Commentary

Free-roaming, immersive entertainment rollouts continue across the globe

Immersive galleries, concerts and exhibition spaces are growing in audience popularity, another champion of the digital to physical revolution.

Photo provided by Zero Latency.

September 12, 2022 by Kevin Williams

An explosion in interest in immersive entertainment has underpinned a round of facility openings, with active flying simulation and free-roaming VR experiences being applied across attractions and "artainment" venues.

Zero Latency, a company known for being the first to pioneer the concept of free-roaming multi-player experiences, will be ditching cumbersome backpacks while looking to offer the latest 5K high-end VR PC experiences through streamed VR over a local Wi-Fi 6E network system, streamed to HTC Focus 3 VR headsets, accommodating up to eight players.

This is supported by the weapons system that the players wield within the game. The new platform offers all eight currently available high end PC VR experiences, now streamed to the players.

Ditching the backpack PCs

The move away from backpack PCs was not just a means to stay ahead of the technology or the need to remove the cumbersome system from the operation of the free-roaming experience.

This sector has been a victim of its own success — with manufactures MSI and HP both unable to support the demand for the hardware, and HP eventually discontinuing its backpack PC platform in favor of supporting more cost effective technology.

Zero Latency had previously partnered with HP to use not only its backpack PCs but its Reverb headset for the previous generation system. Likewise, the expensive tracking systems needed have also encouraged the move to the inside-out tracking solution of the HTC Focus 3, supported by the 6E wireless system.

The 57 Zero Latency venues have the option to upgrade the systems, starting with the Australian site — the first to open.

The deployment of the next generation platform from Zero Latency was not slow to be adopted, with the announcement that Australian entertainment facility operator Funlab would be one of the first to operate the free-roaming VR systems that have ditched the bulky backpack PC.

The operation's Archie Brother's: Cirque Electriq chain is rolling out, at its Melbourne venue, the upgraded platform, with plans for wider adoption.

The news of openings comes thick and fast as the momentum returns to the entertainment operation business and we gather more details of the latest SandboxVR hyper-reality free-roam immersive experiences.

The company is continuing its ambitious rollout plans, with the signing of a franchise venue finishing its fit out in London. The venue will comprise the latest version of the VR experience and will include an enhanced hospitality element, including a robotic bartender.

Collective experiences take hold

Free-roaming VR technology is also appearing in other applications. The launches of what are being described as "collective immersive experiences" are not necessarily game experiences, but multi-guest VR experiences, seeing groups as large as 10 and 20 ushered through an immersive environment.

Some of these have an "artainment" narrative, while others offer a more theatrical or experiential approach to storytelling — with art and culture playing a new part in the VR experience scene.

One of the largest of these collective immersive experiences is London's Barbican Theatre, called Le Bal de Paris de Blanca Li, a fusion of hyper reality, free-roaming VR and live performance.
Co-produced by Backlight VR studios, it brings to reality the concept by the famous choreographer, dancer and actor Blanca Li — creating a VR dance experience.

An audience of some 10 guests are transported into a stylish world of love and romance, with live performances from motion-captured dancers that interact with the guests, offering a live performance element. The 60-minute experience has the guests wearing HTC Vive Pro headsets, HP backpack PCs and unique arm and lack motion trackers.

Transported into the magical world of a stylized Paris, replete with ballroom, garden mazes, nightclubs and dance halls, the guests are transported in this free-roaming experience through Backlight's full body awareness platform.

The location based entertainment company's experience in this field is applied in the special effects and "unreal engine" created virtual environments. The London VR performance experience is a unique offering, even including a partnership with Chanel, providing the virtual costumes the guests can select to wear. This proved an amazing experience and has been sold out during its run in London.

Visit the International Space Station

Another example is the opening in Tacoma, Washington of what is called "The Infinite" and described as an "out-of-this-world" VR experience. A vast 12,500-square-foot space has been transformed into a giant free-roaming environment for groups from 10 to 29, wearing Meta Quest 2 headsets, and traversing a virtual recreation of the International Space Station and beyond during the 60-minute experience.

The project is a joint venture between PHI Studio and Felix & Paul Studios, started back in 2020. The concept was defined as reimagining the standards of LBE developed in association with Time Studios.

The VR experience is one of the largest in the world, able to accommodate some 150 guests at one time. Having received financial support from the Quebec government, the traveling experience now embarks on a world tour of major cities.

A tale of two cities

The U.K. has seen two major cities vying to grab the laurels of having the "first permanent immersive digital art gallery." First was in Coventry with The Reel Store, opening at the end of May as part of the celebration of "Coventry UK City of Culture." Then London announced its own permanent digital art experience, "Frameless," billed an immersive art experience in a 30,000-square-foot location. Both venues depend on their latest 4K projection systems.

Also, just down the main drag from the Frameless venue, London will see another major immersive projection environment with another first — the "world's largest LED canvas" within the Outernet London facility. In this case, the vast screen is the deployment of 8K LED panels utilized as a promotion, exhibition and entertainment space.

Pop singers get in the act

Immersive performances have also received some promotion with the launch of a test project, "Abba Voyage," a concert experience that creates a virtual performance from recorded live performances from the pop supergroup.

Some 40 years since its last official live performance, the group reunited to be recorded in motion-capture suits by Industrial Light & Magic. Then, through VFX, a 95-minute virtual concert was created, rendering the popstars into unique digital avatars of their previous selves called "AbbAtars." This has been presented as an exclusive London performance at a 3,000-capacity purpose-built temporary venue that has real musicians, as well as the holographic rendering of the performance.

Based on the reaction to the concert, reported to have cost $175 million to create, the organizers will consider touring worldwide.

Immersive galleries, concerts and exhibition spaces are cleary growing in audience popularity, another champion of the digital to physical revolution.

(Editor's note: Extracts from this blog are from recent coverage in The Stinger Report, published by Spider Entertainment and its director, Kevin Williams, the leading interactive out-of-home entertainment news service covering the immersive frontier and beyond.)

Music & Games

About Kevin Williams

Along with advisory positions with other entrants into the market he is founder and publisher of the Stinger Report, “a-must-read” e-zine for those working or investing in the amusement, attractions and entertainment industry. He is a prolific writer and provides regular news columns for main trade publications. He also travels the globe as a keynote speaker, moderator and panelist at numerous industry conferences and events. Author of “The Out-of-Home Immersive Entertainment Frontier: Expanding Interactive Boundaries in Leisure Facilities,” the only book on this aspect of the market, with the second edition scheduled for a 2023 release.

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