Standing in the middle of the track, you press down on the throttle.
Your levitating vehicle fires up, and shoots off, with King’s Parade whirring past in the background.
Welcome to Lightstream Racer, a racing game for iOS devices that blends graphics with the world around you.
This innovative augmented reality title has gained the attention of Apple, which has hailed its creator – Cambridge company Virtual Arts – as one of five rising gaming stars in Europe.
Three more augmented reality titles are in the pipeline – one that will cast a witch as your virtual companion, an edutainment app that will teach you about geography, and a multiplayer shooter. Further applications could utilise the potential of virtual reality for training and monitoring.
“It’s a big project and we’re doing it in steps,” replies Nizar. “The first monetisation strategy is via ads between tracks. You can remove them for £1.99.
“We’re also thinking about the AR showroom and adding customisation and different cars that people can buy via in-app purchases.”