Google has added a new app to their stable of apps, but rather than a utility, it’s more whimsical in nature, launching Google Spotlight Stories onto Google Play.
The app is at its core the same one that brought Motorola owners the stories Windy Day and Buggy Night – a pair of stories which use the accelerometer to display a 360° story view. Google retained the Spotlight Stories tech from Motorola as part of the ATAP – Advanced Technology and Projects group when they sold the company to Lenovo.
The new Spotlight Stories app contains Buggy Night and Windy Day, but also a piece of ‘Premium’ content in the form of a new story called ‘Help’. The story will be sold at a later date, but for the moment it’s free.
Help is a title from Fast and Furious 6 director Jason Lin. According to Variety Magazine, Helo is a ‘five-minute short film is called, tells the story of an alien attack in Los Angeles, complete with explosions, a subway car being torn apart and a dramatic showdown in the dry concrete bed of the Los Angeles River — all of which is being shown with 360-degree spherical video that can be freely explored by the viewer.
At this stage, Spotlight Stories is limited in availability – it may not load on your phone, or it may load and just give you an error. The Nexus 6 was able to load the app with no issues, but the LG G3 was not going to play ball.
If you want to check it out – and have a compatible phone – head to Google Play and grab the app and see what you think.
Not good to learn that the G3 is not supported.
🙁
Heads up to anyone else, Xperia Z3 isn’t supported yet.
Glad they’re brining this to all phones though. Enjoyed it when I had a Moto G. 🙂