Guest writer Kevin Williams stopped by the Virgin Media Game Space in London for yesterday’s launch party. The space, which functions as a place to play and develop games, features a number of Oculus Rift headsets with games like Strike Suit Zero and Team Fortress 2. Williams gives us the inside scoop!
Pop-Up Arcade
During August, the provider of broadband, TV, mobile phone and home phone services in the UK, Virgin Media, opened a self-styled ‘Pop-Up Games Hub’ – called the Virgin Media Game Space (VMGS). The venue acts as a space to provide an environment for gamers and budding developers of all ages to come play, learn, and develop their digital skills. A mixture of a showroom of the latest commercial and indie game concepts, the environment also offered a learning space for the creation of content and ideas. The space opened as a promotional platform to coincide with the Eurogamer Expo event happening the following month, and will be open until September 21st for anyone who wants to stop by.
Capturing the atmosphere of a gallery launch or a laidback rave – the VMGS offered the opportunity to experience the latest in virtual reality gaming courtesy of Oculus Rift, as well as a chance to test yet-to-be-released indie titles such as Super Pole Riders, There Shall be Lancing, and Krautscape. It was the addition of virtual reality to the mix of VMGS that caused the biggest swirl of interest, and marked its opening with the first chance for a number of invited guests to get their hands on the eagerly anticipated hardware.
Hands on Virtual Reality
I was able to get an exclusive glimpse behind the curtain of the VMGS, and also try out the games on the Oculus Rift in detail. On display at the time for the three VR platforms set out within the space were Team Fortress 2 (2007) by Valve, and Strike Suit Zero (2013) by Born Ready Games.
Both demonstrations were presented as leap of faith; because of the pop-up style of the venue there is no real instruction on usage, unless the visitor seriously hunts down a member of the venues team. The TF2 game was pretty self-explanatory to play once the user navigated the menus – this was my first time on the game with the Rift and was impressed with the presentation, though it showed its limitations as a demonstrator rather than a fully-fledged Rift title.
The big interest for me was Strike Suit Zero – the space game was an amazing experience even taking into account a number of the imperfections and limitations of the demonstration title and development kit HMD.
Two terminals were set up at the VMGS, one with a joystick and keyboard control, while another was running on a Xbox joypad. The demonstration proved a bit of a handful as first time users became stuck passing through the game’s cinematic and training pop-up menus; but once inside the space battle, the true draw of the virtual experience was clear to see. Strike Suit Zero is very compelling game that is enhanced by the use of a HMD; and we look forward to the full release.
The team behind the VMGS had worked hard on creating a compelling experience and bringing the thrill of VR’s reemergence to a playing audience. I would personally like to thank curator David Hayward of YMPT, and Virgin Medias’ Lisa Spencer for allowing me to get to grips with the venue and the games.
The Next London VR Meetup
It was interesting to note that VMGS is located in the heart of London’s technological innovation, ‘Silicon Roundabout’, literally a stone’s throw from the Inition basement demonstration studio, where the first London Oculus Rift / VR Meetup had been held – the event built on the success of the previous ‘AR vs. VR’ demonstration as part of the Digital Shoreditch festival also located in the Silicon Roundabout catchment.
This area becoming a hot bed in leading the discussion about the application of virtual reality – and the next London VR Meetup has just been announced by the organizers, taking place on September the 11th, 2013. The event will include a new presentation and demonstration component: WizDish will present their Omni directional motion, while there will be an exclusive presentation from Mocap Games, bringing the ‘world’s first VR motion game’ a concept aimed at the out-of-home (amusement and attraction) entertainment market.
With the inclusion of a presentation element, the VR Meetup has asked if I would be their first speaker at the event, and do a special presentation on the fascinating sector of Digital Out-of-Home Entertainment (DOE) and its love affair with virtual reality and immersive entertainment. Entitled “The Attraction of Immersion”, my half hour illustrated presentation will cover the story of immersive entertainment in the public-space, the emergence of VR applications in entertainment, and the modern applications of VR and immersive entertainment. Space will be limited at the event, so it is best to book early to attend what hopes to build on the success of the first VR Meetup.
For more information visit: http://www.meetup.com/London-Oculus-Rift-VR-Developer-Meetup/events/137288412/
About the Author – Kevin Williams has an extensive background in in the development and sales of the latest amusement and attraction applications. The UK born specialist in the pay-to-play scene is well-known through his consultancy, KWP and as a prolific writer and commentator (The Stinger Report) on the emergence of the new entertainment market. Kevin is also the founder of the association and Conference (DNA Association/DNA Conference) that focuses on the digital Out-of Home interactive entertainment sector. Kevin can be reached at – kwp [at] thestingerreport [dot] com – http://www.thestingerreport.com (both free to subscribe services)