A real-life test drive of how gaming has evolved at Hong Kong’s virtual reality arcade
Don’t own your own Oculus? Our JRs check out a spot where you can try virtual reality for yourself
Virtual reality (VR) has come a long way in just a few years. With its high-quality, immersive graphics, the technology is set to revolutionise gaming. The question is: how good is it right now? We sent junior reporters Sebastian Wong, Veroncia Lin, Zachary Perez Jones, Joy Lee and Pauline Wong to Virtual Portal, in Tsim Sha Tsui, to test out the state of VR gaming. Here’s what they thought:
Seeing is believing
When Eric Chu – the owner of Virtual Portal – told us to be aware of our surroundings, as players have often damaged TV screens or furniture when playing VR games, I really didn’t believe what he said.
But while playing the alien-hunting shoot-’em-up Hover Junkers, I went crazy. As soon as the game started, I completely forgot that I was in a tiny space. It felt like I was actually in the middle of the Roman Colosseum fighting for my life. I frantically loaded the bullets with my left hand and shot at the robotic aliens until they burst into flames.
The experience was mind-blowing and left me “confused”. My adrenaline was still pumping ferociously – long after I’d taken off the VR headset.
Veronica Lin
Never-before-seen experience
VR is still in a very early stage, but Hong Kong’s Virtual Portal already offers customers a never-before-seen multiplayer VR experience. The entertainment centre offers a large variety of VR games, from the relaxing, family-friendly Rec Room and the retro-themed Pierhead Arcade, to Hover Junkers, a multiplayer shooting game. Virtual Portal opens doors to all kinds of different worlds.
Sebastian Wong
Loud and exciting
The games were extremely fun. Rec Room is a series of mini-games, including capture the flag and football, and allows you to chat with people from all over the world. It was a little bit like a Mii game for the Wii, but it gets you completely immersed in the environment – I really felt like I was one of the players in the game.
Things got very loud and exciting quickly, with JRs screaming encouragement at each other and cheering – or groaning – when a goal was scored.
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But when we played a shooting game later, the room was silent, because our minds were completely focused on the bots who were attacking us. We took on our “enemies”, destroying them one by one and saving our “lives”.
Virtual reality is a truly wonderful experience, and I believe it will change our world drastically. With Sony coming out with cheaper headsets, VR will be accessible to most people on their PS4. But if you haven’t got a PS4 and you really want to try VR, I highly recommend you head over to the Virtual Portal, which is a five-minute walk from the Tsim Sha Tsui MTR station. At HK$58 for half an hour, it’s a great deal for some fun time when you can immerse yourself in the world of horror or sci-fi, or just connect with people all over the globe.
Zachary Perez Jones and Joy Lee
It’s fun – and safe
After quickly learning how the HTC Vive headsets worked, I slipped mine on. It was a little bulky, but I managed. When the system started up, it was amazing how realistic everything looked. I could do so many things with the hand-held controller, whether it was making a fist bump with other JRs, picking up items, or pressing buttons to teleport.
Once we started playing a game, I realised that the carpet and foam walls were there for a reason: to protect players from hurting themselves. HTC also makes things quite safe, as you see a blue grid that you’re not supposed to cross (because otherwise you’d hit a window or a wall).
Zachary Perez Jones and Joy Lee
A world of difference
Although the graphics were not super-realistic, the 360-degree views and movement sensors created a virtual world that felt very real. It was absolutely fascinating to experience first-hand a multiplayer game that people from around the world can play together.
Pauline Wong