track users as they move around and collect points. We’ve seen location-based gaming before, but Google’s heft and the huge number of Android devices in the wild could mean it finally takes hold in the mainstream.
As for the current Google Maps app, that also has new battery improvements that reduce power consumption for Latitude users, while the Transit Navigation beta can now use vehicle speed to figure out positioning if the GPS fix is lost. There are also more public transport route options shown by default.
Google Maps is a free download for Android devices.
[Thanks to everyone who sent this in!]
Sounds like the games might be similar to how Waze get’s people to explore roads.
I think consumers will play in real life and win rewards when they perform tasks like entering a store (and share their location by doing it, a key element for the success of Google maps indoor and the next generation of mapping applications).
Look forward for this update. Thanks