As VR technology has improved rapidly over the last few years, so has its popularity. When most people think of virtual reality, they probably imagine some person wearing a headset, wandering through an action-packed world, destroying monsters left and right. Most recently, the video games Doom and Skyrim both released VR adaptations. However, while the mainstream focus of VR has largely been on the gaming industry, many corporations have found unique ways to utilize the technology. Here are some of the imaginative and weird adaptations of VR tech.
To Train New Employees
Training new employees can be a hassle. There is a lot to learn on the first day and employers usually have their own business to attend to. This problem has lead to detailed (boring) employee manuals, thorough (boring) training programs, and other (boring) solutions. KFC, however, might have found the perfect way to train employees in an immersive (not boring) way, releasing a VR training game. The goal of the game? To escape a locked room by frying chicken to KFC standards. Following the MO of Jigsaw, “The Colonel” traps players in a room until they are able to properly quality-check, season, and fry KFC chicken. Once the tasks are completed, the player is finally able to leave the nightmarish reality.
[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jmRQBugNDGQ[/embedyt]
To Test Your Fears
Who really wants to get over their fears? Avoidance works for many a people. Don’t like heights? Don’t go skydiving or work in a highrise. Don’t like spiders? Live with someone who will kill them for you. But, if you are one of those people who are into “self-betterment,” then VR may be able to help rid you of those pesky fears. One such example is a game by Bandai Namco in which players have to save a kitten from a ledge. Oh, and the ledge has a 200 meter drop. While they never explain how exactly this kitten found itself on a wooden plank hanging 200 meters above the city, it does look like an invigorating game where one can simulate heroism while hopefully easing their fear of heights.
[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9NoAQ1Ocvv4[/embedyt]
To Experience Death
“Let them eat cake!” I don’t know about you, but for me, that is the only part of the French Revolution I would like the experience. Nothing sounds better than sitting down with a pair of VR goggles to eat some cake in 1700s France. But, apparently there is someone out there who wanted to experience a different part of the French Revolution: the whole guillotine part. This guillotine simulator will allow you to finally know what it feels like to be ridiculed by a large crowd, until finally the blade falls and your head rolls along the stage. It’s a great opportunity to trap yourself in a horrifying Groundhog Day scenario where you can relive the same 30 seconds of death over and over again. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t curious, myself.
[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e828RIJ5Fd4[/embedyt]
