Google Maps has a huge amount of information that can be useful to anyone in the world. For navigational purposes, it’s obviously the go-to, but there are also many other potential benefits. Google Maps supplies a worldwide updated map and many places can be viewed at street-level via Google Street View. Games that utilize real-world navigational data like Pokemon Go and Ingress rely on Google Maps data. Even just for the curiosity to view anywhere in the world like you’re there, it’s a priceless resource. Google is implementing an API to allow game developers to build games with data from Google Maps to be available to developers.
Not only is Google opening up its real-time Google Maps data, but it is also providing a Unity Software Development Kit (SDK) to make it easier to incorporate Google Map’s data into any game. Users can simply design worlds with data obtained from Google themselves, based entirely on real-life structures. You can then use this data to create a world for your game to take place in, and in the case of Unity, assign textures and designs depending on what the object is. Google will be working with developers to ensure that they can find the best places to situate their games. Google released a promotional video with the announcement, which you can check out below.
There is a huge amount of potential here. With Unity being cross-platform we may see games on Android with capabilities to rival even the likes of Pokemon Go and Ingress. With no limits on what data from Google Maps you can access, you can use famous landmarks across the globe as the centerpiece for your video game. There are no limits, and you can rely on Google to provide accurate, real-time information consistently.
Source: Google Maps Blog