With Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker dropping in very soon, Disney and Lucasarts have been all-in with collaborations with different brands and platforms to promote the last film of the new trilogy. And it wouldn't be complete without some AR goodness.
Samsung has recently put out the "Invasion with Galaxy" AR experience through Samsung Member app. Available from the Play Store, the app allows users to see TIE Fighters and other Imperial spacecraft zooming above the skies. Users will be able to zoom up into the sky and snap some photos which they can share over Social Media.
There's a catch, of course: First, you can only use the Samsung Member app on, what else, Samsung Galaxy devices. Secondly, it is only limited for the time being. From now until Dec. 23, the Imperial ships can only be seen in Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco and Washington, D.C. Past that date, you'll be able to see the ships anywhere in the United States as well as in Puerto Rico.
Crossovers Across the Galaxy
Disney has been all out in their marketing push for Rise of Skywalker. Recently, they've partnered up with two video games to give fans a better look at what to expect from Rise of Skywalker.
The first crossover is with EA's Star Wars Battlefront 2. The game has new outfits for Rey, Finn, and Kylo Ren. Of course, these outfits are directly inspired by what happens in Episode 9. Reinforcement units from the movie are also making their debut in the game. The Ovissian Gunner and Caphex Spy join the fight for the Resistance, while the Sith Trooper and First Order Jet Trooper rally for the dark side. There's also a new, unnamed jungle map, yet that will become available on Dec. 20. The map is playable in both Co-op and Heroes Vs. Villains mode.
The second crossover, and arguably the bigger one, is with Epic's Fortnite. Earlier this week, Disney dropped an exclusive trailer in-game that wasn't available anywhere else (except for a few blurry YouTube videos). The game also made three skins available for players: Rey, Finn, and a Sith Trooper. The TIE Whisper Glider was also given to anyone who logged in during the event period. And of course, Fortnite crossovers wouldn't be complete without weapons. Imperial blasters became an available in-game weapon, allowing players to blast lasers towards their enemies (hopefully with better aim than Stormtroopers). But what players really loved was the introduction of lightsabers in-game. It's become an unspoken in-game rule never to bother two players battling each other with lightsabers.
The End of an Era
While Episode IX ends the new trilogy, it isn't the end for Star Wars anytime soon. The Mandalorian has been showing on Disney+ for some time now, with Season 2 in development. Ewan McGregor has also revealed that there's a new Obi-wan Kenobi series in the works, which will probably be available in Disney+ as well. Respawn Entertainment, makers of Jedi: Fallen Order, is currently hiring more people for their "Star Wars team". And with how successful and well-received Jedi Fallen Order was, we can probably expect a sequel in the future.
