My trip to the VR Park was a very interesting one to say the least. When we first arrived, I was super excited and amazed by the number of different rides available. Along with a couple of other people, my initial thought was “why aren’t there more people here?!” Everything looked so fun and I imagined it to be bustling with people. But funnily enough, halfway through my time there, I slowly realized why this was. There are definitely drawbacks to this new technology and
My favorite experience was the Burj drop. It was the first ride that I went on and at this point I was filled with excitement and expecting the best to come. I put on my headset and immediately saw what you would see if you were up in Burj Khalifa. I was apparently with another man and by the look of his helmet and outfit, we were doing some construction work up in the air. The ride began and we were going up and down at varying speed. I felt very immersed in it because the movement felt very real. What I was seeing in the headset corresponded to how my body felt, which added to the adrenaline. For me, the light and the sound did play a role in making the experience feel fuller, but neither of it was extraordinary.
However, I realized this wasn’t the case for some other rides and even though my vision was aided by movement in the ride, I wasn’t as immersed and was even thrown out of it. I think the key was to find the right balance between the two – if there’s too much of any one aspect, it immediately takes me out of the experience. Most of the other rides, for example, had way too much movement. My body was being thrown from side to side, and it was very hard to focus on the game as I began feeling dizzy and sick. the headset also felt very heavy so when there were sharp turns in some of the rides, I felt a lot of pain and pressure on my neck. Even some of the props that we had to hold, like guns, were quite heavy and holding them for prolonged periods of time would tire me out midday.
Overall, I had fun going on different rides and I had never experienced anything like it. However, I doubt I’ll be back anytime soon, given the headaches, neck strains, and dizziness the rides caused!