Location-Based VR: The Next Phase Of Immersive Entertainment
Why location-based VR and why now?
VR has one fundamental problem—not enough people have actually tried VR, much less good VR. This is a major problem because until you have tried VR, you don’t understand the immersive power of the technology. Most VR today is still relatively expensive and the best experiences cost too much for the average consumer. Because of this, I believe that location-based VR is the natural and necessary next step for VR and the immersive technology market on its way towards mainstream appeal and market.
Exit Reality
Exit Reality is different than other location-based VR companies because it does both fixed and mobile VR setups. Its expertise is in setting up different types of pods that can be used for VR experiences. I’ve seen the company demonstrate its setup many times. I first ran across it at GDC, where it demonstrated (in partnership with a casino gambling company) how its X Hub allows users to gamble on the outcome of competitive VR matches. Exit Reality has many different partners, but most of its business centers around setting up LBE hardware and locations and enabling virtually anyone that wants an LBE setup to have one temporarily or permanently at their business or event.
The VR Company – VRC
VRC is an interesting player because it is more of a content creation company than anything else. However, the company realizes LBE is where the market is today and is testing the waters. I got the chance to try out its Jurassic Park VR experience inside of a Dave & Busters, and I enjoyed it. There was a continuous line of people waiting to try out the experience while I was there, demonstrating that good IP paired with a good location is a solid recipe for success in LBE. I spoke to one of the operators and he said on a busy day they can run up to 500 people through the experience, which only seats 4 at a time. Dave & Busters says it loves the amount of attention, positive feedback, and added revenue the experiences bring to its locations.
See the full story with many other company profiles here: https://www.forbes.com/sites/moorinsights/2019/01/04/location-based-vr-the-next-phase-of-immersive-entertainment/#7769e7723f57