This Intergalactic, Augmented Reality Reading Adventure Sends Kids Into Space

LOS ANGELES, Aug. 13, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Within has released its fourth augmented reality storybook, Clio's Cosmic Quest, on the company's augmented reality children's reading app, Wonderscope. Clio joins the app's growing catalog of read aloud, interactive adventures, which allow children to converse with characters and play an active role in the narrative. The story joins Wonderscope's growing library of titles, including A Brief History of Stunts by Astounding People, Little Red the Inventor and Wonder's Land Ringmaster Wanted. More stories will be released in the coming months.

"With augmented reality, we're crossing the threshold from stories we witnessed on screens, to stories we live as our own," said Within co-founder and CEO, Chris Milk. "With Wonderscope, we want to encourage children to explore a story in a completely new way. By reading their lines out loud they become a character within the plot. It's sorta like inside-out storytelling."

"Augmented reality allows us to take abstract scientific concepts and make them concrete," said Within's Executive Producer of Original Content, Samantha Storr. "In Clio's Cosmic Quest, we bring the solar system, supernovas, nebulas and particles into your world and let you interact with them directly. We're excited to continue weaving together storytelling with this new form of spatial and kinesthetic learning, and make reading fun."

Clio's Cosmic Quest invites children to journey into space where they meet Clio, a tiny particle of stardust who dreams of illuminating the universe as a big, beautiful star. Tasked with helping her, kids read out loud to challenge bullies, meet the Sun and bring the nebula back together, learning facts and engaging with a fully interactive solar system along the way.

AR as a Tool for Learning
Just as there are different types of learners, the essential skill of reading comes to children in different ways. Wonderscope's voice recognition system is built to understand and nurture confidence in new readers at a wide range of levels, and with different dialects and accents. The app provides visual and aural feedback by highlighting words, and having characters make eye contact and react expressively back to the user. Clio's Cosmic Quest ends with a fully interactive bonus scene where users explore and learn more about space, planets and solar systems, developing a playful appreciation for STEM.

"In Clio's Cosmic Quest, we've written lines for kids that teach them how to handle bullies, stick up for what they believe in, and be there for those that need help," said Within's Director of Development, Jonny Ahdout. "We hope kids will have a blast role-playing and engaging with an incredible cast of characters in Wonderscope."

Pricing and Availability
Released in late 2018, Wonderscope is the first AR app from Within. It was designed for iOS using Apple's ARKit. It is free and currently available on all AR-enabled iOS devices*.

Clio's Cosmic Quest was created for Wonderscope by Preloaded and written by Joe Waechter. Wonderscope currently features three additional stories: A Brief History of Stunts by Astounding People, created by Preloaded and written by Beth Garrod; Little Red the Inventor, created and directed by Tuna Bora, written by Gitty Danesvari and produced by Nexus Studios; and Wonder's Land Ringmaster Wanted, created by Flight School Studio and written by Gitty Daneshvari.

From August 13-August 25, in time for back-to-school, all Wonderscope stories are available for $.99. Stories are regularly priced at $4.99. Wonderscope is geared for kids 6 years and older, and currently holds a 4-star rating from Common Sense Media.

Wonderscope does not require user registration or a credit card.

About Within
Within is the premier destination for innovative, entertaining, and informative story-based virtual and augmented reality. We bring together the best immersive experiences from the world's finest creators—from gripping tales set in worlds of pure imagination to documentaries taking you further inside the news than ever before.

Founded in 2014 with the goal of defining the new medium of spatial storytelling, Within creates, acquires, and distributes premium AR & VR experiences across web, mobile, console and headsets. With deep expertise in multi-media narratives, Within creates tools, formats and proprietary software to differentiate its original content and enable future immersive media creators.

Investors include Andreessen Horowitz, Temasek, Emerson Collective, 21st Century Fox, WPP, Raine Ventures, WME, Live Nation, Vice Media, Tribeca Enterprises, Annapurna Pictures, and Legendary Pictures.

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Click HERE to download Wonderscope.

For additional Wonderscope media images and video content please click HERE and HERE. For additional news and information follow @WonderscopeApp on Facebook and Twitter.

All images courtesy of Wonderscope by Within.

*Wonderscope is compatible with the following devices running on iOS 11 or newer: iPhone 6S or newer, 2017 iPad or newer and iPad Pro.

SOURCE Within