The best experience I had at the VR Park in Dubai was the Hologate game, Zombyte. I think it was the same for many of my classmates.
It was the experience that was the most ‘Alternate’, depicting a post apocalyptic zombie world where a computer virus takes over the human population’s neural enhancements. As a fan of good world building, to me, most of the experiences I saw that were close to reality like the drone or the Burj drop were fun but still a lot less interesting.
One of the ways in which it was very successful was in making the use of the headsets and equipment was a part of the narrative. We are using our neural enhancements to remotely control fighter robots and hold off the zombie horde, with the danger of the virus spreading to us across the network. We were also handed controllers that were built in to rifles that we held and controlled like real rifles.
The placement of the players back to back, but able to look around and see each other and support each other, and linked headsets to allow us to talk to each other worked well to create a sense of team work. We tried to have each other’s back. Enemies approaching and attacking from multiple sides and angles kept us moving around, sometimes ducking down and shooting over the barrier.
The atmosphere of the game is charged, urgent and terrifying. The dim, artificial neon lighting and the shadows cast from the buildings from which the zombies emerged were effective in creating a sense of a cyber punk world as well as a sense of sci fi horror. I don’t remember if there was music, but that just means it worked so seamlessly that I didn’t notice.
I would totally play it again.