Of all places, Chuck E. Cheese, will be getting the virtual reality headset known as Oculus Rift soon. The restaurant, which specializes in gaming and pizza for a younger audience, is now selecting the technology in Dallas, San Diego and Orlando. Dallas will be getting it first followed the other two locations.
"Kids today have unprecedented access to game consoles and tablets," says Roger Cardinale, president, CEC Entertainment, Inc. "Our challenge is to deliver an experience not available at home, and there is no doubt virtual reality does just that. Oculus Rift technology is the next frontier in the gaming industry, and we're thrilled to be able to say it's part of the Chuck E. Cheese's lineup."
The virtual reality headset will be available during a six-week testing period for birthday party guests starting now for Dallas and the other two markets next month. It is being brought to the restaurants from a company called Reel FX, which is based out of Dallas and Santa Monica. However, it won't be gaming that the restaurant will offer guests in 3D, but a virtual Ticket Blaster.
Users will get a 3D view and 360-degree head tracking while they are inside the Ticket Blaster with Chuck. E. The Oculus Rift will register the number of tickets sold and they will be redeemable at the merchandise counter for guests.
The 13364 Montfort Drive locaion in Dallas will be the first restaurant that will use the technology, which will be followed by 15 more locations in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, six in Orlando, Fla., and eight in San Diego, CA.
"We believe that virtual reality eventually will be as popular as our handheld devices," says Reel FX founder and Executive Creative Director Dale Carman. "It's a game-changer, and we're investing incredible time and talent into developing content for the Oculus Rift."
Despite being an odd venue to launch the technology in, it makes sense for a restaurant that focuses on gaming, albeit for a younger audience, to bring Oculus Rift onto the masses. If it succeeds wowing users who select tickets using a 360-degree view, then it will make sense for arcade games to start implementing it as well at the restaurant and other locations.
Those who follow virtual reality advancements may know that Oculus Rift was actually acquired by Facebook recently, but was launched from a Kickstarter campaign. It really shows the power behind Kickstarter and great marketing for the technology to capture the masses the way it did and already be adapted to different markets.
