This new entertainment center in Melbourne, Australia isn't your run of the mill arcade. The establishment, called Zero Latency, is a virtual reality gaming center that wants to change the way people experience video games.
Zero Latency puts players right smack into the middle of a zombie apocalypse. Participants are free to move, shoot, and run across a virtual landscape filled with hundreds of digital flesh eaters trying to take you down.
The center's call to players reads:
Imagine a game that doesn't feel like a game. Where your body is the controller. And your mind believes it's real. The digital and real world meshed seamlessly together, to transport you inside the virtual like never before. When you move, the game moves with you. Pure immersive mayhem with the freedom to get up and go.
CNET's Bennet Ring was one of the lucky few who got to try out Zero Latency's offerings before it officially opened its doors to the public on August 15. He said:
"It's the best virtual reality experience I have ever had. And I have tried them all since Dactyl Nightmare almost made me puke back in 1991. It's not entirely perfect though -- the Rift DK2's mounting straps aren't ideal for such a physical VR experience, and I had to readjust the headset every few minutes to line up the viewing sweet-spot. Hopefully, the team at Zero Latency redesigns the mounting system entirely, so that the headset doesn't move, no matter how physical each player gets."
The CNET article also details some of the impressive technology powering the whole operation. According to the report, 129 Playstation Move cameras are scattered throughout the facility's 400 square meter area to track player movements. Each player is then given an Oculus Rift VR headset strapped to a portable Alienware Alpha backpack which renders the world in real time. Capping things off is a pair of headphones and assault rifle shaped controller that players use to shoot in the virtual world.
