Final Fantasy XR Ride at Universal Studios Japan

There's quite a few posts dotted around this blog now about stuff at Universal Studios Japan.  I'm not affiliated I swear, they just keep doing video game related stuff and therefore I'm compelled to go and check it out.

Usually I go to USJ for the Halloween events but this time I went out of season to go and check out a limited time Final Fantasy themed roller coaster they had.

The ride has, for now, replaced the Space Fantasy ride and the whole area has been COMPLETELY changed for the event.  As you come into the vicinity of the ride you can hear the series main theme played on the park speakers which does a pretty good job of hyping one up for the upcoming excitement. 

If you had never heard of Space Fantasy before there's almost no way you'd know it even existed in this space before they changed it for this ride, EVERYTHING has been made over. 

For example this used to be a big talking space face that would move around and all sorts of crazy shit and it's been COMPLETELY gutted to make space for this table with Moogles on it decorated with various iconic Final Fantasy weaponry. 

Once inside the ride itself its the usual Space Fantasy coaster but you are given a pair of "Crystal Goggles" so that you can navigate your way to Midgar and get back to an airship that's waiting for you.  Inside the VR you approach a crystal that has a little picture of Midgar on it and straight away some twat punches it and sends you to the Thunder Plains from FFX.  This happens a whole bunch of times and you fly through a bunch of areas from other Final Fantasy games until you land in Midgar and watch Cloud and Sephiroth have an Advent Children fight for a bit.  The ride ends with a bunch of Moogles telling you that you did a great job despite the fact that all you did was sit in a chair and get flung around a steel track.

All in all it was a pretty good experience.  Nothing out of this world but not bad for a bit of fanwank at a theme park.  I actually wanted to ride it a second time but the wait time became pretty massive in the afternoon so I had to skip it.  Also there was merchandise, I bought a water bottle with a chocobo on it that was pretty cool but they were expecting people to pay about £25 for a fucking ball pen which is just retarded.  Unfortunately it's not a permanent thing and Space Fantasy will make its return before too long but I'm sure once the ride is gone you'll be able to find some footage of it on YouTube or something.

Finally Tried The Oculus

So today I was walking around town doing some retro game shopping (video incoming) when I discovered a building that was running some Oculus Rift demos for people to just line up and try out.  At the time me and my group were fucking starving but of course we put that aside to test out some VR goodness.

For those that don't know, the Oculus Rift is a VR headset type thing and it's being used to do all sorts of cool gaming shit with.  Think the Virtual Boy but with some really good displays instead of just some red and black faux 3D bullshit going on.  It also doesn't give you nasty headaches after a short time of use or at least not to my knowledge.

The demo that I was able to try today wasn't a game as such more like a little first person movie of a roller coaster.  The roller coaster wasn't just any kind of roller coaster though, it was impossibly high and did all sorts of weird twists and turns that would kill you if put into a real coaster. 

Before I continue I would just like to say that I have a fear of heights and therefore I dislike roller coasters greatly.  When I was lining up to try the thing I could feel myself getting nervous despite that fact that I knew it was just a wooden chair in a dark room.  Just to give you a good idea of how bad I am, last time I went to Universal Studios Japan I freaked my shit on the Snoopy themed roller coaster designed for children, it's not good.

Anyway, I put the Rift on feeling only slightly apprehensive and I was met with a view of the coaster making it's climb.  I could turn my head and view the surroundings which was really cool and as it got to the top I got that same feeling in my chest that I get when I ride the real thing.  I found myself grabbing the chair pretty tightly despite the fact that I knew it wasn't real.  Once it started to fall the feeling subsided and it was a good bit of fun but I thought the fact that it was able to get that kind of response out of me pretty amazing.  At the end of the ride the coaster flies off a slope where the guy showcasing the demo then runs behind you and rocks your chair back to simulate the feeling.  I freaked out a little there more because I felt like I was going to fall off rather than the feeling caused by the rift.

Still though, if this is VR in it's early stages then things are going to get really good when the thing is released to the public.  Playing a horror game or a First Person Shooter in this thing will be mind blowingly fun and I can't wait to try.  If VR really is the future then sign me up!