Google added a bunch of popular Japanese characters to the AR feature in mobile search, which previously contained animals, historical artifacts, and dinosaurs. The list of characters is taken from Japanese pop culture, including anime, TV and video games, with names like Pac-Man, Hello Kitty, mechs from Evangelion and Gundam, and more. The feature works on Google searches on Android and the Google app iOS.
If you enter the characters’ names, you will see an option to ‘see in your space’ below the main search result, and then you can drop a 3D model in your camera view. The models can appear on different scale lists, with an option to display on life size, although I’m not sure how accurate the measurements are. I was under the impression that Hello Kitty, for example, was five apples long, but she was towering over my desk when I tried it out.
The full list of characters is here:
- Ultraman
- Ultraman Zero
- Ultraman Belial
- Gomora
- Evangelion (EVA-01 test type)
- Gundam (Odysseus Gundam, Xi Gundam, Penelope)
- Cogimyun
- The drums of Taiko no Tatsujin
- Pac-Man
- Pompompurin
- Little twin stars
Google says that Pac-Man is by far the most sought-after character on the list, with more than twice as many searches as for Hello Kitty at # 2. Apparently, Peru is the largest country for Pac-Man searches.