So the idea of a 'VR Arcade' has been discussed a lot and there are many people working towards building one. Here's what I've been working on for quite a while now and it's being put to the crowd funding test.
To give you a summary of what exactly it is: Custom built tracking and wireless PC backpack solution for VR which allows you to freely walk around any sized space with constant 1:1 tracking of your head and controller (in this case, guns). It's designed for multi-player and can be scaled out to basically any size, funding permitted.
Out aim is to build up the support to run an event in which a player is put through their paces in a zombie infested apocalyptic environment. We'll have at least 2 player co-op but we are hoping to get the funding for 4 player.
Given the nature of a VR event such as this, I'd imagine most of the people interested would just be in Melbourne, Australia. But, I figured I'd share it here as I'm sure there will be some people here with something to say about it.
Looks really excellent. Should be even more impressive once the DK2 is released. Seems like it requires a large open area, but I could definitely see VR arcades opening to make this sort of experience possible. Do you have any way of keeping people from running into the pillars?
Yeah we actually slowed things down a bit to make sure DK2 was going to be available before we delivered it to the public. We have a few months buffer now so there shouldn't be a problem, otherwise, we already have enough DK1's to get us started. But that wouldn't be as awesome.
To avoid hitting things we place an outline on the ground to show the player the playable area. If they get too close to the edge of this space they start to see walls appear in front of them to signify the edge of that space.
We have ways to also traverse larger spaces, so you won't feel like you are limited to just playing in a little box. We are going to be releasing updates during the campaign to show off more of the technology and fun things you can do in the system.