Arcade cabinet brings wind, smell and bugs to VR
The pay-to-play machines are coming to a (Japanese) amusement center near you.
Koei Tecmo Wave, the company best known for the Dynasty Warriors game series, has unveiled an arcade cabinet that adds all-new sensations to virtual reality. The "VR Sense" enclosure is a "multifunction 3D seat" that brings movement, aroma, touch, wind, heat, cold, rain and mist to VR, the company says. It seems it's not meant for the home, however, but as a "pay-per-use" machine, designed to liberate you from your cash at arcades or other facilities.
The device is launching with three different games. GI Jockey Sense (below) offers riders a "transcendent experience" thanks to the 3D seat -- which presumably moves or vibrates -- along with wind, rain and snow(!).
A non-snowy day at the racetrack (Koei Tecmo Wave)
Horror Sense, meanwhile, is some kind of variation on Resident Evil, with the thrills augmented by seat movements and "bugs falling from the ceiling and small things scurrying across the floor," the company writes.
Finally, there's a VR version of the company's Dynasty Warrior series, letting you "feel the fire and heat in the middle of war." That's thanks to, and I'm not making this up, a "realistic reproduction of hot flames covering the battlefield," the company says.
Koei Tecmo didn't say what kind of VR headset it's using, if any, for the VR Sense cabinet, nor did it mention pricing, launch dates or other details. However, it's set to reveal more at the Japan Amusement Expo 2017 starting on Friday, February 10th.
