Variety: Los Angeles-based immersive entertainment company Vortex Immersion Media wants to give consumers a new way to experience virtual reality (VR) without those pesky headsets: The company has struck a deal to open a 360-degree dome multiplex that can seat up to 2,500 visitors in its main theater in Phoenix, Arizona.
3 comments:
Okay in all honesty, this just sounds like a fancier version of those “4D” movies that they play at amusement parks. Sure the technology has improved, but it seems like a fad. In all likelihood, the technology will have a short term success and then people will realize that’s it’s not worth the cost and it will fade into the background. VR is a neat gadget that has had marginal success in home systems, but the truth is that it’s expensive and isn’t considered a necessity in the world of technology. I think that it has the potential to change the landscape of technology, but it’s particular brand of entertainment won’t take off until they’ve added another element to bring in the general public. The most intriguing aspect to me is the application to concerts. I think this could add a dimension to musician’s sets and possibly gain success from that, but the technology is going to be in accessible to the vast majority of people who are interested in it. Still, I’m impressed with how far technology has come and maybe in another 5 years VR will have a successful re-birth.
Vortex is putting forth a very interesting idea with Virtual Reality. However, I think it is too early for it to work. Virtual Reality is one of those things that people expect to be like how they see things in the movies and I am subject to it to. The same way people are disappointed when holograms are more like projections on glass rather than a small little sphere that magically puts light in the right ways to create three dimensional images that move as is seen in star ways; it is very much the same case here. We want it to feel real and something like this will likely end up being a disappointment because it either won’t feel real or it will have real components to it. The only other way this could be done is to mass produce the technology and make it easily available like in Ready Player One. The world has to have it for us to accept it or it has to meet our unrealistic expectations. I would love to be proved wrong but right now I don’t see either of those things happening despite how great an idea this dome sounds and how awesome I believe it will be.
Similar to what Nicolaus said, I don't think we are quite in the place yet for Virtual Reality to become as day to day as going to see a movie is. While I hope one day this isn't true, I believe that right now it is. In the future, I hope to be able to see a virtual reality movie, or experience per se, just as easily as you can go see a movie today. Walk up to a counter, buy a ticket, and step into a whole new world for an hour or two. I think that the idea Vortex has is great, but maybe in a few years could have some real success. Right now, I think it is both too uncommon and too expensive for it to be a normal thing people do. Hopefully, the day comes soon when it is normal. And maybe Vortex will create this situation, but it will be tough to do so.
Post a Comment