Sphero had a big 2012, but it’s clear that 2013 will be even bigger for the company. This week at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, the makers of a phone-friendly robotic ball launched a handful of augmented reality games, expanding the breadth of the little sphere’s functionality.

The first game is inspired by possibly the best meme of 2011, Nyan Cat. Nyan Cat Space Party lets you navigate through outer space, collect lollipops and fire off bacon to defend against enemies. You can either play it on your Android or iOS device, or use the Sphero as a controller.

The other new game, Sharky The Beaver, takes AR to an entirely new level. We sat down with the founders who explained that Sphero is perfect for AR — the easiest queues to pick up are spheres and the color white.

On top of that, the actual picture is much more accurate than most AR games, because the Sphero is on the ground and can send depth information back to the device. This allows for cupcake tossing in Sharky The Beaver. It’s so accurate, you can actually see the cupcakes bounce up off of the floor.

Both apps are available now in the Apple App Store and on Google Play.

Crunchbase

• SPHERO

Product: Sphero

Website: gosphero.com

Company Orbotix

Sphero is the world’s first robotic ball gaming system that you control from your smartphone or tablet. You can even use Sphero as a controller for on-screen and multi-player games.

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