VRSUN

Hot Virtual Reality News

HOTTEST VR NEWS OF THE DAY

vr attraction

VR Attraction Zero Latency Ditches Backpack PCs in Favor of Vive Focus 3 & Wireless Rendering

From roadtovr

Zero Latency, one of the longest running VR attractions in the out-of-home VR space, is dropping the backpack PCs that were once the backbone of the platform. Now the company says it’s moving to standalone Vive Focus 3 headsets with wireless delivery of PC-rendered VR content.

Unlike a VR arcade, which lets customers play consumer VR content, Zero Latency is a VR attraction offering totally unique multi-user VR experiences designed to be played in a large, shared arena.

Image courtesy Zero Latency

The company, which offers up its platform and experiences to franchisees, has steadily upgraded its VR tech as the space has developed.

Early on the system relied on a custom backpack PC paired with OSVR HDK 2 headsets and an optical overhead tracking system. Eventually the company moved to purpose-built VR backpacks and first-gen WMR headsets from HP, which allowed it to streamline the system considerably by dropping the overhead tracking in favor of WMR’s inside-out tracking. Later versions of the system moved to the more modern HP Reverb headset.

Now Zero Latency has announced its latest upgrade to the system, which further streamlines the setup by opting for the standalone Vive Focus 3 and streaming PC-rendered content wirelessly to the headsets. The company says it’s streaming over a local Wi-Fi 6E network which purportedly offers lower latency than prior Wi-Fi revisions.

Image courtesy Zero Latency

That means dropping the VR backpacks entirely, which not only reduces the cost of the system, but significantly reduces complexity for both operators and users; operators don’t need to clean, charge, and maintain the backpack units, and it’s one less step during onboarding which means more playtime for users.

And while other standalone headsets like Quest 2 might have been an option, HTC’s Vive Focus 3 has a couple of unique advantages for out-of-home use. Especially its swappable battery which reduces the number of headsets needed on hand as the batteries can be charged independently and swapped on the fly.

On the content side, Zero Latency locations continue to offer the same experiences as before, which span cooperative and competitive multiplayer experiences with up to eight simultaneous players. Though, given the company’s knack for innovation in their in-house content, it’ll be interesting to see if the move to a more simplified system will unlock potential for experiences that wouldn’t quite work with the bulkier setup.

Given today’s announcement, it’ll likely be some time yet before the upgrade rolls out to existing Zero Latency locations, but it seems the company will be offering this upgraded version of the system to new franchisees going forward.

VR Arcade Pioneer The VOID is Making a Comeback

From roadtovr

Out-of-home VR attractions were among the worst-hit during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, which put many fledgling startups on the ropes. Now, one of the early pioneers in location-based VR entertainment appears to be making good on its comeback after it briefly slipped into the void.

As reported by MIXED, it appears pioneering out-of-home VR destination The VOID is getting ready to reopen.

Before The Void closed up shop—or was rather summarily kicked out of its dozen-or-so locations after it defaulted on loans back at the beginning of the pandemic—it was a premiere mixed reality destination that promised a real taste of immersion. Starting back in 2015, it combined warehouse-scale VR and realistic 4D effects that brought to life some of the most well-known franchises worldwide: Ghostbusters, The Avengers, Star Wars, Jumanji, and more.

Due to COVID-19 safety measures, The Void suffered immediate losses in revenue which were further outstripped by its inability to secure additional funding. The company’s last video before its website went dark featured a pop-up in Westfield San Francisco Center… back in April 2020.

Then, nearly a year and a half later, a report by Protocol broke the news that The Void’s patents and trademarks has been acquired by Hyper Reality Partners, a company headed by Adrian Steckel, a previous investor and board member of The Void. At the time, it was reported that Hyper Reality Partners has already raised $20 million to get The Void back on its feet.

Now The Void’s website is back up, with its creators saying that it will include “upgraded VR technology,” and “a flexible platform designed to evolve with the latest in innovation.”

“Our vastly expanded destination approach makes possible longer, more deeply immersive experiences. And our broader vision takes virtual reality into a wider spectrum of application and entertainment,” the company says.

Its also hiring several full-time engineering positions, which may signal The Void is already retooling its approach, and getting closer to relaunch.

The Void was undoubtedly an expensive operation to run. It not only nestled its attractions in high-traffic locations like Mall of America or The Venetian in Las Vegas, but also included a good amount of extra equipment outside of the VR headset, peripherals, and backpack-mounted computer capable of running the experience. The Void included elaborate. purpose-built spaces that included 4D effects such as wind, sound, and heat to enhance the VR experience.

The company’s choice to adopt “a flexible platform” may point to a remarkably different strategy moving forward. If it wants to stay nimble and re-expand quickly, it may be aligning more with how Sandbox VR (another near victim of the COVID-19 pandemic) is doing things. Sandbox VR was able to rebound from the pandemic and open 17 locations worldwide fairly quickly based on large, but less complex room-scale-style VR experiences.

– – — – –

So when will The Void come back to malls near you? There’s no telling, but it’s good to see at least that one of the founding pioneers of location-based VR entertainment is still alive and kicking.