Well-known VR parks
VR parks are becoming increasingly popular because they provide HMD (head-mounted display) users with an experience that cannot be replicated at home. Park guests move freely within a room, unconstrained by the wires that traditionally connect VR headsets to PCs, and can even use special devices to experience flight or car racing simulations in entirely novel ways.
The Void and Zero Latency are the two best-known companies in this field, which also comprises a number of smaller players.
The Void is an American VR game where groups of guests are invited to take part in various scenarios inspired by popular movies, such as Ghostbusters: Dimensions and Star Wars: Secrets of the Empire (currently in development). The park allows guests to move around freely within a specially equipped facility, while an HMD creates the illusion of interaction with a virtual world containing an unlimited number of special effects.
This project is a good example of how it is possible to popularize VR and create a good product for the end user. However, The Void does not have full-body tracking technology and is too expensive to establish, which prevents it from scaling its business, even if there is raised capital of $50 million.
Zero Latency is a VR park in Australia with an area of several hundred square meters. Similar in scope to more traditional PC and console games, the park offers guests a variety of games, including several in which players fight zombie hordes, repel alien invaders in a space station, or try to solve the mysteries of an ancient fantasy world with its own form of gravity.
This park does not have full-body tracking technology, but managed to sell 14 points with a franchise cost from $650,000 to $1 million. The cost of founding each park remains too high (four times higher than the cost of establishing a VRT park), and the project team can release no more than two different games per year.
Virtual Reality Center — have parks in Zurich, Kassel, Stockholm and Santiago. Various content is available, from small simulators per person (5–10 minutes of the game) to quests with full-body tracking technology for several people.
In addition to the described VR parks around the world, there are also thousands of small VR attractions offering a chance to dive into the world of VR with the help of specially developed mechanisms that enhance the experience of the game. For example, it may be chairs or specially designed stands that change their position depending on the actions and position of the player in the virtual world, or various hanging mechanisms that simulate flight.
