Location-based virtual reality (VR) entertainment is becoming big business. looking to be one of the better avenues for both manufacturers and developers alike to make a profit. Virtuix, best known for its Omni treadmill, has announced the arrival of VR ARENA, an LBE attraction powered by Virtuix’s “Omniverse” content platform, designed to have a small footprint.
Created in collaboration with Funovation, the Omniverse VR ARENA aims to provide a high-energy esports attraction for up to four players at a time. Combining the brand-new Omni 2.0 motion platform alongside Omniverse’s 18 VR titles, the attraction has a compact footprint of 375 ft2 (35m2 ) and is highly automated, with a built-in staging area for quick player setup, a 4:1 player-to-attendant ratio, and a queuing app to eliminate revenue-losing wait lines.
“We’ve been organizing esports tournaments since 2016, and we’ve learned that competitive gaming boosts revenues,” says Jan Goetgeluk, founder and CEO of Virtuix in a statement. “Ongoing prize contests result in repeat play by guests and build a community of frequent and loyal players. Our VR ARENA attraction is exciting to both elite gamers and casual players. It’s incredibly fun to run around inside your favourite game, and everyone has a chance to win.”
To make VR ARENA that bit more competitive, Virtuix is giving all players a chance to win in ongoing weekly and monthly prize contests with an annual prize pool of $50,000 USD.
“VR ARENA incorporates two years of customer feedback,” continues Goetgeluk. “We’ve listened to the concerns of our existing customers, particularly regarding the Omni’s player setup time and labour needs, and we’ve worked hard to address them. VR ARENA benefits from the maturity of the Omni, which is now a tested and proven technology. To date, we’ve shipped more than 3,000 Omni systems to over 500 entertainment venues in 45 countries, resulting in more than 500,000 Omni play sessions.”
Virtuix and Funovation will be launching VR ARENA with a “show special” discount at IAAPA 2018 in Orlando from 13 to 16 November. Financing for the VR ARENA attraction will be available from $1,790 USD/month. For any further updates, keep reading VRFocus.