A new business is using the power of technology to provide an all-immersive gaming experience.
Game OVR, a virtual reality arcade, takes players into new realms using a mask, two controllers and an advanced computing system.
"It feels like you're transporting yourself some place that you've never been before, it's exciting and it's fun," says Stephanie Roberge, co-owner of Game OVR.
Watching a YouTube video on virtual reality doesn't do the gaming system justice. Instead, look at the room you're currently in and imagine zombies staggering towards you or fruits cascading upwards from the floor. Your living room transforms into an abandoned warehouse or the surface of a distant planet.
It may seem like fantasy, but it feels as real as you're reading this article right now.
For $25 per hour players can get lost in new worlds at Game OVR. The establishment is comprised of 10 large empty rooms where players can freely move within their virtual game.
Each room has one television for viewers, but the image on the screen is far different than the experience of the player.
A laser is mounted in the corner of every room, which communicates with the HTC Vive virtual reality headset to determine distance. If a player walks too close to a wall, a blue grid appears inside the mask that tells the gamer to back away.
However, some games are intense enough that there have been a few run-ins with the walls.
"It doesn't happen often, but sometimes people get really into their game. It feels like it's real," Roberge says.
The mask also has two Bose headphones, gyroscopes that track angular motion and accelerometers that track forward and backwards movement. Without this top-of-the-line technology, the user would experience severe motion sickness.
The two controllers, mask and laser cost around $799.99 on Amazon and require a computer system built to handle virtual reality.
Virtual reality may seem like it's a new technology, but it has roots dating back to the 1800s.
Virtual reality: a timeline
1838: Charles Wheatstone, scientist and inventor, created stereoscopic technology. By placing two photos of the same object taken at slightly different angles and putting them side-by-side, Wheatstone found that the viewer could see depth and experience a level of immersion.
The stereoscopic design principles are used for Google Cardboard, which was launched in 2014.
1956: Morton Heilig was a cinematographer and a pioneer in virtual reality. He created the 'sensorama simulator', a 3D video machine with stereo speakers, a stereoscopic 3D display, fans, smell generators and a vibrating chair. While highly innovative, the expensive machine was developed well beyond its time and failed spectacularly.
1960: Pushing onwards, Morton Heilig patented his next invention: the telesphere mask. It was the first virtual reality headset created and provided stereoscopic 3D and wide vision with stereo sound. Heilig was dubbed the 'father of virtual reality' by some.
1968: Ivan Sutherland was a computer scientist. With his student, Bob Sproull, the duo created the first virtual reality and augmented reality head-mounted display. The mask was attached to the ceiling, with the user strapped into the device. Its graphics were rudimentary and the system was too heavy for any user to comfortably use.
1987: Jaron Lanier, computer scientist and author, popularized the term 'virtual reality'.
1991: Virtual reality arcade games started popping up, where players were seated in chairs wearing virtual reality headsets.
1992: A popular sci-fi movie called The Lawnmower Man, an adaptation of Stephen King's novel, introduces virtual reality to the wider audience. In the movie a doctor puts an individual with disabilities on experimental pills and computer-simulated training, turning him into a genius.
1993: SEGA releases virtual reality glasses, with head tracking (which tracks movement of the head), stereo sound and LCD screens in the headset's visor. Unfortunately the headset had major technical difficulties and it never moved past the prototype phase.
1996: Nintendo releases 'Virtual Boy', the first 3D gaming console that was the first portable console that could display 3D graphics.
2007: University of Reading recreates a virtual warzone to help veterans with PTSD.
2014: Google launches Google Cardboard, a cardboard virtual reality headset that allows a smartphone to be mounted on the front. The low-budget headset is designed to increase interest in virtual reality.
2014: Facebook buys Oculus Rift for $2 billion. The virtual reality headset is a cheaper option to the Vive headset used at Game OVR. With a price tag of $599.99 on Amazon, the headset allows people to bring virtual reality into their own living room.
Eric Roberge, co-owner of Game OVR and husband of Stephanie, says the once expensive technology has reached a price-point where people are buying for their own personal use.
However, a multi-player game can quickly turn a living room into a small, cramped space and a safety hazard.
"We have people who have their own systems at home who are regulars here," Stephanie says. "It can be frustrating when you're in a small space because the whole purpose of these games is to become completely immersed in it."
Eric says he and his wife opened the business after a growing interest in the technology in 2014.
They own their own HTC Vive set at home, but decided to turn virtual reality into a business.
"We noticed that there wasn't a lot of recreational games available in St. Albert. If you wanted to play lazer tag or go to a trampoline park or a play area, you would have to go into Edmonton," he says.
Different games are available with different intensity levels, however the company has decided against carrying games that simulate real-world warzones such as Call of Duty.
"There's so many fun games out there that it's not necessary," he says. "There's lots of other content that we can draw from without going down that road."
The business offers party, team-building and educational packages.
Store hours are Monday to Thursday from 11 a.m. to 8:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. For more information visit www.gameovr.ca
