ABS-CBN adds to its list of family-oriented and engaging offering with the launch of the new show Hado Pilipinas.
Hosted by Vince Velasco and Denice Dinsay, Hado Pilipinas spotlights the journey in the country of the hip Japanese technosport Hado, which is a new take on the traditional sport of dodgeball, making use of technology.
Through its subsidiary, ABS-CBN Themed Experiences, Inc., the network giant hopes to have more people appreciate the sport of Hado in the country and get into it by way of the new show.
“This technosport combines physical and digital play in a game that various teams, groups of friends, even families can play and enjoy,” said ABS-CBN Themed Experiences head Cookie Bartolome of Hado during the press launch of Hado Pilipinas on Aug. 15.
Hado, developed by Japanese company Meleap, is a brand of Augmented Reality (AR).
In it Hado Player versus Player (or Hado PvP) employs the use of a lightweight head-mounted display as the AR interface, and arm-worn devices that enable players to throw energy balls and put up their shields. Unlike most virtual reality (VR) and multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) games where the interactivity is between player avatars on a digital interface, players in Hado are completely immersed in the game as they make use of actual throwing and dodging motions to play the game properly.
Up to six players can play Hado PvP per game, with three players per team. The teams have 80 seconds to battle it out inside the Hado PvP Arena, with the winning team decided by who knocks-out more opponents by the end of regulation.
Spectators, on the other hand, also get the same exhilarating experience by watching the AR composite on giant monitors. These allow them to see the computer-generated imagery (CGI) energy balls, shields, and overlays for player stats.
To have Hado reach more people in the country, ABS-CBN Themed Experiences Inc. partnered with the National Collegiate Athletic Association.
Ongoing right now is the Hado Pilipinas NCAA Collegiate Cup 2019 where the champion wins an all-expense paid trip to Tokyo, Japan, to represent the Philippines in the Hado World Cup 2019 in December, and have a chance to win ¥2 million.
Ms. Bartolome, who was joined by Meleap officials during the launch, said interested players can experience the game at the soon-to-open Hado Pilipinas Camp, a training ground opening inside the ABS-CBN Compound in the last quarter of this year.
Hado Pilipinas airs on ABS-CBN S+A, S+A HD, LIGA, and LIGA HD every Sunday, 11:30 a.m. starting Aug. 25. The program can also be viewed on ABS-CBN’s streaming platform iWant. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo
