News: Magic Leap Teams with HBO & AT&T to Deliver Game of Thrones Experience

Magic Leap Teams with HBO & AT&T to Deliver Game of Thrones Experience

In recent months, the Magic Leap One has frequently tied promotions to groundbreaking entertainment properties, but the latest may be the startup's biggest coup yet.

On Wednesday, HBO announced an upcoming Magic Leap One experience that will allow fans to experience the world of Game of Thrones in augmented reality.

The experience is called "The Dead Must Die: A Magic Leap Encounter," and it will be available at select AT&T stores throughout the US. This installation finally delivers on Magic Leap's promise last year to install Magic Leap demo stations at AT&T stores, but no one could have imagined that the device would get to pair up with one of the top franchises in all of entertainment.

Image via AT&T

It's important to note that this particular experience isn't limited to a geek-centric audience devoted to franchises like Star Wars or Star Trek, this is as center mainstream entertainment as it gets, and will immediately force even non-geeks (read: mainstream consumers) to find their way to an AT&T store to try the Magic Leap One.

And if fans are duly impressed with the Game of Thrones experience and want to try more spatial computing, the Magic Leap One will be available for purchase (for $2,295) directly at the brick-and-mortar AT&T store hosting the demo.

"The Magic Leap Encounter challenges fans to confront a White Walker and lead the fight for the living," the blog post from HBO states on the network's website.

Image via HBO

"Curious visitors will be fitted with a Magic Leap One inside a physical space resembling King's Landing. This quickly transforms into an ominous, icy scene that begs investigation. With torch in hand, visitors become soldiers in a standoff, as a frozen portal reveals the deadly world beyond the Wall."

The schedule for the AT&T in-store experiences is for specific cities and dates: Boston (the Boylston AT&T store) on April 1, Chicago (the Michigan Avenue AT&T store) on April 3, and San Francisco (the 1 Powell AT&T store) on April 6.

This latest Magic Leap tie-in with AT&T reflects a trend that indicates that the relationship between the companies could deliver even more rich immersive experiences in the coming months and years.

AT&T recently acquired Time Warner Inc. for $85.4 billion. With that acquisition, AT&T now controls popular entertainment properties including HBO (Game of Thrones), Warner Bros. (all the DC Comics movies, like Aquaman, Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman), CNN, and others. The opportunities for Magic Leap to deliver even more top tier immersive entertainment through its AT&T deal are almost limitless.

"Our journey with Magic Leap to transform industry and consumer experiences starts today with the launch of the Magic Leap One only available from AT&T," John Donovan, the CEO of AT&T Communications, said in a statement. "Together with Magic Leap, we're making the future of education, telemedicine, sports, entertainment and everyday experiences extraordinary. But there's so much more creativity ahead. 5G will help drive the next generation of spatial computing that will deliver immersive, interactive content everywhere."

Images via AT&T

In addition to the Magic Leap experience, AT&T will also play host to a number of other Game of Thrones related promotions in the run-up to the series finale. The aforementioned AT&T stores, as well as one store in New York City, will feature custom digital games, exclusive video content on display, VR experiences, and Game of Thrones costumes and memorabilia.

The Game Of Thrones Challenge game via DirecTV. Image via AT&T

HBO is also rolling out a free (no HBO subscription needed) Game Of Thrones Challenge game via DirecTV (channel 512), and starting April 1, fans will get a chance to win an Iron Throne replica by entering a sweepstakes via the AT&T Thanks app.

The new HBO via Magic Leap experience is being given an extremely limited rollout, although one Magic Leap executive has hinted via Twitter that it may eventually come to all Magic Leap users. Still, given the popularity of Game of Thrones, which airs its eighth and final season on April 14, it's possible that fans will travel from other states just for a chance to try the experience.

If you're looking to keep up to date on the in-store events, HBO is suggesting that fans follow the #TheDeadMustDie hashtag.

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Cover image via HBO

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