Explore Alien Foxes, Exoplanets & VR Carl Sagan in Vegas
â–¼ Summary
– The author describes a highly immersive virtual reality experience in Las Vegas that feels like being inside a massive, sci-fi space station.
– The experience, called Interstellar Arc, is a shared VR attraction where real people wearing headsets see and move through the same virtual environment together.
– It represents a significant reimagining of VR within large physical spaces, made possible by recent technological advances.
– The creators, Felix & Paul Studios, were convinced VR was the future of storytelling after trying an early Oculus Rift headset in 2013.
– The studio has a notable history in VR, developing early 360-degree cameras and creating award-winning experiences with major partners.
The sensation is unmistakably cinematic, as if stepping directly into a science fiction film. I find myself navigating the vast, curved walkways of a colossal space station, its immense centrifuge structure visible at the periphery of my sight. Below, a vibrant exoplanet hangs in the void. The architecture stretches impossibly in every direction, creating a profound sense of scale. Periodically, holographic beings, each towering like skyscrapers, manifest beside the path to address our small group. This is not a solitary digital dream; the other participants are real people, sharing this virtual landscape through headsets as we physically walk through a custom-built venue in Las Vegas. Interstellar Arc, located within the city’s innovative Area15 district, represents a bold evolution of immersive entertainment, merging untethered VR with expansive, real-world stagecraft to create a shared narrative journey.
This ambitious project springs from the minds at Felix & Paul Studios, founded by Paul Raphaël, Félix Lajeunesse, and Stéphane Rituit. Raphaël and Lajeunesse began their careers in conventional filmmaking but found their calling after trying an early Oculus Rift headset. The potential for a new storytelling medium was immediately clear. They committed fully to exploring virtual reality, developing pioneering 360-degree filming technology and producing acclaimed experiences with partners ranging from Cirque du Soleil to the Obama White House. Their Emmy-winning work, particularly projects set in space, cemented their reputation as leaders in narrative VR.
(Source: Wired)