Virtuix, the creator of the Omni One VR treadmill, announced it now has a lineup of 35 games ready for the device’s broader launch later this year, including some big ones.
Omni One was originally pitched in a crowd-based investment campaign in 2020, but is now slated to arrive to customers sometime in Q2 2024, bringing the at-home version of its VR treadmill to non-investor enthusiasts for the first time.
We say ‘at-home’ version and not consumer version because the unit costs $2,595 (plus shipping). This admittedly comes with a fully-inclusive, full-body VR experience thanks to the unit itself in addition to the included Pico 4 Enterprise headset, as well as dedicated game store with titles optimized for Omni One.
Some of the most notable games to pledge support for Virtuix Omni One are AFFECTED: The Manor, Breachers, Compound, Ghostbusters: Rise of the Ghost Lord, In Death: Unchained, RUINSMAGUS and Wanderer: The Fragments of Fate—meaning you’ll be able to run, shoot and crouch in a way you simply can’t with stick-controlled movement.
Here’s a look at the complete lineup of 35 supported games coming at launch:
Virtuix, the company behind the Omni VR treadmill, announced it’s raised $4.7 million through its latest crowd investment round. The Austin, Texas-based company also says it plans to ship 1,000 of its Omni One VR treadmills by the end of this year.
Earlier this year, Virtuix launched an equity crowdfunding campaign to further support the production of its Omni One VR treadmill, which, when paired with a VR headset, allows you to physically run around in a VR game instead of relying on artificial locomotion schemes, like stick movement or teleportation.
Similar to other parabolic VR treadmills like KAT VR, Omni One requires you to wear special low-friction shoes and strap into a harness system which keeps you in the center of the base’s parabola. Read about our latest hands-on to see Omni One in action.
Since launch in early 2023, the campaign has already raised over $4.7 million. Although just short of its initial $5 million target, Virtuix has decided to conclude the crowdfunding campaign earlier than planned on August 10th.
In addition to individual investors, the funding round received significant support from JC Team Capital, a prior investor, with its founder and CEO, Parth Jani, joining Virtuix’s Board of Directors as a lead investor. Virtuix intends to use the funds to increase Omni One’s production and aims to achieve profitability by 2024.
Virtuix has already started shipping beta units of Omni One to 8,000 of its equity investors. More than 1,000 units are said to ship out by the end of this year, with plans to deliver to all remaining investors in the first quarter of 2024. Pre-orders for the general public are expected to open in late 2023, with deliveries scheduled to start in the second quarter of 2024.
While more accessible to consumers than similar enterprise devices, Omni One’s introductory is $2,595, which includes the Pico VR headset—a sharp reminder that the accessory largely appeals to prosumers and businesses. The company has however devised a payment plan that offers the device as low as $65 per month.
Virtuix’s CEO, Jan Goetgeluk, expressed excitement about Omni One’s success and its potential for rapid revenue growth, saying the company already has a waitlist of 35,000 interested customers.
Founded in 2013, the latest campaign puts Virtuix’s lifetime funding to more than $35 million which was sourced from both individual and institutional investors.
As far as VR treadmills go, Virtuix is the OG. While the company had set out to make a consumer VR treadmill a decade ago, market realities pushed the company into the out-of-home VR attraction space. But after all these years the company remains dead-set on selling a VR treadmill to consumers, and this time around it’s taking an all-in-one approach with the new Virtuix Omni One. I visited the company’s Austin, Texas headquarters to try it for myself.
The Virtuix Omni Backstory
Image courtesy Virtuix
The original Virtuix Omni treadmill started life way back in 2013 as wooden prototype built by a small group led by CEO Jan Goetgeluk. Thus the core idea was conceived a full three years before the first wave of consumer VR headsets appeared on the market in 2016.
The idea itself is simple. What if you had a treadmill on which you could run in any direction? With such a treadmill and a VR headset on your head, you could move your body and feel like you were really moving through the virtual world.
The execution of this idea, however, has been anything but simple.
Treadmills tend to be large, heavy, and expensive devices. And the Virtuix Omni was no exception. Although the company set out initially to build a device for consumers, the reality of the cost and complexity of such a device made it a challenging sell beyond early adopters. The ahead-of-its-time treadmill also suffered another key issue for the consumer VR space; the ‘ring’ support’ design prevented players from having a full range of motion, which made the treadmill a non-starter for many consumer VR games that expected players to be able to crouch, reach down to the ground, or move their arms around at their waist (where many games commonly place holsters for key items).
These challenges forced the company to pivot toward the out-of-home VR attraction space. Thus, the Omni Arena—a huge VR attraction that includes a pod of four of the company’s VR treadmills for multiplayer gameplay with custom content—was born. The system would go on to be installed in 73 entertainment spaces across the US and has become Virtuix’s bread-and-butter business.
Image courtesy Virtuix
Virtuix realized early on that VR was, at this stage, a fairly clunky proposition. Only early enthusiasts and computer experts had the skills and patience to set up and troubleshoot even consumer VR systems, let alone one that cobbled together complex hardware like a headset and VR treadmill. Expecting arcade attendants to figure out how to keep a system of four Virtuix Omni treadmills, VR headsets, and an array of networked computers powering it all, just wasn’t realistically going to work at scale.
That led the company to build Omni Arena like a giant all-in-one VR arcade. The company has impressively customized literally every step of the customer’s journey through the experience. From the moment they step into the enclosure they’re guided by video screen prompts about what they’re going to experience, how to slip on their special shoes, and how to get into the Virtuix Omni treadmill once it’s their turn.
Photo by Road to VR
The same, if not more, care has been paid to the operator’s experience. Omni Arena has everything to be a self-sustaining VR attraction. It doesn’t just come with the four treadmills, but also four headsets, controllers (with charging pods), SteamVR tracking base stations, and all the hardware to run the networked VR experiences and the pod’s software itself which not only manages all of the connected devices, but even captures footage of players (both in and outside of the game) and emails it to them as a memento of their experience. It also makes routine troubleshooting steps like headsets, computers, or SteamVR into a simple touchscreen button press through a custom interface for the operator. Omni Arena is truly an all-in-one product.
Virtuix Arena’s custom software makes it easy to manage all the computers and hardware that power the experience. | Photo by Road to VR
For a small company, Virtuix’s ability to focus on the holistic experience of its product is both rare and impressive.
Coming Full Circle
With the many lessons learned about creating an all-in-one experience for the out-of-home VR attraction space, the company is turning its attention back to the consumer realm with a brand new product—Virtuix Omni One.
Image courtesy Virtuix
With Omni One, Virtuix isn’t selling a VR treadmill. It’s selling an all-in-one system that includes the newly designed VR treadmill, a VR headset, and access to a library of custom-made content. It’s an ambitious approach, but one that reflects Virtuix’s ability to identify and address key problems with the overall experience it wants to deliver to customers.
The original ring design of the Omni meant players couldn’t crouch or have full movement of their arms around their waist. | Photo by Road to VR
One of those key points the company identified was the way that the original Omni design made compatibility with modern VR content a challenge. The support ring around the player mean their movement was restricted, both in their ability to crouch, lean, and move their arms with complete freedom.
That ‘simple’ problem necessitated a complete redesign of the treadmill. The Omni One now uses an arm support design that always stays behind the user. This gives you the ability to have a full range of motion while also running in any direction. The arm doesn’t actively hold you upright, but it provides the force that prevents you from running straight off the edge of the treadmill.
Another problem the company identified in its goal of delivering a consumer VR treadmill is the complexity of existing PC VR systems and getting players into the right content.
Even if Omni One customer was already an expert in PC VR and willing to put up with technical annoyances, having a tether to the computer means worrying about the user wrapping themselves up in the cable (or asking them to rig up a ceiling mounted cable management system).
Though the Omni One can still technically be used with a PC VR setup, this challenge pushed Virtuix to pair its treadmill with a standalone VR headset out of the box (Pico Neo 3, specifically). But it’s not just a headset, but a headset equipped with a custom-made Omni storefront serving up content that’s specifically made or adapted for the VR treadmill. The company even built its own ‘first steps’ experience, a surprisingly well-made introduction that introduces users to the magic of VR and teaches them how to move and feel comfortable with their controllers and treadmill.
And although sticker-shock has always been a challenge for Virtuix, the Omni One is actually not an unreasonable price… if you think of it as what it truly is: a treadmill that will give you a workout.
Typical exercise treadmills range in price from $500 to $2,000 or more. Omni One will be price at $2,600, including the $700 Pico Neo 3 headset (which the company stresses can also be used as a standard Pico headset (including PC VR streaming). That leaves the treadmill itself at $1,900, the cost of a high-end treadmill. The company is also promising an option to finance the Omni One for $65 per month.
And for those that really believe in Virtuix and its vision, through the company’s crowd-investment campaign it is offering a 20% discount on Omni One (or more, depending upon the amount invested). The campaign has raised $4.4 million to date.
Virtuix revealed the final version of its Omni One VR treadmill, which is now shipping to early investors.
Following a successful crowdfunding campaign in 2020, the consumer-focused Omni One has been a long time coming. Originally targeting the second half of 2021, Jan Goetgeluk, Virtuix CEO and founder, claims they faced a “challenging development process,” citing issues relating to COVID-19 and supply chain shortages.
Virtuix claims high interest in the Omni One, with a “waitlist” of more than 35,000 expressing interest ahead of a wider consumer launch later this year. 900 of Virtuix’s crowdfunding investors have applied for an Omni One beta unit, with the wider release to follow once the beta program ends in late 2023, claims Virtuix. You can view the finalised design below:
Taking inspiration from Virtuix’s commercial Omni Pro VR treadmill, the Omni One is designed as a more compact option designed to fit inside your living room, where it functions as a complete entertainment unit. Previously shown with a Pico Neo 2, Virtuix is pairing the final version with a Pico Neo 3 Pro standalone headset, which includes a unique operating system, social features and “a proprietary game store targeting 30 titles at launch.”
Virtuix claims Omni One will receive a wider consumer launch later this year, releasing at an introductory cost of $2,595 plus shipping (which includes the Pico Neo 3 Pro). Virtuix claims unit quantities will “start small and gradually increase as the program proceeds.”
The application of VR into the attraction and amusement landscape is covered by industry specialist Kevin Williams, in his latest Virtual Arena column – looking at the growth in the LBE landscape for eSport, and competitive VR attractions.
Much has been made about the opportunities of eSport within a virtual ecosystem, though from a consumer perspective, there has been more speculative investment regarding the opportunity. As seen with the acquisition by Meta of emerging eSports company BigBox VR (developers of POPULATION: ONE). While hunger exists from the player-base for VR eSports competition, only the Out-of-Home entertainment landscape has seen a serious adoption of actual mainstream prize based, virtual, competitive play. And this trend can be seen to be gaining momentum.
One of the first VR attraction developers to embrace the opportunities of eSport empowerment of their platform was Virtuix. The company known for their ‘Omni Arena’ competitive VR enclosure system have successfully installed some 45 units across the USA. Virtuix reported that it has seen over 2-million plays on its hardware. The system gained popularity through its prize pay-out competition. The company revealed the launch of their ‘2022 Omni Arena esports series’ – that will be supported by a cash prize pool of $100,000 for FEC venues. This investment has placed the platform on the map as being one of the largest VR eSports competitions in the West.
Image credit: Virtuix
The popularity of the competitive nature of the game can be seen in the revenue it generates for operators. Virtuix revealed that some of its eSports teams have already played over 200-times on the ‘Omni Arena’. This is also supported by the watching audience that gathers to support the team and the building of a community supported on social media. Virtuix already paid out some $250,000 in eSports cash prizes. It would be easy to liken this popularity to that once witnessed in the bowling scene, but the physicality of VR eSports takes the competitive spirit to new levels of engagement.
One of the few VR videogame titles to have a strong competitive life in the consumer scene is the smash hit Tower Tag by VR Nerds. The games have been played across popular consumer VR platforms in tournament competitions but have also had a strong showing in location-based entertainment (LBE). In a relationship with Japanese amusement giant SEGA, VR Nerds licensed the game to be turned into a VR attraction platform, supported by VAL (Virtual Athletics League). And recently announced that the game would be coming to the West in an agreement that will see it placed onto the SPREE Interactive arena system. This free-roaming platform, allowing up to 10-players at a time to compete, using the standalone Pico VR headset. And will adapt a wholly eSports version of Tower Tag that will be available on the ‘SPREE Arena’ system.
The SPREE Arena in operation. Image credit: KWP
Another platform that applies eSports to their line-up is HOLOGATE. Famous for its successful ‘HOLOGATE Arena’ that has groups of up to four players, using tethered HTC Pro headsets, within a unique enclosure. The high levels of competition are supported by the inclusion of an extensive and customisable eSports tournament platform. The library of competition content on this platform also includes the Tower Tag property.
It is this level of competition, as well as an extensive library of titles that has cemented the popularity of the HOLOGATE platform with the operators and their virtual athletes. Many operators use the platforms tournament to construct their own team-based, venue competitions. This ability to create live events, offers a level of repeat visitation to the venue, along with the additional spend from the audience it generates to watch the compelling competition.
Developer Phenomena has created its own ‘VR Esports Arena’ – the whole system being packaged as a turnkey eSports solution for entertainment venue operators. Taking much of the guesswork out of running a free-roaming VR experience, and the requirements of prize tournament competition. Recently demonstrated at the Orlando IAAPA trade event in November 2021, the new version of the system offers a fully contained arena, with up to eight players (within a 32 x 20 ft., enclosure). The players are wearing the latest HTC VIVE Focus 3, standalone VR headsets. With audience supported by score displays. The developer offering one of three highly competitive VR experiences to compete within and looking to build an international tournament in support of the platform.
France saw a massive VR eSports competition take place during the Paris Game Week in 2019. Developer, EVA (Esports Virtual Arenas), installed a temporary 1,000-m2 arena that saw players using backpack PC’s, HP headsets and tracked weaponry, to take part in a major prize tournament competition. Building on this the company announced their first ‘VR Esport league’, attracting some 52 teams, competing for a $19,000 (€17,000 Euro) cash-prize. Having generated some 400,000 unique spectators on Twitch during the playoffs.
EVA has installed some nine rooms in venues, offering between eight and 12-player VR eSports arenas in France. Having signed licenses to open some 40 additional arenas for the end of 2022 in the country. They have developed several games themselves that plunge groups into tournament competitions. During a recent franchise expo in Paris, the company revealed its intention to have opened 225 arenas by 2025, expanding to Germany and the USA. Having seen first-hand the popularity of their eSports competition platform with their play-base.
Looking beyond the Western market, and we have seen eSports-based VR competition blossom on the Chinese entertainment scene. While the Chinese “VR Park” (the name given to VR arcades in the territory) has seen a continuing upheaval in business, the popularity of VR gaming is still alive and well. Competition plays a major part in defining the deployment of VR into this market – a market where many players will travel to venues to compete, be that the ubiquitous eSport cafes, or the explosion of new VR venues. Such as that operated by STEPVR, with over 130 ‘Future Battle’ stores, across 80 cities within China. These venues have groups of up to ten players competing in a Multiplayer Online Battle Arena (MOBA) experience. STEPVR has recently raised $15m (100-million-yuan) in funding towards international growth.
The territory was one of the first to embrace virtual competition, with the first VR eSports event, the ‘World Virtual Reality Arena 2015’, organized then by Battletimes Co., but this is still an embryonic market. More recently China has seen several major VR eSport tournaments streamed across popular social networks – such as this year with the ‘VR Esports International Championship in Beijing’. A point where we now see major social content providers, such as NetEase, showing interest to invest heavily in this emerging new business.
Returning to the West, and not just free-roaming VR is being employed in an eSports combination. VRstudios is a well-known developer of VR entertainment platforms, and recently launched a major new development, which looks to shake up the way VR amusement is played. Called Hoops Madness, the game experience has been revealed on the new ‘FURY’ unattended two-player kiosk – a self-service VR entertainment platform that incorporates a unique tethered HTC Vive Pro headset configuration, eye-catching LCD display, all in a ‘V’ shape design. But it is the game that drives the whole platform, with Hoops Madness representing a fast-paced basketball hoop’s shooting experience, testing the players’ skill. The game is the first in a line of ‘VRstudios Real-Sport Esports’ titles. The company offers operators guides to marketing and utilizing the ‘FURY’ and Hoops Madness as a platform for VR eSports events, competitions, and tournaments.
In the final observation, it is obvious that the ability to offer a real cash prize incentive to competition has driven much of the interest from the player base. As seen with the explosion of eSports in its more conventional flat-screen incarnation. But one of the benefits that the Out-of-Home version of the competition shares with the considerable investment in eSports, is the large audience live events. Many entertainment venue operators benefit from the audience that is drawn to see the competition on their platforms. The next move is that of streaming these events. The big ‘DOTA’, ‘Counter-Strike’, and ‘League of Legends’ championships, not only draw large live event attendance but generate immense audiences through their streamed broadcasts. The ‘League of Legends World Championships’ in 2020 saw at its peak, some 46 million concurrent viewers, while Global audiences for eSport were calculated at some 475 million in 2021.
We can expect to witness new entrants throw their hat into the ring towards competing in the commercial entertainment application of VR eSports. We have already seen Las Vegas casino chains install massive eSports arenas within their premises and have also seen the inclusion of VR within their layout. We will also start to see the establishment of eSports betting, and with the greater prize opportunities, we can expect major licensing deals for the lucrative sponsorship and coverage. Global revenue in 2021 from competitive gaming is projected to hit over $1 billion.
VR eSports is an attractive medium, and seems to be growing in popularity, but is it ready now for primetime in the West?
Virtuix announced that it raised another $19 million as part of its Series A-2 funding, which it will use to launch its consumer VR treadmill, the Omni One, this year.
Virtuix worked with SeedInvest, an online investing company, to complete the Series A-2 funding. Over 6,500 investors participated in this round.
Virtuix unveiled the Omni One towards the end of last year, which it says was inspired by its previously available commercial VR treadmill, the Omni Pro. Unlike the Pro, the Omni One is a consumer device aimed for home use.
While it’s called a VR treadmill, nothing actually moves on the device – instead, the user wears a special pair of shoes that slip along the round disk surface. This, along with an attached swiveling harness strap, allows them to walk and turn on the spot. In theory, this translates to 360 degree movement in VR, facilitated by walking on the spot on the Omni One.
Of course, Virtuix has been around a long time and its initial treadmills didn’t take off in the home market. The One is designed to be a lighter, sleeker and more compact than previous iterations, which Virtuix hopes will make it better for home use, though it’s still likely only to appeal to only the most enthusiastic of VR users. It will ship with everything needed to get started, including a standalone VR headset with its own operating software and games store, with 30 titles available at launch. We don’t have a list of compatible games at this time.
Promotional material from last year shows a Pico Neo 2 headset being used with the Omni One, but Virtuix said this was just for demonstration purposes and the exact model of included headset yet to be decided on. We reached out to Virtuix for an update and they said it still had not been decided yet, but they “will do so in the next month.”
The Omni One will retail for $1995, or $55/month via a payment plan, and will be available sometime later this year.
In 2020 Virtuix revealed plans to create a home version of its omni-directional treadmill, a more compact solution called the Omni One. As part of this process, the company launched a Series A-2 financing round, allowing investors to purchase shares in the business whilst being offered a discount on the treadmill when it becomes available. With the round closed, Virtuix has managed to raise $19 million USD towards its launch.
Up to now, Virtuix has concentrated on the commercial market shipping over $10 million worth of omni-directional systems to location-based entertainment (LBE) venues like Dave & Buster’s. Omni One on the other hand is firmly focused on the high-end consumer market, allowing gamers to fully immerse themselves in virtual reality (VR) without the need for a room-scale compatible environment. Coming in with a 4ft diameter the Omni One can be folded up to store away.
The funding round required a minimum investment of $1,000, with investors offered a 20% discount on an Omni One if they wanted one. Over 6,500 investors participated in the round to hit that $19 million. The funds will be used to help build and launch the Omni One which is currently expected to arrive later this year.
“With Omni One, your home becomes a portal into new worlds and gaming adventures like never before,” said Jan Goetgeluk, Virtuix’s founder and CEO in a statement. “For the first time, you’re no longer restricted by the limited space in your home. You can roam endlessly around immersive virtual worlds as you would in real life, using your whole body.”
“We’re impressed by the outpouring of investor support for Omni One,” Goetgeluk added. “More than two million players have experienced the thrill of walking around inside videogames at our commercial venues around the world. Given our success in the out-of-home market, our investors believe we’re well positioned to bring our popular gaming experience to millions of homes around the world.”
The Omni One is mainly going to be sold as an all-in-one entertainment system, combining the treadmill and a standalone headset in the price. For the launch Virtuix will have 30 titles available via a dedicated store, some developed in-house while others have been licensed from third-party developers. And how much does all this cost? To buy the Omni One up front will set you back $1,995, or there’s the monthly payment plan for $55 / month. There will also be a Omni One “Dev Kit” version primarily designed for studios.
As further details of the new Omni One treadmill are released, VRFocus will let you know.
In the first of a two-part feature in his latest Virtual Arena column, industry specialist Kevin Williams marks the six-year anniversary of HTC’s Vive platform in commercial entertainment – initially looking at the lesser reported history of the VR tech in this scene and the influence it has had on shaping the business.
While many are focused on the consumer sales of virtual reality (VR), the commercial (enterprise) aspects of the market seem to be the new recruiting sergeant for innovation and advanced design. Following a major launch of new VR hardware, HTC shines a light on this approach. But it’s the commercial entertainment deployment that also needs some perspective to better understand the thinking going forward for VR adoption.
HTC is a company that has epitomised the eventual separation of the VR community between the “Serious VR” and the “Casual VR” businesses. While many would see consumer videogames as a vital aspect of the industry, it is still a casual pursuit, and with the projection of the standalone VR scene as the focus of considerable investment this can overshadow the rest of the business. But as has been seen VR headset manufacturers now pivot towards a B2B, high-end PC-VR, approach.
– Early Period
HTC entered the VR space in 2016, being the first to field a PC-VR headset. Much of this lead was achieved by the licensing and partnership with Valve. This relationship fostered in the ashes of Valve’s abandoned involvement with Oculus. This after the controversial loaning of the famous Valve ‘VR Room’ proof of concept that defined the fundamentals of tracking, strong immersive display, and comprehensive controllers. Much of the lessons taught by the ‘VR Room’, would lead to the creation of Lighthouse tracking infrastructure, a mainstay of the platform. Allowing the HTC Vive to offer room-scale VR while others initially offered seated only VR.
The famous Valve “VR Room” in operation
Selling at first to prosumers and commercial buyers, it was obvious that VR had drawing appeal, and while complicated hardware, the interest to use Vive systems in promotional work, as Pop-Up installations, allowing an audience to experience immersion that would normally be out of their price point. HTC working with many corporations to create deployable pop-up promotional experiences, such as the 2016 ‘Fantasy Forest VR Experience’ in partnership with Walt Disney and a promotional tool for their new Jungle Book properties.
The Asian focus of the Taiwanese corporation has seen HTC partner with many companies in this territory. Regarding LBE development, HTC would sign a partnership with Chinese based LEKE VR. The company had already penetrated the VR amusement scene selling several of their unique VR platforms, and with the partnership with HTC could represent their VR headsets into the market, with LEKE VR getting early access to the new HTC VIVE Pro. This business approach would go on to feed HTC’s aspirations in this sector.
Deep Ocean Adventure from LEKE VR
Taking the basic idea of the pop-up installation and placing experiences in a dedicated showroom environment led to HTC devising the creation of their own entertainment facility. Under the VIiveport Arcade brand, the company opened several Taiwanese based VR arcades, acting both as a showroom of HTC hardware, but also offering VR game experiences that the audience could try. The company would continue to invest in a facility style approach to the deployment of their hardware, and would even open HTC VIVELAND, with more attractions created by third-party developers on the hardware.
One of the many experiences at VIVELAND
It was more than obvious the high price of VR technology and the skill set needed to effectively field this hardware that there would be an opportunity for commercial entertainment centres to operate as VR arcades. The hardware of choice would become the HTC Vive in the West, and one of the first to effectively roll out a chain of facilities was CTRL-V in Canada. Their first facility in 2016 would be located near the University of Waterloo campus and would set the model. With 16-stations for players to try out the latest VR experiences on the HTC Vive from a custom library of VR content. From this first facility, the company would go on to roll out a chain of some 10 facilities across the territory and be a popular model of excellence in VR arcades that others emulate. Proving the draw of a pay-to-play model for VR entertainment.
Inside one of the first CTRL-V facilities
Regarding Western LBE VR applications, one of the first to gain traction in 2016 was from Virtuix, forming a joint venture with Hero Entertainment to create Crisis Action – using the Omni-directional treadmill, players could compete in the hectic shooter, that used HTC Vive headsets. This concept would solidify and be relaunched as the standalone ‘OMNI Arena’ system that has seen a strong penetration into the amusement facility scene and is supported by a thriving eSports championship business.
The initial design for Crisis Action
More unusual applications of VR hardware have been in the deployment for visitor attractions, using the immersive experience to entertain the gathered audience. One of the early examples was the Sky Circus Sunshine, located on the observation deck of the Tokyo landmark, several VR experiences simulated heart-pounding aerial exploits some 700 feet in the air from the towering structure. Including being launched from a cannon, or riding an immense swing. Deployed using the HTC headset, content developed by specialists Hashilus, who would go on to create other innovative pop-up entertainment installations in VR.
One of the many unusual VR experiences at the observatory
The deployment of VR as more of an attraction would not be seen until the launch byMerlin Entertainment of ‘Derren Brown’s Ghost Train’ at Thorp Park. A unique attraction married VR experiences interspersed around a ghost train application. Some 14 passengers transported from a tube train through numerous environments including digital and grand scale illusions. The attraction, VR elements developed by Figment Productions, first launched in 2016 would see several revisions to address issues, and would prove a mixed bag with audiences, but paved the way for the deployment of VR, and in particularly HTC Vive headsets in large audience configurations. Opening the door to other VR attractions that would follow.
First virtual scares for theme park guests
The landscape to establishing LBE VR has been littered with many failures, and projects such as the IMAX VR arcade andHub Zero as some of the more notorious false steps, but there has also been an incredibly successful and lucrative business in supporting the LBE VR scene for HTC, an aspect of their business not only involving unit sales of the Vive but also support and maintenance and an extensive software and firmware support infrastructure.
The amusement trade would see arguably some of the greatest penetration of VR hardware in an entertainment format, with key leading developers selling in the hundreds of VR amusement variants, and establishing a new genre of product.
One of the first to investigate the possibilities of VR for amusement would be Bandai Namco, after initial investment, the corporation set up an offshoot of its amusement GM operation, to specialize in VR development called “Project-i-Can”. The group would go on to create several formative VR entertainments that were fusions of popular amusement genres married to VR hardware based on the HTC Vive. The experiences would be placed in their own unique location-based venue named VR ZONE, with several sites, including a flagship location opened. VR ZONE Portals would offer pop-up opportunities for players outside of Japan to experience the delights. And Bandai Namco would even partner with Nintendo to create a VR interpretation of Mario Kart.
Player on ‘Ski Rodeo’ at a Tokyo VR ZONE
Along with more conventional applications of amusement VR hybrids, Bandai Namco would also broach into the realm of free-roaming VR experiences. The company developed several attractions that looked at PC backpack Arena Scale experiences. But one of the most notable being their partnership with Square-ENIX towards creating a four-player free-roaming attraction based on the popular fantasy title with Dragon Quest VR. An innovative multi-player adaptation, with the deployment of advance haptic feedback game interfaces based on the key roles of the players’ characters.
Players working as a team against the bosses in Dragon Quest VR. Image credit: KWP
This concludes the first part of this two-part feature on the anniversary of HTC’s investment into location-based entertainment. The second part will look at the continuing legacy and reveal some of the plans for the future of this vital entertainment sector.
Five months ago Virtuix launched a campaign on equity crowdfunding platform SeedInvest for its latest product, the Omni One omnidirectional treadmill. Today, Virtuix revealed that the campaign has been a massive success, seeing 4,000+ investors help the company raise over $11 million USD with a month still to go.
The campaign ends on 2nd April 2021, with Virtuix hoping to achieve $15 million by that time. Rather than going the crowd-funding route of platforms like Kickstarter, going the SeedInvest route allows Virtuix to sell shares to the public. The minimum investment is $1,000, and as a perk investors will receive a 20% discount (worth $400) when buying Omni One.
Omni One will be sold in two versions in 2021, a “dev kit” package for $995 which isn’t supplied with a headset – great for developers and VR fans who already own their own headset and VR-capable PC. The complete Omni One entertainment system – including an all-in-one VR headset and operating software – will retail for $1,995 or via a monthly payment plan for $55 a month.
“We’re both thrilled and humbled by this outpouring of investor support for Omni One,” said Jan Goetgeluk, founder and CEO of Virtuix in a statement. “Given that many of our new investors are also eager customers who plan to buy Omni One for their homes, our success on SeedInvest signals strong market demand for Omni One.”
“Omni One is like no other gaming system,” Goetgeluk continued. “It’s a breakthrough in omnidirectional treadmill technology. The system is compact at only four feet in diameter, it’s easy to fold up and store, and it gives players unmatched freedom of movement, including crouching, kneeling, and jumping.”
The Omni One is Virtuix’s first proper foray into the consumer sector, as it usually focuses on the location-based entertainment (LBE) sector. Designed to offer a small footprint ideal for people’s homes, the Omni One is due to launch this year with 30 titles developed by Virtuix and third-party studios made available through its own dedicated online store.
Virtuix isn’t the only omnidirectional treadmill company looking to entice VR consumers. KatVR’s Kat Walk C ran a Kickstarter in 2020 selling its device for $999 or less. VRFocus will continue its coverage of the Omni One, reporting back with further updates on its development.
Cybershoes for Oculus Quest give you the means to move convincingly in VR using your actual legs without ever needing to physical stand up from your chair. And, believe it or not, it actually does a pretty good job. Here are our first impressions of the Cybershoes for Oculus Quest. The Kickstarter campaign for Cybershoes on Quest is fully-funded at over twice their goal with an end date of December 31.
Cybershoes on Oculus Quest
Over two years ago I wrote about my experience using the original iteration of the Cybershoes, which were designed to be used with a PC VR headset tethered to a PC. This newest model supports both Quest and PC VR.
The most intrusive part of the previous setup is that you had to dangle the HMD wire above your head with a little fishing rod-style contraption that was a pain to setup and took up lots of space. That’s no longer the case with the wireless, standalone Oculus Quest headset.
While it might seem redundant to use a device that lets you move around in VR with your legs since you could just, you know, stand up and move around in VR with your legs using a Quest already, but there are some unique advantages with Cybershoes. Not only does it mean you don’t need to worry about your Guardian boundaries and room size constraints, but it also should help tremendously for those with motion sickness concerns.
The act of swinging your feet and twisting around in a chair adds that physical element most VR is missing that can, for many people, alleviate the VR sickness woes. Personally, I don’t get motion sick or VR sick so I cannot confirm nor deny the effectiveness, but many users have reported results after using these and the previous PC VR version.
The concept here is very simple. You strap on these open-style shoes that slide on the ground and simulate actual movement. The bottoms of the shoes have sensors that tell your VR headset which direction you’re moving.
If the game has analog stick / gamepad movement support at all, then it should work with no problems. For Oculus Quest many of the top games, like Arizona Sunshine, Myst, and The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners all work great right out of the box.
Thankfully setup is dead simple. All you have to do is strap the Cybershoes onto your feet, attach the little box to the front of your headset, which is incredibly light, and plug that in the side. There are no wires to worry about at all.
At first it takes some getting used to. Rubbing your feet across the floor to move isn’t exactly a natural movement nor is it super intuitive, but it starts to click after a while. The concept is the same as you see in other movement solutions, such as the treadmill-style options from Omni, but you’re seated instead.
Admittedly I don’t think I see myself using Cybershoes for Quest very often even though they absolutely do work as advertised. To me, the physicality of standing up and moving around a room is far more immersive and important than rubbing my feet on the ground. However, I can see some use cases for this.
If you get motion sick easily and traditional artificial locomotion in games like The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners always makes you uncomfortable, then you could totally try using Cybershoes as a way to circumvent that side effect. Alternatively, if you have a disability that prevents you from standing for long periods of time but you can still move your legs, then this is an excellent middle ground.
So to be perfectly clear: yes, Cybershoes works as intended and removing the wire from PC VR makes it far more user-friendly and compelling, but, just like the 3DRudder, I fail to see a compelling reason to use this instead of just moving around a room. Even if you don’t have enough space for roomscale and would just be standing in one spot and leaning around I’d still rather do that than be restricted to sitting in a chair while in VR — especially when using a standalone, wireless, roomscale headset like the Oculus Quest or Quest 2.
Maybe that will change once more developers add support, but as it stands it’s hard to imagine a world where sitting down with sensor shoes is the ideal way of enjoying otherwise roomscale VR.
