Sony Reveals Incredible The Last Of Us “Future Immersive Entertainment Concept” That Places Players Directly Into The Game

Sony has revealed a proof of concept for what they say is the next step in immersive gaming experiences, featuring The Last of Us. The experience would immerse players in Sony’s games more wholly than ever before, placing the player in the middle of the game. The result is an impressive gaming space that’s meant to transform the experience of a videogame into something much larger.

Titled simply “Future Immersive Entertainment Concept,” the video from the Sony YouTube channel shows a glimpse of the company’s planned next steps into immersive gaming. The video shows an entire specially built room where each wall is lined floor to ceiling with Sony Crystal LED panels. The immersion is completed through surround sound, haptics, and “atmospherics.” This experience is not yet available to play anywhere as it’s only a proof of concept but Sony believes it is “uniquely placed to combine the elements of story and technology to create completely new experiences.

The video shows players entering the room and experiencing a version of The Last of Us created just for the experience. The fully immersive experience gives players a controller that can be used as a flashlight, with the screens reacting in real time to the players waving the light around them. Players are also armed with a weapon, which they aim and shoot into the surrounding screens, where zombies pop out at them to attack.

The result is a wholly immersive experience that isn’t held back by peripherals. Fans can experience actually being in the video game without needing to wear a VR headset or worry about bumping into something in the real world. The experience was built by Sony to show how this kind of storytelling can “fully immerse you into the world of the story” by combining the latest “Location Based Technologies.” The final result is a mix between a video game and a theme park and it might just be the next thing in immersive interactive entertainment.

Future Sony Immersive Experience Isn’t Meant For Private Home Use

It’s More Likely Heading For Arcades And Amusement Parks

Besides how awesome the concept is, one thing is immediately apparent upon watching the prototype video: The experience is clearly not meant for personal use. The system requires an entire room to be built in order to be used, while I can barely find room in my bedroom to use a regular controller without hitting something. Instead, this kind of experience would be amazing for groups of people to play together in arcades or amusement parks. Imagine a virtual escape room that uses this technology.

The opportunities are truly endless. I’ve seen several spaces use VR headsets for visitor experiences, but these are clunky, very limited due to all the connected wires, and can’t easily be experienced in a group. This interactive experience prototype by Sony eliminates many of these issues, making it a clean and comfortable group gaming session where the players are actually a part of the story and I, for one, can’t wait to try it in real life.

Source: Sony/YouTube

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The Last of Us

Platform(s)

PS3
, PS4

Released

June 14, 2013

Publisher(s)

Sony